# Trifexis Alternatives



## jackh (Oct 14, 2010)

I've been using trifexis on my dog for over a year. His only side effect is lethargy for about a day after getting his pill. I've read some bad stuff about trifexis recently, and I am considering changing medicines. My vet said he recommends trifexis to all his patients, uses it on his personal dogs, and has never seen any bad side effects or problems with the pill. He said if I really want to change, a good alternative would be a combo of Heartgard Plus and Nexgard. It looks like the generic versions of this would be Iverhart Plus and Bravecto. Has anyone had problems with Trifexis? Anyone on here use heartgard plus and nexgard? Thanks.


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## jackh (Oct 14, 2010)

https://www.dogmedicationdb.com/com...gard-plus/bravecto/iverhart-plus/iverhart-max


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## sapitrucha (Dec 17, 2011)

I use Advantage Multi, have had very good luck with it.


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## Hitch (Aug 23, 2015)

I use Trifexis and have seen no side effects. He has been on it now for 7 months or so.


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## flynlab (Aug 17, 2015)

I use the combo of Heartgard and Nexgard, have not had any problems. Great flea and tick control.


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## Billie (Sep 19, 2004)

Trifexis smells like poison. I wont give it to my dogs. I would use the HG and Nexguard combo if I needed it.


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## MikeJFalkner (Jul 17, 2014)

My girl has been on Trifexis for 2 years, no side effects. I went this route on the advice of my vet who is very well respected in the FT/HT community around here and trains/competes with his own dogs. We've had a number of documented cases here in the midsouth of ivermectin resistant heartworms (lots of dogs on monthly HG or Ivomec oral testing positive). I will say my dogs hate taking the Trifexis, I guess they pick up the smell Billie refers to.


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## LTanner (Feb 5, 2014)

Billie said:


> Trifexis smells like poison. I wont give it to my dogs. I would use the HG and Nexguard combo if I needed it.


All the products out there are safe in general. They had to pass some serious testing with the FDA to be approved. As with any medication/food/etc in humans and dogs, different individuals react differently. Peanut butter kills some people. That doesn't make peanut butter bad, just bad for those individuals. I have used many different products on the market for a lot of different reasons. Trifexis smells like mold to me, but so do penicillin type antibiotics. That doesn't make it bad, just hard to get some dogs to take it. It does a great job for HW, intestinal parasites (gets whipworm which HG doesn't), and is one of the top speed flea killers out there. But it is known to cause vomiting and/or lethargy as a common side effect. It gives no protection from ticks.

HG/NG combo gets your HW, intestinal parasites (except whips), fleas, and ticks. It's a yummy combo, and no consistent side effects have been noted.

Bravecto is not a generic. It is a 3 month long flea and tick control, with that third month losing efficacy against some ticks. It is labeled safe for pregnant and nursing dogs, I believe, which most other products are not. 

My favorite combo is Sentinel (HW, intestinal parasites, and flea egg development protector) with NG or Frontline Tritak (Topical with pesticides, but one of the top 2 in speed for flea contol. I use it with my mildly flea allergic dog, and it stopped the problems cold. )

Hope that helps! As always the best place to get info is from your DVM. 

Lisa


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## robertnla (Oct 16, 2008)

I have two client dogs here on Trifexis. They both get very sick from it. They don't want to eat for a couple days afterward. They get bad loose stool. I would never give this stuff on any dog I own. I try to get owners to switch but hasn't happen yet. I have one dog that eats the pill with food then throws it up 10 minutes later. And she still gets sick.


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## torg (Feb 21, 2005)

Check out the Facebook page: "Does Trifexis kill dogs."
Then decide for yourself. 
My neice argued that her dog had been on it for a number of years with no side effects. As her dog got older it became blind, unable to walk, incontinent, and had to be put down. I know this line of dog my male is 11 years old and is still running marks, siring litters, and acts like a pup. There is no doubt in my mind that the buildup of poison in the liver eventually killed her dog. There is a reason dogs become nauseated, lethargic, loose stools, and sick from it. I would never give it and know a Pro trainer that will not take a dog into training if they are on it.


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## LTanner (Feb 5, 2014)

torg said:


> Check out the Facebook page: "Does Trifexis kill dogs."
> My neice argued that her dog had been on it for a number of years with no side effects. As her dog got older it became blind, unable to walk, incontinent, and had to be put down. ..... the buildup of poison in the liver eventually killed her dog ...


Ok, I am so not one to be in on internet messaging drama - BUT- your statements are all emotion, and no fact. The internet (especially FB) is infamous for misinformation and downright lies. I promise you "Does Trifexis kill dogs" is just such a site. As I mentioned earlier, just because some dogs have a problem with the medication doesn't make it BAD and a KILLER. Not everything that happens to a pet is because they took x,y,z. Sometimes they are just old or their genetics fail and they get cancer, kidney failure, or a host of other problems. It is just a fact of life.

Your statement of "build-up in the liver" is also made up, for if liver issues were the problem they do not surface as "blind, unable to walk, incontinent". I am not trying to be snarky, just saying that you make statements like it is fact, not just your opinion, and it adds to the general fear about a product. For anyone reading this, I again urge you to talk to you veterinarian about your concerns-get your information from someone educated specifically about dog health, not a random stranger on the internet, or even worse - Facebook.

