10/04/2026
Copied & pasted with a few changes from my fellow breeder, mentor and mate's page.
I like to put a reminder up now and then about parasites and Demodex Mites, they are often misunderstood parasites in dogs.
ALL dogs carry Demoxex mites, as do all humans, a different stain, but these wee critters live in our eyebrows and eye lashes, with dogs they live anywhere on the dog.
Mite numbers are usually well below the density that causes symptoms, the dogs own immune system keeps them in check.
Pups are particularly sensitive as their immune systems have not yet developed, exposure to the world strengthens immune systems in all things, young things need that exposure in order to develop immunity, without it they will have NO immunity.
With mites, the things we use to keep other parasites at bay frequently affect mites as well, this does mean that the immune system will be unlikely to be as strong in our domesticated dogs as it would be in wild canids.
However, damned if we do and damned if we don’t, our domesticated pets do need protection against a host of parasites both internal and external.
There are many things on the market to do this, from an annual shot to tablets and pour-ons, some target only a few things, some target the lot.
The thing you must consider is what is best for your dog, your vet will usually advise you to use something that has been developed and is recommended for use on dogs.
These things are frequently NOT as well tested and researched before release as you might think, the number of dogs used in testing them can be very few, you won’t often be told this, so don’t be too quick to jump on using newer products without finding out about exactly what is in them and how extensively they have been tested.
Almost everything can have side effects, the longer a drug lasts in your dogs system and the more things it treats / prevents the more toxic it will be.
THAT is unavoidable, so pick your poison carefully.
Cavaliers and Tibetans are little dogs, putting very long lasting chemicals into those little bodies, particularly if under 18 months of age can do more harm long term than milder cases of parasites can do. It will also impede their developing immune systems leading to chronic, lifelong vulnerability to some things.
NOTE I say milder cases, you must vaccinate, worm and treat pups as need be, severe cases of mites that the pups own system cannot cope with will need treatment, as will severe cases of worms, hookworms often seen in large numbers particularly after rain can kill a fair sized pup in no time, ear mites can cause chronic ear problems if bad cases are not addressed.
Heartworms must be prevented, but this is not hard and heart worm prevention is one of the most over used treatments going, mosquitoes are the only vectors for it and they are only around in warmer weather, there is no need to use an aggressive preventative for heart worm in cool weather. NONE: You can give your dog a break in cooler months, if you are using some specific chemical for heart worm only.
The only time I would even consider using harsher chemicals is if I lived in, or was travelling through paralysis tick country or if up north where Ehrlichiosis is, that is a tick born disease that can kill your dog and it is spreading.
(I too) We have gone back to the most trusted and least harmful thing IVERMECTIN, the only dogs who cannot tolerate it carry a gene called MDR1 I have yet to find one of ours with this gene and we use a cattle pour on, most people with only one or two dogs give an oral horse paste as it comes in a tube and you can keep it in the fridge and it lasts for years, your vet might help if you ask for it specifically, some will, some won’t.
It keeps all things at bay and kills most worms, it will stop heart worm and steady mites up in small monthly doses, that allows the dogs own immune system to develop and keep them down naturally, if you get a bad case that doesn’t respond to just the monthly dose you can use it more frequently. For dogs who can tolerate it, it is very safe. If you have a breed you are not sure of, Orivet have a DNA test you can do yourself for very little ( Ivermectin Sensitivity MDR1 (Multi Drug Resistance)
$ 75.00 As always wise words from a wise mate.....
I would like to add to Maria's post that for me here its sufficient to use the ivermectin 6-8 weekly, heartworm is carried by infected mozzies and the isolation here makes it very unlikely that there would be any infected ones around. The dogs that most likely have the MDR1 are mostly herding breeds.
I will always prefer to use the tried and trusted products over the newer 'fangle dangle' ones... they may be convenient but at what cost?
