[Shawna]

Hi losul,

I came across the information posted below while researching for a conversation I was having with HDM.. As I’ve stated before, I do think Turbo is a good candidate for the fast kill method. You are a great dog parent and his immune system is so much better than most dogs in this situation!!! Oh, you should be able to contact your local extension office and find out what type of mosquitos are common for your area. You might then be able to determine which medications best work against those particular strains.

Also, I was really happy to hear your vet was open to options :). And that he was willing to postpone the rabies vacc.. I feel more comfortable about him after learning that.

Slow kill Ivermectin treatments are being used to kill a parasite in humans called onchocerciasis.

“Most widely known for causing “river blindness,” Onchocerca volvulus infection affects an estimated 17.7 million people worldwide in 34 countries in Africa, the Middle East, South America, and Central America. An estimated 500,000 people and 270,000 people experience secondary visual impairment and blindness, respectively [1]…..

The standard treatment for onchocerciasis is ivermectin (150-µ g/kg given orally ever 6 to 12 months). Ivermectin is a highly lipophilic [49], 16-membered macrocyclic lactone from Streptomyces avermitilis [50]. Single-dose ivermectin effectively kills microfilariae by blocking postsynaptic, glutamate-gated chloride ion channels, inhibiting transmission, and paralyzing the nematode. It also appears to enhance immune responses against O. volvulus in the treated host [23].”

They go on to state that because Ivermectin doesn’t control the adult worms the patient has to be treated (in this case every 6 to 12 months) for the life of the adult worms. This is the same with heartworm in dogs other than monthly treatment in dogs versus once to twice a year with human infections. My guess is the life cycle of the O. volvulus is different than heartworms — it discusses life cycle in the article but I didn’t read it.

They very briefly talk about moxidectin for potential use to kill adult worms but as of this writing it’s not used.

“A new approach to therapy targets endosymbiotic Wolbachia bacteria. In 2000, a landmark study first showed [74] that doxycycline cleared Wolbachia bacterial endosymbionts from the endodermis and uteri of adult female worms, leading to unusually extensive worm sterility not seen in other antifilarial treatments.”

They use the “slow kill” method to treat this horrible disease in humans but are looking in to less toxic options for a fast kill (namely moxidectin).”

And we’ve both heard numerous accounts of dogs doing well on the fast kill option. Dogs not in nearly as good of health as Turbo. Trust that whatever your decision you have put your boy in the best position possible to fight this with no lasting after effects…

I wonder if prevention could be cycled in case a resistance is potentially part of the problem? Could you use an Ivermectin product for three months and then the product recommended by your vet for three months. If you decide to give the product only during mosquito season it is important to watch the weather and give the last dose one month AFTER the last possible chance of infection happening and to begin the following season one month after the weather is warm enough for infection to occur. I completely understand if you decide to give year round protection.. 🙂