Lisa


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## torg (Feb 21, 2005)

In my "OPINION" my neice's dog suffered from side effects of Trifexis. In my "OPINION" an aquaintance who's dog had a seizure after taking Trifexis was probably caused by Trifexis. Jackh already asked what his vet recommended and he recommended Trifexis. 
Living in Texas with ticks and Trifexis not being effective against ticks I would use a product that also covers ticks . I know in our club we have members using Bravecto but it does not cover heartworm so Ivermec is used with it.


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## Brad (Aug 4, 2009)

my dogs wouldn't eat it so went back to iverhart and bravecto


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## LTanner (Feb 5, 2014)

torg said:


> In my "OPINION" my neice's dog suffered from side effects of Trifexis. In my "OPINION" an aquaintance who's dog had a seizure after taking Trifexis was probably caused by Trifexis. Jackh already asked what his vet recommended and he recommended Trifexis.
> Living in Texas with ticks and Trifexis not being effective against ticks I would use a product that also covers ticks . I know in our club we have members using Bravecto but it does not cover heartworm so Ivermec is used with it.


Ok, so I do want to apologize that my previous post obviously offended you. It really was not my intent. I just have a problem in today's society everyone believes things on the internet, like there is some kind of fact checking that happens before you can post things... And all the time people want something to blame when something goes wrong. For example here in Atlanta, the news carried stories about how Trifexis supposedly killed 2 puppies...one died a few days after administration, the other 2 weeks after. But when you think about it, those dogs also got vaccines, dewormers, food, treats, and whatever else they ate/were exposed to around the house. Any of those other things could also be the cause. When the pups were autopsied, I believe they found endocarditis (inflammation inside the heart) as for what lead to death, which had nothing to do with Trifexis (I'm not going to go into why, but that was the finding by a boarded pathologist.)

My advice to Jack is, if you said to your vet "I don't like Trifexis it makes my dog lethargic. Is there another option?" And his vet didn't give him another option, I would change vets. 

Anyway, I just want to have a friendly, informative, evidence-based scientific discussion, not to offend the wonderful members of RTF. And in my book you are all rockstars for treating your dogs for heartworm, fleas, ticks, parasites etc with approved products. So many dogs are not so well cared for by people trying to cut costs these days.

#holding out an olive branch

Lisa


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## Tyler Pugh (Mar 27, 2014)

Anyone have a review on Interceptor?


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## championretrievers (Feb 7, 2008)

On noth interceptor and heart guard we have experienced a lot of heart worm resistance to these medications, particularly in the south. We have use advantage multi for years without any occurrence of heartworms or adverse side effects


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## sapitrucha (Dec 17, 2011)

I had 2 dog get heartworms from interceptor. They paid for treatments but I wouldn't use it again.


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## Tyler Pugh (Mar 27, 2014)

sapitrucha said:


> I had 2 dog get heartworms from interceptor. They paid for treatments but I wouldn't use it again.


Not what I wanted to hear. I got talked into it a few days ago by my veterinarian.


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## jecartag (Feb 25, 2011)

My personal favorite is sentinel for heartworms, intestinal parasites, and a component of flea control (prevents the flea tooth from developing so the flea eggs cannot hatch...does NOT do anything for adults). For fleas and ticks, there is a newer product out by Zoetis called Simparica - an oral tablet that starts killing fleas within 3 hours and ticks within 8 hours.


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## EdA (May 13, 2003)

Tyler Pugh said:


> Not what I wanted to hear. I got talked into it a few days ago by my veterinarian.


Interceptor (milbemycin) has been a very effective heartworm preventative for more than 25 years. It is the active heartworm protective product in Sentinel and Trifexis. My practice participated in clinical trials for Interceptor and Sentinel and we have never had a failure in my personal dogs or my client dogs.


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## sapitrucha (Dec 17, 2011)

I've never had a problem either until last year, 2 dogs at different times. Now I use advantage multi with no problems at all. I do live close to the coast.


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## Mcgnaw (Mar 4, 2008)

EdA said:


> Interceptor (milbemycin) has been a very effective heartworm preventative for more than 25 years. It is the active heartworm protective product in Sentinel and Trifexis. My practice participated in clinical trials for Interceptor and Sentinel and we have never had a failure in my personal dogs or my client dogs.


Hi, Do you mean never a failure (or I guess a problem) with both Interceptor and Sentinal, or were you just referring to Interceptor? Thank you for your time.


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## EdA (May 13, 2003)

Mcgnaw said:


> Hi, Do you mean never a failure (or I guess a problem) with both Interceptor and Sentinal, or were you just referring to Interceptor? Thank you for your time.


Milbemycin is the heartworm preventative active ingredient in both. Interceptor is just milbemycin, Sentinel is milbemycin plus lufenuron, a compound which affects the fleas ability to synthsize the compound (chitin) which forms the flea egg shell and the protective covering for flea larva thereby acting as a form of flea birth control.


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## Tyler Pugh (Mar 27, 2014)

EdA said:


> Interceptor (milbemycin) has been a very effective heartworm preventative for more than 25 years. It is the active heartworm protective product in Sentinel and Trifexis. My practice participated in clinical trials for Interceptor and Sentinel and we have never had a failure in my personal dogs or my client dogs.


Thanks Dr. Ed. I have heard great things about it mostly. I just switched because I put my two dogs on seresto and wanted something for internal parasites a little cheaper than trifexis. So I went with Interceptor. Hopefully, it'll be a good combo.


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