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Is Bravecto safe for my puppy with ticks if she's under 6 months?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | German Shepherd | Female | unspayed | 4 months and 9 days old | 22 lbs

I live in Zanzibar and have a 4 month old german shepard puppy who is getting tics all the time. I want to give her Bravecto but it says not for puppies under 6 months, being a german shepard she is not that small though. Can you advise?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By David Darvishian

Veterinarian

Published on November 28th, 2017

Hi and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Sorry to hear about Bella. Bravecto can be used in puppies under 6 months but it's considered off-label or extra-label use. Puppies under 6 months are now treated with Bravecto for demodectic mange so it's safe. Just make sure you use the correct dose for her current weight.

Here's part of a thread I copied from a veterinarian only peer-reviewed site-

Bravecto should be safe to use, as would be Simparica or Nexgard. Nexgard is labelled for puppies 8 weeks or older, but with either of these drugs you would be using it off label based on using it for treatment of demodicosis, as well as based on the dog's body weight and/or age.

If I were to use one of these products, I would go monthly with either Nexgard or Simparica, and every 2 months with Bravecto for this little guy.

Another option is Advantage multi even though the dog is not quite 3 lbs - use every 10 days topically. This is a labelled option though not as effective as the off label treatments in my opinion. If/When the dog gains some weight over the next couple of months, you could always switch to an Isoxazoline drug if the Advantage multi isn't benefitting adequately.

Good luck

1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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