My puppy has worms. Can I give him adult Heartguard cut in half?

There would actually be several options - most heartworm preventatives and dewormers come in tablets small enough for puppies. There is no minimum for Heartgard, and I believe there is an Interceptor dose that starts at 2 lbs. Ask your vet what medications they carry and would recommend in your area.

Yes, I usually start dogs under six months on a heartworm medication without a blood test. The test checks for antibodies to adult worms and they need six months to grow into adults so that’s why the test isn’t needed. I’m glad you are using heart guard since it’s safe to use even if by some chance he has an early heartworm infection. Certainly have his blood tested at your annual exam and vaccinations. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Jac.

A 10 week old puppy is too young to have a heartworm infection. Your puppy could have heartworm larvae circulating in his blood but the adult heart worms take 4-6 months to develop in the heart. I usually start puppies on a monthly heartworm preventative when they are around 12 wks old. This will kill the larvae and prevent the adult heart worms from infecting the heart. If you haven’t already taken your puppy to see a veterinarian for his puppy vaccines and dewormer, you should do that as soon as you get a chance to prevent him from getting sick. Hope this has helped. Good luck with your new puppy. Thank you for using pet coach.

I do recommend monthly heartworm prevention starting at 8 weeks of age. It is a prescription so a veterinarian does not have to personally give the pill but you need to either buy it from a vet or get a prescription from a vet. The only medication that needed to be at a veterinarian's office is Pro-heart. This is an injectable heartworm prevention that lasts for 6 months. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Looks like roundworms. There are many OTC dewormers that should work just fine. You can look for one that contains Pyrantel. It is still a good idea to have a vet diagnose what worms or other intestinal parasites are present. And Cujo will need re-treatment in 3 weeks to kill adults that hatch from eggs in the intestines right now. Here is a good product: https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/8-in-1-safe-guard-4-canine-dewormer?bvstate=pg:2/ct:r

Heartgard and Sentinel are both good options for heartworm prevention - just make sure to check the minimum weight requirements, since I'm not sure how much your puppy weighs. He will also need to be vaccinated against distemper, parvo, and other serious illnesses that are common in puppies, and should also be dewormed if this hasn't been done yet. You should be able to make an appointment with your local vet to have all of these things done - the vet can also prescribe an appropriate heartworm prevention for your pup at that time :)

I am sorry to hear about your concern for Poppie! Depending on when your groomer saw the worms, it is possible they could have been worms killed by the dewormer and then pooped out. There are also different kinds of worms one may see in the stool, some of which are not killed by the commonly used dewormer or the dewormer in heartgaurd (such as tapeworms). I would recommend dropping a stool sample off for your vet to check under the microcsope, or if your groomer sees another worm having them save it and bring it in for your vet to check. Your vet can then prescribe the appropriate dewormer for Poppie.