Posted on 08/23/2011 7:14:11 AM PDT by Marie
FORT WORTH, Texas - If your dog has heartworms it will be harder to get a cure. The only company producing the parasite-killing drug has run out and veterinarians don’t know when they’ll get more.
Veterinarians across the country are in a quandary because Immiticide is the only FDA-approved drug available to treat dogs with heartworms.
Drug company Merial said its supply is gone and it can’t produce any more because it can’t get the drug’s active ingredient in the United States. The FDA has been hesitant to allow overseas suppliers to fill American orders.
Vets are working with what they have left in their stock room or they’re prescribing a costly combination of drugs as a substitute to keep dogs stable.
“Not only do we have to purchase the drug later, we don’t know whether there is going to be an increase. We will have to keep the dogs stable until we get the Immiticide,” said Dr. Cynthia Jones.
Dr. Jones said the situation is heartbreaking. She knows most shelters won’t be able to afford the substitute treatment and families will be hesitant to pick up sick dogs. They may be put down.
“Those dogs make wonderful pets. We can cure it. We can fix this. If we can fix a problem like this, we want to try,” she said.
No one is quite sure when the heartworm drug will be available again.
Read more on myFOXdfw.com: http://www.myfoxdfw.com/dpp/entertainment/pets/081211-dog-heartworm-drug-supply-runs-out#ixzz1VrOgSpgd
I discovered this recently when we took our daughter's adopted stray to be neutered. He tested positive for heartworm, but the vet told us that the medication is no longer available.
All they can do for him now is give him the monthly preventative and not allow any new heartworms to form, but that the adults will still be there.
The article says that there's an expensive alternative, but the vet told us that there was NO alternative treatment to kill the adults.
For the last few years, there's been a growing shortages for people and our beloved pets. My mother can no longer get Armour Thyroid and my daughter's migraine medication is no longer being manufactured. (My mother is having her thyroid medication made for her at a compounding pharmacy, but it's expensive. My daughter is out of options and is desperate.)
Now we can't treat a heartworm infection. This is a huge problem for dogs in Texas. Our vet told us that local shelters and most pet owners are just putting down every dog that tests positive.
What the heck is going on people?! We live in the richest country in the world in 2011 and we can't get basic, old medications??
Obama is like the Pharoah of the Old Testament, bringing one plague after another on us.
He is a monster, a freak, a failure at running a government unless his goal is, as I suspect, to totally destrooy us.
All these stories about drug shortages seem to just nibble around the edges. It says the US drug maker can no longer produce the drug because the active ingredient is not available in the US, and US authorities are reluctant to allow the ingredient to be imported.
They don’t say who supplied the active ingredient previously, why it is no longer available, why it would have to be imported and why the imports are not allowed.
Shoddy reporting by very un-curious reporters. And it seems to be the same in other stories about drug shortages: no explanation about why there are now shortages where there were none previously.
Moslems HATE dogs, don’t they?
Bo is just window dressing.
It's an eventual horrible death sentence for infected dogs across the entire south.
Thank you FDA and central government control freaks/tyrants.
When has Central Planning EVER worked???
What. The. Hell.
We adopted a great Lab mix from the pound who happened to be infested with heartworm. The treatment was done for free but it was very dangerous and we had to nurse him for several weeks afterward.
It’s a terrible way for these pups to go. Apparently they’d rather allow pets to die than import something that might be...dangerous?
I think Shoddy Reporting is part of the core curriculum in J-school. Somewhere along the line someone stopped telling the students it was a review of what NOT to do.
Good question, what is going on?
My little terrier died, 12 plus years old never had heart worms. My pitt bull is 10 years, never had heart worms. He has the softest, thickest hair, really nice.
I thought giving the preventative heart worm meds would kill a dog with heart worms.
He loks a combination of Mussolini and some Pharoah.
Great photo!! Thanks
As someone who works in the pharma industry, I can tell you that much of the API (active pharmaceutical ingredient) that goes into medicines is produced overseas. For whatever reason, API is becoming harder to find, and consequently, drug shortages.
I hate to think this, but maybe the administration is setting the stage to nationalize drug companies. That would be a total failure, and I would imagine that any new, innovative drug research would be halted.
the overseas supplier wouldn’t happen to be china, would it?
let’s see... obey the FDA and not produce the ingredients we need... ir let our dogs and elderly die... hmmm... tough decision
of course, the libtards are trying to make people disobey the govt... so they can crackdown
there is a solution... it’s been employed before
The answer, in one word: ivermectin. It can be used (in proper doses) for all sorts of worms, including heart worms. As a breeder, we use it, as it is cheap, can be purchased at feed stores, and it works. One $40 bottle of injectable ivermecin will last us over a year (with approximately 30 dogs at any one time). If you are curious about this, just ask your vet about the proper dosage (I cannot remember, as my wife actually does the monthly worming).
Doggie (((ping)))
Joe, please put me on your ping list.
The FDA will soon make all kinds of human drugs in short supply.
We need to get rid of the people who are burdening their health care system.
Dosage is 1/2 cc. monthly can also be used in the treatment of red mange , all I ever use house and cow dawgs
Why can’t your mom get Armour? I knew they were having quality problems and recalls, but didn’t realize that it wasn’t available. Tell her to look into Nature-throid made by RLC Labs. My ND had me switch when they were having issues with the Armour. I’m able to get it at my local Target pharmacy, but they do have to order it for me.
Ivermectin is available in a paste form in equestrian shops. I’m no vet but I know many people who use this monthly and haven’t had heartworm problems in their pets. We use it and our pets are fine.
They gave him the first dose at the vet's and kept him all day for observation. The vet said that if he survived that, he'd be able to handle it.
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