We all know that babesia is running rampant across our dogs, but there are OTHER tick-born diseases that can be just as bad, like erlichia, lyme disease, etc.
Right now, for those who live in tick country, this is when these little buggers are coming out of hibernation. It is a BIG mistake to leave ticks on your dogs, because you can get them ALL sick with any of a number of terrible diseases this way. So, beat the ticks to the punch and NIP THEM OFF AT THE BUD by buying yourself some FRONTLINE PLUS ... and then use it religiously until winter hits again! Yes, I know, this medicine is prohibitively expensive, especially if you run a large yard, but there are ways to reduce your costs. You need to hit even your pups (once they're passed 8 weeks of age), and you need to jump on it, before ticks jump on you AND your dogs. Here is a good process to save yourself $$$ in this endeavor:
STEP ONE:
Frontline comes in four sizes. Up to 22 lb, 23-44 lb, 45-88 lb, and 89-132 lb. You get three (3)
applications per package, all dosed according to their pre-designed sizings, which respective
sizes are .67 cc, 1.34 cc, 2.68 cc, and 4.02 cc for each application - again according to the
size of your dog. If you run a lot of dogs, get ONLY the super large-sized 4.02 cc Frontline for
89-132 lb dogs. Here's why ...
STEP TWO:
If you do the math, Frontline is dosed at .1675 cc per 5.5 lbs of dog weight. If you (say) buy
the 2.68 cc Frontline tells you to use for a 46 lb dog, you have JUST WASTED over 1.2 cc of
product that you COULD HAVE applied to a 40 lb dog ... because a 46 lb dog actually only needs
about 1.4 cc of product ... and you just dumped 2.68 cc on him! The "2.68" size of pre-packaged
Frontline for 45-88 lb dogs is dosed for the MAXIMUM size of an 88 lb dog, and yours was only 46
lb! This is why you need to forget about Frontline's pre-packed "sizings" and just go for the
largest doses they sell, dump it all together, and then break it down yourself, but MORE EXACTLY.
You simply buy the largest size possible (three vials of 4.02 cc of product), and then pour ALL
of the doses into ONE common container for a total of 12.06 cc of product), and from there, you
take a 3 cc syringe and dose your dogs EXACTLY what they need based on their EXACT weight. If you
have a 46 lb dog, you take your 3 cc syringe and pull out 1.4 cc from the 12.06 collection you
have. Now, just apply the 1.4 cc to your 46 lber and move on to the next dog and (again) pull out
the EXACT dose for him (based on HIS exact weight), and move on the next ...
This exact breakdown is as follows:
For bigger dogs, all you do is add .1675 cc of product for every 5.5 lb of body weight.
STEP THREE:
Just go on down the line. Weigh each dog and then apply the EXACT amount of product s/he needs.
This way, you haven't WASTED valuable product with each application, like you would have had you
tried to buy the Frontline in accordance with its pre-packaged sizing. You can save all kinds of
money by (a) buying (say) 10 boxes of the super-sized doses and get a volume discount and have
enough for the whole summer; (b) save even more money if you can get ahold of an independent
distributer of Frontline to get this from, rather than going to your vet; and finally (c) then
enjoy further savings by following the dosages & guidelines above.
For instance, to Frontline my yard of dogs this month cost me about $120 worth of prodcut this way. Had I followed the Frontline label, and bought the product based upon the manufacturer's pre-fabbed sizings, I would have spent well over $250 on my yard of dog this month. Ouch! (and I don't mean my stud dog :).
Anyway, I hope this idea helps some people, because you NEED to use this product if you live anywhere ticks may be!!!
FINAL TIP:
Frontline should be used every month for ticks, but only every three months if you have fleas.
You also should make sure you put the product through the fur and apply it directly ro the
SKIN of your dog.
Anyway, hope this helps,
~ California Jack
Take from the website of Vise-Grip Kennel: http://www.angelfire.com/ca7/CaliforniaJacksDogs
Last Updated: June 25, 2002
