Pet medicine portal

Flea and tick medicine question: Does Advantix really work better than the regular store bought brands?

They boast it is the best on the market. But it is ridicuoulsy expensive. Anyone notice any difference between like the Hart's med's or other cheaper alternatives you get in the pet store for fleas and ticks?

Public Comments

1. Yes, it does work and it is worth the cost because it does work and your dog isn't miserable and you aren't fighting flea problems. I think it can be purchased on Petmeds.com with a R/X from your vet.
2. I can not tell you how many animals that we have gotten in at the clinic that have suffered burns and allergic reactions to the fakes such as Hartz and Biospot! They are not the same thing as Frontline or Advantix. They are super concentrated forms of the same stuff that you spray on your dog... aka flea spray! Flea spray is not bad for your dog normally but when you super-concentrate it the results can be awful! Please do some research before putting that crap on your dog. If it is between that stuff or nothing may I seriously recommend that you stick with baths and sprays! ~Tyed~ If you have any doubts... call ANY vet. Not just yours where you may feel that they are trying to turn a profit and ask them the same question.
3. advantix is one of the best (we prefer it over frontline plus) the store brands like hartz and biospot tend to cause sever allergic reactions, burns and even death! most dont even work properly dont risk it, spend the extra and use something thats less likely to cause issues!
4. It is FAR better than over the counter meds but another option is Revolution: http://www.revolutionpet.com/ This is the only thing I've ever used, it's far cheaper than advantix and it's really great stuff protecting against fleas, ticks, mites, heartworm and even mange! It's also FAR cheaper than Advantix. I don't remember what I was quoted for Advantix but it was several times more than the $12 I paid for revolution. Do keep in mind with either of these meds that it's a good idea to get your pet a skin test before using either as some cats and dogs react horribly to them. EDIT: Forgot to mention that revolution can also be found at your vet's office, not at a petshop. EDIT again: Should also mention that it works the same way as Advantix in that it is applied on the skin above the shoulder blades and kills the parasites in the same way Advantix does.
5. I've used Advantix on my 2 dogs for the past few years and it works well. A couple of month's ago the vet was out of Advantix for her size so I took Frontline instead. The next day she was sick as can be, hardly moving, not eating. I took her into the vet and asked if it was a reaction to the Frontline. The vet had never seen a reaction to Frontline but had seen similar reactions to some other "cheap" pet store brands. If you google Biospot, you'll see lots of references to dog's being poisoned by it. I've heard the same thing about Hart's brands. Be careful what you put on the dog.
6. oh yes. the cost is worth it. most store brand only actually work for about a week. the advantage and frontline both work for a month. in the long run, you actually spend less.
7. Yes there is a large difference. All the different spot-ons contain different chemicals, but only vets are licensed to sell the ones that are both safe and effective. The chemicals in store-bought spot-ons are usually age old crop-sprays - really inappropriate for application to animals! They're chemicals that are readily available and have been around for years, that's why they're so cheap. Yup, Advantix etc is more expensive. It's like pretty much everything; you get what you pay for. I've seen countless people who've spent tons on store-bought stuff, way more than they would've done if they'd just bought Frontline in the first place, and still have fleas! Plus the people who have large toxicity bills from using store-bought stuff. It's all so ironic. I wouldn't say Advantix is the best out there, not necessarily better than Frontline Plus. But it's good stuff! Chalice EDIT: Pet store spot-ons are not simply 'super concentrated forms of flea spray' (which flea spray, anyway?) - they're entirely different chemicals, usually organophosphates - that's why they're dangerous. Even the different veterinary spot-ons are different chemicals - Advantage is imidacloprid, Frontline is fipronil, Revolution is selamectin etc etc.