# HELP!!!!!Adverse reaction to K-9 Advantix?



## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

I am wondering if anyone elses dog had an adverse reaction from K-9 advantix. Two of my guys are having the same problem Dusty's mom had. They were scratching and biting like crazy. First I thought they had fleas, so I reapplied the Advantix. It stopped for several days, but started up again. Took them to the vet yesterday and Freddie had a staff infection. He has little red bumps all over his body, but maining on his chest and arm pits. He is licking himself like crazy. Scudder is doing the same thing, but has just a few bumps. Bella is scratching a tiny bit and has no bumps. The vet has no idea what is causing this. I was wondering if maybe it was the Advantix. This was the first time I used it. I switched from frontline plus. I am currently doing the Benadryl and medicated baths. I am so frustrated and my heart breaks for these itchy little furbabies.:Cry:      

PS My guys walk off leash on their daily hikes, but have been doing this their entire life with no problem. Their diets and everything else are the same.


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## SMARTY (Apr 19, 2007)

I have never used Advantix, but did you say they were scratching before you put it on? If so I don’t see this being the cause, but it may have made what they have worse. Staff is a caught infection, isn’t it? Good luck, I hope all is calming down later today.


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## Thumper (Feb 18, 2007)

My husband asked the vet for the Advantix and my vet told us that Advantix could be *toxic* to small dogs. He said to stick with the Frontline, so we did. He didn't elaborate on how it could hurt them, but said Gucci wasnt' a good candidate for it?

Kara


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## ama0722 (Nov 28, 2006)

poor little ones. I hope the benadryl kicks in so they aren't so itchy. My mom's cocker spaniel had a lot of issues with any of the flea stuff. I started the girls on revolution and have stuck with it. It is fine for Ohio where there aren't lots of ticks.

Amanda


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

I applied the Advantix and then 15 days later they started to scratch. I reapplied it, the scratching stopped for 5 days and then started again full force. Seems weird it would take that long to have a reaction, but I don't know what else has changed for them. There is no irritaion at the sight of application. I just heard a lot of dogs having bad rections to Advantix, so i thought I would consider it a possible cause. 

Maybe they ran through some bitting insect nest or something.

Thank God for the wealth of information on this site. If it wasn't for all of you, I wouldn't have known to use Benadryl. What a life saver! Thanks!


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## Jane (Jun 2, 2007)

Linda,

I was sorry to hear about your dogs' possible reaction to the Advantix. I hope they will feel better soon! I am also glad to know what your vet shared with you, Kara, about the Advantix being toxic to small dogs - we'll skip that one!

I've been using Frontline and Frontline Plus. My breeder recommended Frontline as being milder (one less chemical) vs. the F Plus. But if I actually see a live flea, I use the F Plus to kill ALL the life cycles of the flea. For the puppy I've been doing Frontline for now.

Jane


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## LuvMyHavanese (Apr 13, 2007)

My dogs are both on K9 Advantix & have not had any reactions to it. All i know is that there are soooo many things that can cause these little ones to scratch. It took me a long while to get Tripps itching down.


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## SHOWDOWN (Dec 17, 2006)

I USE ADVANTIX WITH NO PROBLEMSeace:


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## CinnCinn (Mar 30, 2007)

Hi Linda,
Great question. I've used Advantage with Rudy. I'm going to a new vet tomorrow for his x-rays and will ask again about flea control.

I hope it gets better soon!


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

Please let me know what the xray shows. Has Rudy stopped growing? Here we go again with the brother talk! Scudder has slowed way down. He has not gotten any taller, still at 9 inches and around 11.5lbs. He seems like the stockier of the 2! 
You are right on about family and friends. They run from me, so they don't have to hear about my dogs. I have stopped talking about them except for on this forum! Thank God for this vise!


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## CinnCinn (Mar 30, 2007)

Oh, you're right. My friends are like, "all right all ready", enough about the Havanese! My poor secretary, I think she's going to quit after 6 months of not so subtle hints that she should have her own Hav and bring it to work everyday to play with Rudy. I, on the other hand, think it's a brilliant idea!
Nobody understands me except those on this forum!

Rudy is 10" tall and 11 lbs. (Maybe more, they'll weigh him tomorrow) He is pretty stocky too, but I don't have anything to really compare him to except pictures. My in-laws got a Hav, he's 4.5 lbs at 6.5 months, can't really compare the two.

I'll keep you posted about the x-rays. Pray for good news!


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## EMarie (Apr 11, 2007)

We stopped using Advantix down here because the clients would bring us ticks in a jar that they pulled off their dogs, we also had a rash of clients who's dogs where having reactions with drug. The manufature told us that was a reaction and to wash the dog as soon as it starts, we would put the bad ones on antibiotics and steroids ( for the itching ). We stopped using it quickly after that started. I use Sentinal and Frontline...

