My dog's first heartworm and flea meds: now sick and shivering?

The injection can be very painful. This could be why she is shivering. If it persists, contact your veterinarian and ask about pain management. If she becomes extremely lethargic or extremely painful, have her rechecked by your veterinarian or at the nearest veterinary ER.

Both doxycycline and prednisone can cause vomiting and diarrhea. I am not sure of the dose that your dog is on but maybe your vet could adjust the dose so he has less gastrointestinal problems. Feeding the medication with a meal can sometimes help with the gastrointestinal side effects so make sure to give with food. Your vet could also prescribe an anti-vomiting medication, probiotic, and GI protectant which may help, too. At this point, If he is just going to vomit the medication than it doesn't make sense to give it. You should wait and see if your vet can prescribe additional medications to help with the vomiting and diarrhea. If the vomiting and diarrhea has stopped, you could try to give one medication at a time with food and see how he does.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! If there is no further vomiting then she should be ok as this may be an isolated episode. However, if this continues, she should be evaluated by a veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. In the meantime, you may feed her a bland diet composed of boiled chicken breast and white rice which help with an upset stomach. Good luck and have a great day!

Hello. Heartguard is generally considered very safe, even in a dog with a current heart worm infection. If there was a reaction due to the presence of heartworms, it is almost always some kind of pulmonary event. So, it is possible that he has just developed a sensitivity or had a one off reaction to the Heartguard. Do think about having Buster tested before giving another pill, & do try to remember to give it every 30 days. All heartworm medications do a great job, but only if doses are not skipped, especially for dogs living in warmer climates. And if he does not seem better tomorrow, please make an appointment with your vet to have things checked out. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

It is not uncommon for dogs to vomit after medication and generally if it is more then 2 hours after the medication should have worked. As the food was undigested it may not have been absorbed as well as anticipated and it may be worth applying a different type of spot on medication, especially if you are in a heartworm affected area. Contact your local vets office for advice on the local risks and benefits of repeating or not

You are quite welcome for the help! Unfortunately, the flea, tick, and worm medication does not protect against heartworms, that requires a different medication. Signs of heartworm include a dry cough, lethargy, weight loss, anorexia, difficulty breathing, bulging chest, and collapse. Your vet can do a blood test to diagnose if she does have heartworm or not. Have a great day :-)

If the episodes occur in close proximity to administration of one of these products (24-48 hours) then it could be related to the medication. In these cases the product should be stopped and the pet should be transitioned to a different one. Another potential cause could be a type of seizure. You did not mention an age for Max, but seizures in dogs can be due to epilepsy (typically diagnosed at a young age but can be diagnosed later in life), metabolic cause (hypoglycemia, Addison's disease), central nervous system infections/inflammation, or an intracranial mass (typically more of a concern in older patients). If he has not had a full physical exam performed recently by his veterinarian I would recommend having it done, along with routine wellness blood work (serum chemistry, complete blood count) to rule-out organ dysfunction/metabolic cause.