Is oral or topical tick medication more effective for my dog?

With oral prevention there are no issues with bathing/swimming interfering with the product's efficacy as well as they don't typically lose any effectiveness between doses compared to topical flea/tick medications. There are also more chances for errors in applying topical medications compared to oral medications. Topical medications also rely on the skin absorbing them appropriately which rarely doesn't happen. I can't comment on the cheapest effective brand as prices can vary among areas as well as certain products can be discounted as part of a promotion depending on a veterinary clinic, online pharmacy and store. However ineffective products in my experience include Hartz and most collars.

The Seresto flea/tick collar is the only one on the market that is safe and effective - the others, including Adams, are often dangerously toxic for the dog and not effective at all for fleas in my experience. Advantix is definitely a better choice than PetArmor, but the most effective option available for fleas and ticks currently would be an oral medication like Nexgard or Bravecto. I would recommend getting a prescription from your veterinarian for one of these medications, if possible - this will eliminate the need for any topical medication or flea collars, and will also work much better.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I think your Vet is referring to Bravecto. Bravecto is an oral flea and tick medication that is given every 3 months. They have found that an extra benefit is that it can fight mange. I am not sure which type of mange your dog has; sarcoptic or demodectic mange. I have heard it is better for demodex. I have used Nexgard a once a month flea and tick medication for demodex. Hope this helps!

Bravecto last for three months, but I prefer using a monthly topical treatment personally. That's because it can be reapplied after two weeks at the earliest if needed, while you would need to wait longer to give your pet Bravecto again.

Yes, there is a difference in how all the different oral and topical heartworm and flea/tick medications work. Yes, a heartworm medication needs to get into the bloodstream, so even topical heartworm preventions will get absorbed through the skin and into the bloodstream to work. Flea and tick medications can work topically only or can be oral and work internally. Which are safest products is probably a matter of opinion. I will say that a couple of the oral flea/tick medications have been associated with seizures, so I do not recommend those in dogs that have seizures. Potentially, a topical flea/tick medication that does not get absorbed might be considered the "safest", but we certainly see some skin irritation from those products as one of their side effects. I think it's always a good idea to separate out new products, so you know if Doice is having a reaction to either, but since the products work differently, I don't know that there is a huge benefit to giving them separately long term. There are so many products out there on the market that I can't really give you a specific product recommendation for your area, but I would certainly speak with your vet about your concerns and ask them for their recommendations for Doice. I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

I recommend oral flea & tick preventatives. There are several brands, and all are effective: Nexgard, Simparica, and Credelio are monthly, or Bravecto which is given every 12 weeks. My top two are Nexgard and Bravecto. These are prescription products available from your veterinarian. Hope this helps!

Yes, bravecto tablets which cover for three months or nexguard tablets which cover for one month are both effective against fleas and ticks. Bravecto has a more rapid onset of action and is highly palatable but must be given with food. Remember also to keep up to date with deworming medications also