Nexgard is a monthly prescription chew that kills fleas and ticks and provides protection against tick-borne diseases and flea infestations. It is the only FDA-approved product to protect against the organism that causes Lyme disease.
How to use Nexgard
Nexgard for Dogs is very easy to use; simply give the dog one of the tasty chews once a month. The dog will think you are giving it a treat and happily consume it. It can be given with or without food. It can be used with puppies as young as eight weeks weighing four pounds or more.
Bathing and swimming do not alter the effectiveness of Nexgard. It has been demonstrated to not show any interactions with any other medications of any type or with vaccines.
Nexgard is only available for purchase with a valid prescription from a licensed veterinarian.
How Nexgard works against fleas
Afoxolaner works by blocking specific channels in the neurons of insects and acarines (ticks and mites), which causes the neurons to become extremely active and fire uncontrollably, which quickly leads to the death of the insect or acarine.
The active ingredient in Nexgard is a compound called afoxolaner. This compound quickly kills any adult fleas that get on your dog, preventing them from laying eggs, thus effectively preventing an infestation from developing. Clinical studies showed that all adult fleas present were killed within four hours of administering Nexgard to a dog, and the protective effect lasted for up to 35 days. If an infestation is already present, the continuous use of Nexgard will destroy the infestation within a month or two. For quicker resolution, other products can be applied in the home to destroy the eggs and immature fleas while Nexgard works to kill any adult fleas and prevent any new eggs from being laid.
How Nexgard works against ticks
Afoxolaner also quickly kills ticks, preventing them from transmitting organisms that cause various diseases such as Lyme and ehrlichiosis. Controlled studies showed that on treated dogs, more than 95% of ticks died within 48 hours, and Nexgard was able to provide 100% protection against tick-borne diseases, even after dogs were deliberately exposed to infected ticks.
Saftey of Nexgard
Nexgard rarely causes any side effects. A controlled study of 615 community-living dogs followed the dogs for three months and did not observe any serious side effects. The only minor side effect that occurred more often in the group given Nexgard was itching, at 3% relative to 1% in the control group. Nexgard has not been evaluated for safety during pregnancy or lactation.
During the clinical and post-marketing studies, in very rare cases, Nexgard has been reported to cause trembling, ataxia, and seizures, primarily in dogs already prone to seizures.