Erin


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## Cosmosmom (Jan 12, 2007)

I used Sentinel with Asta with good results .. as I did not want to use topical ..
Cosmo's breeder did not recommend Advantage or Advantix - she recommended Frontline if necessary .
Just an FYI 
Dr Pitcairns recomends Garlic and brewers yeast . He states all these fleas products are creating a hardier flea that is more difficult to kill .
He also recommends a Lemon rinse which helps with flea and parasite control . He has a lot of helpful information and recommends vacuming .
I highly recommend his book for those of you who are looking for natural alternatives for flea control .
You can buy it for a reasonable price on amazon ..
Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs & Cats - 3rd edition 
Dr Pitcairn- no we are not related but I always like to make people aware of healthy alternatives


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## Havtahava (Aug 20, 2006)

I've read that lemon rinse a few different places, but I was wondering if it would dry out the skin on the dogs.


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## Sunnygirl (Jun 1, 2007)

My breeder told me to avoid K9 Advantix as she knows of a couple Havanese who lost their hair at the site of application, so she thinks it is too caustic for this breed. I have no idea whether that might be your problem, but I went with the Frontline she recommended.


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

I am still in the process of trying to figure it out. Trying to get to the vet ASAP. I think I will avoid Advantaix just to be on the safe side.

Thanks for all you help everyone!


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## EMarie (Apr 11, 2007)

Just something to keep in mind, anything we put topically on our dogs can cause any type of adverse reactions. That does not mean that it is going to be the typical reactions for the entire breed. Like the hair loss, or itchy skin...just be cautious when you use anything. Frontline is the product we saw the least amount of reactions with ( it also kills ticks ) and advantage has the least amount all around ( but it does not kill ticks ). I have never had any problems with either advantix or frontline, we just use frontline because it works the best for the amount of ticks we have in Georgia.

erin


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## radar_jones (May 6, 2007)

Sorry I can't identify with what your going through. We use Revolution on Radar with no reactions whatsoever.

Derek


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## Lola (Mar 22, 2007)

My groomer also told me that Advantax is strong for small beeds. He has seen quite a few skin reactions with that medication. He had a dog seize who had just been given its dose of Advantax. Also, if a dog is just over the 10lb cut off, it is questionable that the higher dose is good for small breed dogs. That higher dose might be too much and cause a reaction. I don't know if that info is true but it is something to think about. I have read on this site somewhere that quite a few owners use Frontline and are very satisfied. I would also be interested in any info on this subject. I have a dog with a Liver condition and am very careful of any medication she takes. Her condition makes me cautious about any medication that I give my healthy Havanese, Lola.


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## Havtahava (Aug 20, 2006)

I was trying to look up info on Advantix this morning and came across a host of links that talk about which signs to notice that would show adverse reactions, and how there have been a lot of reactions to Advantix among many breeds.

Side Effects from Advantix

World Wide Woof - Advantix comments

Advantix reaction on Golden Retriever

I'll stop with those three. That first link had more than enough info for me. Yikes.


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## Lola (Mar 22, 2007)

wow kimberly!!!!I just read all those links you posted. That is really interesting information. I think I will return my unopened Advantix and go with a plain Hartz Mountain Flea collar. Thanks for posting that information!!!!!! I was on the fence with that medication until i read all that info!


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## mckennasedona (Feb 20, 2007)

Am I just extraordinarily lucky or ???? 

I have never used a flea or tick product on the girls and have never had a flea or tick on them. They've been camping on the Mendocino coast, California gold country, and San Diego. They've been to Oregon and Arizona, to various beaches, and to play dates but have never come home with any fleas or ticks. The neighbors even feed stray cats. Weird. I should count my lucky stars I guess.

Susan


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

Wow, thanks for posting this.


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## mckennasedona (Feb 20, 2007)

Wow, Kimberly, I just read through those links. How awful. It just makes me sick that we trust these companies to come up with SAFE medications for our pets and yet they admit they didn't thoroughly test this stuff. You have to wonder what we're coming to when profit is the only motive and safety takes a backseat.

Susan


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## EMarie (Apr 11, 2007)

You all be very careful with ANY hartz products...i have seen it throw cats and small dogs into seizures and we had a few that we never did get out of it. So be careful, nothing on the market is as dangerous as Hartz anything!!!!


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## Havtahava (Aug 20, 2006)

Oh yes, Hartz is horrible! I cannot believe that product is still being sold over the counter at pet stores. I bought it one time at least a decade ago for my cat and the poor guy had so many problems from it. Thankfully, we got it off his skin before any siezures or anything like that, but it was a topical problem in less than 24 hours. It seemed to burn/irritate him and on the third day we realized the problem was getting worse instead of better.

By the way, I don't normally pay much attention to web sites that come across warning about a product because there are so many people out there who can put anything they want to just try to slam a product, but when I saw so many different people with different breeds having such severe reactions to the Advantix, it really concerned me. I was just considering using it for one of my pets, but I changed my mind after reading too many sites like the ones above.


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