Hello. I am writing for your opinion on using Bravecto, the pill that provides 12-week flea & tick protection. My vet is keen on it. My concern is that one of my two dogs has had cancer twice; also she reacted badly (vomiting) to a similar pill when she was a puppy. What is your advice? Thank you
–Gwen
Editor’s Note: for more information, check out these two articles: Homemade Flea and Tick Prevention for Dogs & Best Flea and Tick Prevention for Dogs
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As one of the comment moderators for Canine Journal, my heart breaks reading all of our readers’ comments about what Bravecto has done to your pets. Fortunately, our Sally has been completely healthy and happy and didn’t get sick from the Bravecto. In the future, I will ask more questions up front about potential side effects of medications and do research on what my vet recommends for my dog. I consider us to be very lucky that nothing bad happened to our sweet Sally.
I want to express my sorrow for those of you who have given Bravecto to your dogs and they have gotten ill from it. I can’t imagine how it feels to be in your shoes and I want to thank you for sharing your experiences with our community so other pet parents can be more informed.
Then, these “episodes” started occurring a few+ times a year. He would seem fine, then look scared and weak. Then he would lose control of his muscles and either fall over or not be able to get up. Drooling became excessive and his eyes looked dialated and “lost”. He would lose his bladder and shake uncontrollably. These episodes would last for about 5-30 minutes; leaving him tired and weak. I have tried to correlate the episodes with medicines, food, weather, seasons, activities, etc. He has also had episodes of itchiness/scratching. We have not noticed any dry patches or redness. (I thought it could be the Bravecto wearing off and he had a flea or two?) I have taken him to the vet for regular visits; as well as additional visits when the earlier seizure-like events occurred. We hoped to diagnose “what” happened to treat or prevent further episodes. We ran test and all was good. Fortunately, he doesn’t have enough seizures to warrant sedation-type meds so we did “nothing” but hope that his last episode was just that— his last.
Our vet has also pushed Bravecto for him during this time- even after our concerns about the med were raised at each visit. He kept assuring us the medicine was safe. It is expensive and the rebates were hardly worth the effort it took to receive! But through all our complaints and concerns, we were still assured it was our best & safest option. My rationale was it was tested and approved by a reputable pharmaceutical company!?! Plus, our dog even liked taking it … it was his “treat”!
Our dog’s last episode was two weeks after giving him his last dose of Bravecto – – two months ago. Can I 100% say Bravecto was the cause of his seizures? No! Will I give him another dose of Bravecto? Absolutely NOT! I’m ashamed it has taken me this long to realize I probably, and literally, may have been handing him his poison!
Bravecto tablet. A few days later he had a bad seizure he is 7yrs old and has never had a fit before. This was the first time I have used it and it is the last. He has had fits after using this bravecto for over seven months before they stopped. He has always been a healthy dog before this. I am convinced bravecto is the cause of this. My son has just got a puppy and has taken him to the vets yesterday and in this puppy pack they have given him is bravecto tablets I was very annoyed as this could have dire consequences for a 9 week old puppy.
Did you ask your vet to follow up? Often in addition to paperwork, the company will require a post-mortem exam and other tests. We should partner with our veterinarians to let them know this is important and we are willing to do all we can to make sure the companies are aware and the reactions are on the record. When we have reactions to our own medications, we have to report them to the companies and FDA, my doctor has always provided the information for me to file the report. I am not aware of him filing forms but the company may contact the doctor because I provide the information on my doctor. Of course, there are privacy issues with people’s records and not necessarily with animal’s records.
In August when both dogs were due for their 2nd dose, I just couldn’t bring myself to give it to them. I just thought it absolutely does not make sense to give a chewy tablet filled with toxic insecticide to a pet that you dearly love and are trying to give the best to. Last Wednesday, the day before the FDA released their warning to the public that Bravecto causes seizures, tremors, stumbling and the like, I took the remaining 4 doses ( for both dogs) back to the Vet stating that I just couldn’t bring myself to giving them to my dogs. The Vet assistants were very dismissive and made me feel I was over reacting and didn’t know the facts etc etc. They even took the warning insert from the box to review the cautions from Merck, the manufacturer. I responded by saying ‘Do you really think the manufacturer, Merck, are going to list those side effects?’
I really did not appreciate the dismissive manner with which they responded to me. Even though for the past two years at our dogs annual check up, I clearly signalled that I felt the tremors and even the deafness was related to Bravecto, our Vet did not even record my intuitions in his notes.
My husband texted me the FDA public warning late Friday night, 2 days after I had returned the Bravecto to the Vet. I can’t begin to describe the guilt I experienced Friday night after the confirmation that the Bravecto causes seizures and tremors, stumbling and lack of coordination. Earlier that Friday morning, my female had great difficulty coming up the stairs outside. We had installed rubber mats both on the stairs outside and even in the house because with her tremors and lack of coordination ( again I remind you the Vet told us was old age and arthritis) she had great difficulty going up and down the stairs. When she did come in from outside after having had difficulty going up the stairs, she went to go down the stairs to our basement, which than God are carpeted, and fell about one third of the way down head over heel. She came sheepishly into the room, very disoriented after the fall and had one of the worst tremors I had ever seen her have which lasted much longer than any she has experienced before. She has then several times a day, like ‘shudders’ and trips over her own feet. Most times very unsteady on her feet, limping around and whenever she is standing, she is always leaning like the tower of Pisa. She just broke out with a new series of scaly patches at a few spots around her body with one large patch under her front leg.
I am devastated by the confirmation from the FDA about the toxicity hazard of this product. I can’t believe I made the intuitive decision the day before the Public Warning that I had returned the product to the Vet. I wish in my heart of hearts that I had followed that same intuition when I first had it 2 years earlier to not give it to them. My male has not presented like my female but he is 4 years younger.
I hope this helps anyone with identifying the symptoms of their own pets.
It’s just not worth taking the chance.
We are using ‘Cedarcide’ , a natural non toxic spray made from the Texas Red Cedar and NO, it is not the cedar oil that is dangerous for cats.
We have had great results with it over the last 12 years and sincerely wish we had simply stuck with it but when we moved to Ontario 4 years ago, we were overwhelmed with the tick crisis so thought we had better use the Bravecto because of the fear of Lyme disease.
I read reports from a vet in England who proved one dose of Bravecto can stay in the dogs system for even as long as a year! So even when you stop dosing them, they still have it in their system and will continue to present with the side effects.
Imagine giving the prescribed 3 or 4 doses! Imagine the concentration of the pesticide in their system!
Like GMO foods, Monsanto states that the pesticide Round Up that they use in their GMO’d seeds would not leak into the guts of the people eating GMO’d food but guess what, it does! Round up affects the ‘gut’ of the insect so you can imagine what it is doing to humans!
The American Paediatric Society tried to get the FDA to do something about it as they were seeing a huge increase of children presenting with serious intestinal disorders at very very young ages. Your intestinal health is the foundation for your immune system and now they are documenting that tour intestinal health has direct impact on your mental health.
We really don’t know what we’re doing,
do we?
I am sure the leakage of the poison in Bravecto is the same as the leakage of Monsanto ( which was recently bought out by Bayer pharmaceuticals )
They know what they’re doing for profit, without conscience or integrity and we, out of fear compromise our better judgement and feed poison to our beloved pets. Imagine, they were looking into making a Bravecto like tablet for humans like our neurology hasn’t been affected enough in this life.
No, we do not know what we are doing.