What's The Difference - Part 1

 

What's the difference between Advocate and Revolution?

Advocate is a multi-purpose medication that combines imidacloprid (the active ingredient in Advantage) with moxidectin. It treats fleas, as well as prevents heartworm, hookworm and roundworm in dogs and cats, plus whipworm in dogs. It also controls other external parasites such as lice and ear mites in cats, and mange mites and lice in dogs. Application is monthly to the skin at the back of the neck. Advocate does not treat ticks or tapeworm. It is recommended to worm with a tapewormer tablet once every 3 months.

 

 

Revoution is also effective against multiple parasites. It is an easy to use and effective control for fleas. The main advantage of Revolution is that it also treats heartworm as well as ear mites and intestinal worms in cats, and ear mites and sarcoptic mange mites in dogs. It is an easy to use treatment for cats that do not like taking tablets. Like Advocate, Revolution eliminates the need to use separate flea and heartworm preparations each month. In dogs it is recommended that you still give an all wormer (such as Drontal) once every 3 months which treats all of the gastro-intestinal worms.

 

What's the difference between Advantage and Advantix?

Advantage and Advantix are made by the same manufacturer – Bayer. They both contain an ingredient called imidacloprid, which kills adult fleas, as well as flea larvae on cats and dogs for up to a month after application. They both also claim to kill lice for up to 6 weeks in dogs. As both products contain the same ingredient for flea control they have a similar activity against fleas. Advantage and Advantix both kill 98-100% of fleas on a dog within 12 hours of application.

The key point of difference between Advantix and Advantage is that Advantix also contains permethrin, an ingredient which repels and kills ticks, mosquitoes and sand flies for up to a month. Advantix is also registered for the treatment and control of bush ticks,  brown dog ticks and paralysis ticks.

To protect against paralysis ticks, Advantix should be applied every 2 weeks.

Permethrin is highly toxic to cats, so Advantix is only for use in dogs.

If you have dogs and live in an area where ticks are a problem, Advantix would be the better product to use. In households where dogs and cats socialise closely it is recommended that you don’t use Advantix due to the serious harmful effects that this product has on cats and instead choose Advantage as your preferred treatment.

 

What's the difference between Revolution and Frontline Plus?

Revolution is a topical spot-on parasiticide used in the treatment and prevention of fleas, heartworm and ear mites in both dogs and cats.

Frontline Plus is also a topical spot-on application and is used for the treatment and prevention of fleas, ticks and lice on dogs and cats, however the main difference between the two is that Frontline Plus has no effect against heartworm.

Heartworm is a serious disease spread by infected mosquitoes. Heartworm infection is widely distributed throughout the mainland states of Australia. Treatment is very involved, complex and expensive, therefore prevention is preferable to the cure. When using Frontline Plus, pet owners are also advised to use a heartworm preventative.

Both Revolution and Frontline Plus have a rapid onset of action against fleas. Both Revolution and Frontline Plus kill flea eggs as well as adult fleas, thereby breaking the flea life cycle. Revolution is not approved for the control of ticks in Australia, while Frontline Plus is registered for the control of the brown dog tick as well as paralysis ticks in dogs.

To control paralysis ticks, Frontline Plus should be applied every 2 weeks.

Revolution contains the active ingredient selamectin while Frontline Plus contains fipronil and S-methoprene. Revolution is easy to use and effective against fleas and heartworm, as well as having the added benefits of ear mite control and intestinal worm control in cats. However, if you live in an area where ticks are a problem, you may want to consider using Frontline Plus along with a separate heartwormer such as Heartgard Plus or a generic heartworming product such as Valuheart.

 

What's the difference between Advantix and NexGard?

Advantix is a topical treatment for dogs that kills fleas and repels ticks, including the deadly paralysis tick, mosquitoes, sandflies and stable flies.

Advantix is an easy-to-use, monthly spot-on treatment for fleas, however it must be applied fortnightly to control paralysis ticks. With topical application, the active ingredients do not need to be absorbed into the blood, meaning fleas are killed faster.

Advantix contains the active ingredients imidacloprid and permethrin, which work to stop fleas and other pests feeding within 3-5 minutes of application and kills 100% or parasites within 1 hour of infestation. Advantix also provides effective tick control within 48 hours. Unlike NexGard, Advantix also kills fleas in your dog’s surroundings – your home and yard. And because it is water resistant it keeps working even after swimming or shampooing.

Advantix is safe to use on puppies from 7 weeks old and on pregnant and lactating bitches.

The ingredient permethrin is highly toxic to cats, so Advantix is for use on dogs only and is not suitable for use on dogs that socialise closely with cats. 

NexGard is an oral flea and tick control product that protects dogs from fleas, paralysis ticks, brown dog ticks and bush ticks for a full month. NexGard’s one chew, once a month format also simplifies flea and tick treatment, leading to a dosing regime that is regular and easy to follow for pet owners.

Each tasty beef-flavoured NexGard chew and contains the ingredient afoxolaner, which has been developed specifically by the veterinary medicine industry for use in dogs. For NexGard to work, fleas and ticks must first feed on and ingest the active ingredient. When ingested, afoxolaner causes hyperexcitation and subsequently leads to the death of all external parasites. 

NexGard stops fleas feeding within 30 minutes and kills 100% of fleas within 8 hours of infestation. NexGard also provides effective tick control within 48 hours. 

NexGard can be administered with or without food, is safe to use around cats, and treatment can begin from 8 weeks old and more than 2 kg. 

 

What's the difference between NexGard and Bravecto Chewables?

NexGard and Bravecto Chewables are both chewable flea and tick control products that protect dogs from fleas, brown dog ticks, bush ticks and paralysis ticks. 

NexGard contains the active ingredient afoxolaner, which has been developed specifically by the veterinary medicine industry for use in dogs. For NexGard to work, fleas and ticks must first feed on and ingest the active ingredient. When ingested, afoxolaner causes hyperexcitation and subsequently leads to the death of all external parasites. 

Fluralaner is the active ingredient in Bravecto Chewables and acts as an ectoparasiticide. This results in the killing of any parasites living on the skin or in the fur of your dog.

Both brands stop fleas feeding within 2 hours and kill 100% within 8 hours of infestation. For ticks, the onset of effect is within 24 hours for Bravecto Chewables and 48 hours for NexGard. 

The main difference between the products is that NexGard must be administered every month for effective protection against all parasites, however, just one Bravecto chew protects your dog for 3 months against fleas and 4 months against deadly paralysis ticks.

Unlike NexGard, Bravecto Chewables should be given with food, however, both brands are safe to use around cats and treatment can begin from 8 weeks old and more than 2 kg. 

 

View all flea and tick products for dogs here

View all flea and tick products for cats here