My vet convinced us to use sentinel on my 6 month old gsd.I also use front line on their suggestion. We are new to Dogs and want the best for him, but lately we've read a lot about this product and are affraid of it harming him. Can I get a little feedback on what direction with this is best for our dogs health!! Thanx.

 Quote: Robert overbeek

My vet convinced us to use sentinel on my 6 month old gsd.I also use front line on their suggestion. We are new to Dogs and want the best for him, but lately we've read a lot about this product and are affraid of it harming him. Can I get a little feedback on what direction with this is best for our dogs health!! Thanx.

Well, Sentinel is a combination heartworm med, flea med, and de-wormer. So my question would be, why Frontline as well? Is it for ticks? Or maybe Sentinel is the only HW med they carry (which, by the way, isn't a particularly good reason for choosing one over another... JMO)?

Do you feel that you need a constant wormer? (I de-worm if there is evidence of worms, which in my particular situation has been pretty much never ..... once over 30 years or so).

Can you give us a little more info about why the vet wanted these meds used?



(I'm not a health professional.)

ya know Connie, its one of those situations where were new owners of a wonderful GSD and wanted the best for him. so with our small knowledge we relied on our vet for her opinion since we figured she would have the education and would lead us in the right direction.while Eliot, our puppy, was going through his shots we were sternly told NOT to allow him around other dogs or even take him outside our yard until the shots were completed..3 months..we done as she said. She also tried to give us another brand of heart worm pill that killed ticks too. we disagreed and went with her on sentinel. I understand sentinel only kills female fleas and not ticks so the vet said we had to also use frontline. Since this experience, we've learned a great deal both from online research and Leerburg. What we discovered is everything the vet told us set Eliot back a great deal in socializing with both other dogs and people. We have overcome that part, but now we question if using so much "pesticide" is really necessary or are we being buffaloed again where my pup will suffer the consequences. We have set up an appointment with a different vet for his opinion..old school vet..but any advise to us so we can ask informed questions to him and make at least an educated guess if hes in it for the dog...or the money..would be helpful. Eliot don't have worms.

I think you are right in wanting to not over-medicate. So, instead of focusing on the meds themselves, start with what you're trying to accomplish.

At a minimum you need:
A monthly heart worm preventative.
A flea plan.
And depending on what you think your dog's exposure will be to ticks, possibly a tick medicine.

There are individual drugs for each of these tactics. And there are combination drugs that will do more than one of these.

But I wouldn't use a couple of different "combination drugs" if their targets are overlapping.

For example, if you use a heart worm + flea combo, then don't add a flea + tick med. You're double-dosing for fleas, which would be a waste of money and exposing the dog to more chemicals than necessary (you can only kill the flea once.)

So when you talk to the next vet, explain what you want to accomplish, then ask what is the fewest number of drugs you need.

(I don't think you need to worm your dog monthly.)

Most of the medicines out there for these things are remarkably safe--as long as you're not over-doing it. And the small risk from the drug is greatly outweighed by the risk of heart worm and fleas. You don't want fleas. I promise you.

Thank you very much!!! Your approach sounds logical.I will do just that when we meet this other vet tomorrow.

There are only a very few parts of the country now where you don't need a heartworm med. The results of a HW infestation are not pretty.

Heartguard (ivermectin) is probably the most economical preventative. There are some reports from down South of HW's resistant to ivermectin. Some breeds with a specific mutation do not tolerate ivermectin and other HW drug at all. http://www.vetmed.wsu.edu/depts-vcpl/ Fortunately, GSD's are not one of them.


Actually, the HW drugs prevent nothing, the pesticides kill the parasites before they have a chance to establish a beachhead in your pet. This is why we dose once a month. The drug doesn't last a month, rather you kill the HW larva before they have a chance to mature.

The flea part of the med is up to you. If fleas are a problem, you can get a can of Precore -- an insect growth regulator for about $30. It covers 2000 sq ft and interrupts the flea growth cycle for 6-7 months.

Capstar, a pill, is available at places like Costco for about $26 / pack of 6. That kills any fleas resident on your dog immediately. A friend gave some to a rescue she was fostering. She could see the fleas just dropping off the dog. Capstar does not leave a residual and your dog may get re-infested. Lot's of stuff out there on how to control fleas.

You will also want to read the things written on this site about excessive vaccinations. Except for rabies, your dog should never need another shot.

FWIW, German Shepherds are a bit sensitive to over vaccination. It over-amps their immune systems and then you start seeing the auto-immune diseases like perianal fistulas.

I'm really glad we don't have these things around here ...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZ472bilAkE
one of the benefits of a cold climate.

delete dupe

Thank you Charlie, that gave me an entire field to investigate.I live in Michigan,tics this year have become an issue to watch, I've not heard anything much on fleas this year though. I agree on the vaccinations, our laws here are must have rabbie shot by 16 weeks old. That's nuts!! Eliot was sick as heck after having it. Once again thank you for your in sites.

I went to the new vet today...Wow, I wanted old school, well that's what I got. haha. He said the same thing almost ver batem as yous.the sentinel and frontline were overlapping so he changed it to Iverheart max and frontline. he also scolded me out after I explained Eliots behavior after he eats {I let him out in the yard but he runs then) he explained that in doing this without making Eliot relax for an hour after eating he runs the risk of some how flipping his stomach over, which can kill him. Gods I never knew that!!! so, I learned a lot from him. I believe I've found a vet I trust...not much of a conversationalist but one awesome upfront doctor.

Yes. The condition he described about the stomach is commonly called "bloat" and it kills quickly. It would be worth your while to do a little reading about it (here, or google it.)

It is a too-common condition with deep-chested breeds like GSDs. If you know the signs and get medical help quickly, the dog may survive. I have experience with this. Sometimes, there's no "cause" (like exercise after eating)--it just happens. But if it does, you have minutes to react.