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Heartworm Preventative Raises Concerns
By: Trisha Volpe
Created: 5/16/2004 4:24:38 PM
Updated: 5/16/2004 4:27:55 PM
As the weather warms up, your dog faces a hidden danger - heartworm.
Spring is the season for this potentially-fatal disease.
Now, a new drug is available that can prevent heartworm for 6 months at a time, instead of giving your dog a monthly pill.
But some say the new drug is deadlier than the disease it prevents.
For Kim Smith, her 5-year-old dog Kia and her other pets, are family.
"They're my children and I spoil them rotten," says Kim.
So last year, Kim thought she was taking care of Kia, with an annual trip to the vet. Kia received Proheart 6 - the only injectible medicine that prevents heartworm disease for 6 months. No pills to forget. But by the time Kia came home...
"I can't remember if she collapsed first or siezured," says Kim. "I went to pick her up and she jerked away from me and she just started convulsing and just yelping and crying."
Kia spent 3 days at the MSU animal clinic, near death. Kim says vets there suspected Proheart 6.
Kim has filed a report with the FDA. Kia's story will join more than 4000 other reports of dogs getting sick after a shot of Proheart 6. Across the country, more than 400 dogs have died.
We spoke with the maker of Proheart 6, a company called Fort Dodge. Officials there say millions of U.S. dogs have benefited from the drug with some 16 million doses sold. They say the FDA reports represent less than 1 percent of the total doses. And it's impossible to link Proheart 6 to all those cases, because most of the animals were never tested.
Still, the FDA is investigating and Fort Dodge has had to change its labeling, by adding the phrase “rare reports of death.”
Some Grand Rapids vets, like Dr. Dick Bennett, swear by it.
"My own dog has had Proheart 6."
But like any drug, Bennett says he's careful about the dogs who receive it.
"No pill, no medication is not without possible problems, you have to weigh out the good versus the bad," says Bennett.
But Proheart 6 isn't worth the risk here. Dr. Karyl Ropko says she'll stick to drugs like Heartguard and Interceptor that also prevent other worms.
"We always want to use medications that have the least amount of side effects that will do the job we need to in the safest manner," says Ropko.
For Kim Smith, Proheart 6 is no longer an option.
"It's like playing Russian roulette with your dog."
According to the Fort Dodge web site, 28 veterinary clinics in the Grand Rapids metro area use Poheart 6.
As for those against the drug, they say it works for some pet owners, but they just want everyone to be aware of the risks.
Web Editor: Trisha Volpe, Anchor/Reporter
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