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Ask the vet’s pets: PetArmor isn’t identical to Frontline Plus

Dear Daisy Dog: My dogs have been using Frontline Plus for fleas and ticks, and my veterinarian said I have to buy it at the animal hospital because products sold elsewhere arent as good. Television ads tout PetArmor as equivalent. Whats the truth?

Daisy responds: You ask two questions, which Ill answer in reverse order.

Frontline Plus combines fipronil, which kills fleas and ticks, with methoprene, an insect growth regulator that kills flea eggs and larvae.

Now that Frontlines patent has expired, similar products have joined the market. One of them, PetArmor, contains fipronil, but not methoprene.

Thus, the products arent equivalent, but they do contain the same primary ingredient.

Frontline Plus is available through your veterinarian, at retail stores and on the Internet. As long as you receive the real Frontline Plus manufactured by Merial, and not a counterfeit version posing as the real thing but made by a disreputable company, the Frontline products are identical.

However, buying from your veterinarian does offer advantages. You can be confident youre getting the real thing, and that it was shipped and stored under conditions that maintain quality. Products purchased elsewhere may have been subjected to temperatures and moisture that diminish effectiveness.

Moreover, manufacturers extend guarantees to veterinary clients that retail customers dont get. For example, if your dog is taking a monthly heartworm/intestinal worm preventive purchased from your veterinarian and develops diarrhea due to one of those intestinal worms, the manufacturer will pay for all treatment and a follow-up fecal test.

If you choose to buy veterinary products elsewhere, your veterinarian should respect your decision. In the words of the American Veterinary Medical Association, Veterinarians should honor a clients request for a prescription in lieu of dispensing.

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Dear Christopher Cat: My cat Tigger has asthma. My veterinarian recommended an asthma inhaler called Flovent but said its expensive. Can you suggest an alternative?

Christopher responds: Flovent is an inhaled steroid thats very effective in feline asthma and much safer than giving Tigger long-term oral steroid medication.

Flovents less expensive generic equivalent is fluticasone. Many cat parents find they save money by ordering it online. For example, at www.canadadrugsonline.com, a fluticasone inhaler that lasts two months costs $35.

Tigger will need a cat-sized face mask with an aerosol chamber that adapts to the inhaler. A popular model is AeroKat, available online at www.aerokat.com for $55, a one-time charge because the device is reusable.

Directions and an instructional video on the AeroKat Web site will help you get Tigger breathing easily in no time at all.

Ask the Vets Pets appears Friday in the print edition of the Reading Eagle. The animal authors of the column live with Lee Pickett, VMD., who practices at Bernville Veterinary Clinic. Contact them at www.askthevetspets.com or PO Box 302, Bernville, PA 19506-0302.