How to Save Money on Heartworm Medication for Dogs
pet medications
Dog owners want the very best for their four-legged friends – but sometimes, the costs of providing stellar care can be alarmingly high.
For example, it’s not unheard of to pay $100.00+ for a three-month supply of heartworm medication for dogs, a critical preventative treatment that can be life-saving for many pets. Necessary products, from Flovent for dogs to Heartgard Plus, can be priced far out of any pet owner’s budget.
What’s more, finding reliable, safe ways to achieve steep savings on dog medications can be tricky.
Here, we’re going to cut through the noise and provide the practical information you need. In this blog, you’ll find specific ways to save on your dog’s medication (without compromising your dog’s health).
How Can I Save Money on Medication for Dogs?
First of all, good news: You can save money on heartworm medication for dogs (and many other treatments you’ll need to provide as a pet owner).
Often, pet products like heartworm treatment cost an incredible amount of money. By partnering with an online Canadian pharmacy to purchase the meds your dog needs to feel good and be healthy, you can invest in your pet’s well-being without necessarily breaking the bank.
The Types of Medication Dogs Usually Need
Quickly, before we discuss specific cost-cutting strategies, let’s talk about the types of medications your dog may need.
The most common types of pet medications we see dog owners purchasing include:
- Preventative care medications. These meds generally include flea, tick, and heartworm medication for dogs, as well as vaccines and parasite meds. Dogs take these on a regular schedule, usually monthly, to prevent common diseases.
- Chronic medications. Many dogs suffer from longer-term conditions, such as epilepsy, diabetes, allergies, or arthritis. There are long-term management meds that help dogs and their owners manage these issues.
- Acute medications. These types of medications treat shorter-term challenges (e.g., surgery recovery, one-off injuries, or infections).
If you’re looking for dog heartworm treatments, you should know that heartworm medications are specifically a preventative – and chronic. This means your dog will probably take the medication monthly, which means you’ll be responsible for the cost of heartworm medication on a monthly basis.
Heartworm medication for dogs, and many other ongoing treatments, are not inexpensive. Finding a lower-cost way to source these medications will help you save on pet medications while making sure your dog is in the best health possible.
However, you never want to compromise on medication quality and safety in the name of cutting costs.
Buying Medication for Your Dog (Safely)
When you’re purchasing medication for your pet, safety always comes first. If buying medication online seems inherently risky to you, you may be leery of promises of huge savings, or buying generic, off-brand meds through unknown websites.
Those are good instincts. Fortunately, you have ways to navigate the online medication marketplace to help you know which online pharmacies are safe.
Here are a few best practices to follow when buying medication over the internet:
- Check to see whether the online pharmacy you’re buying from has any reputable third-party accreditations. These accreditations are a good sign that the pharmacy you’re considering adheres to recognized quality and safety standards.
- Verify that the medication you’re about to buy has the internationally recognized name, active ingredients, and dose that’s listed on your vet’s prescription. Typos and inconsistencies are red flags.
- Steer clear of international or Canadian online pharmacy websites offering prices that are too good to be true. There’s a difference between a competitive price and one that’s suspiciously low. Use your best judgment when navigating sales and steep price savings.
- Ensure that the site you’re looking at is secure. Things to look for include a padlock symbol in your browser’s address bar or a URL that begins with “https.” Further signs that the site has invested in secure practices, such as Norton software or Trust Guard badges, are worth noting.
- Assess the online pharmacy’s commitment to customer service. Reliable online pharmacies have responsive, easily-accessible, and informed customer service representatives ready to help you out when needed. Operations that don’t have your best interest in mind may cut corners and fail to have an excellent customer service team on staff.
- Read customer reviews. The best way to do your research and find the best online pet pharmacy is to read the real experiences of other people who have interacted with the pharmacy.
If you’ve completed these steps and the site you’re looking at seems like a good option, great!
There are further steps you can take to save money on heartworm medication for dogs and the other pet products you may need.
Strategies for Saving through Online Veterinary Pharmacies
Once you’ve found an online veterinary pharmacy you like, you should be set to start purchasing the pet medications you need while enjoying the convenience of online shopping.
Wondering how you can save even more on your dog’s heartworm medication and other wellness products? Here are some strategies that should come in handy.
- Take time to compare prices. Online and brick-and-mortar pharmacies may offer the same medication at wildly varying prices. Doing your research can save you a lot of money, so getting the pricing information you need for an accurate comparison is worth your time. Online pharmacies that list transparent prices right on the medication page can help expedite this process.
- Buy a larger supply. If your veterinarian thinks it’s a good idea, you may be able to buy enough heartworm medication to last six months at a time instead of buying medication one or two months at a time. For long-term medications, this can make a big difference in the cost per unit of your products.
- See if your pet’s med comes in a generic. Did you know there are generic equivalents of many pet medications? For example, Heartgard Plus, one of the more common heartworm medications for dogs, is available in a generic form as Iverhart Max. Ask your doctor about generic alternatives for your dog’s medications, and see what their recommendations are. Generic medications will usually be cheaper than branded drugs.
Saving Money on Flea, Tick, and Heartworm Medication for Dogs
If you’re in the market for heartworm medication, you’re likely surprised at how much it costs to keep your four-legged best friend free of disease-causing parasites.
Through NorthWestPharmacy.com, you can enjoy reliable savings and convenient ordering and shipping processes for these five common heartworm medications.
Advantage Multi for Dogs
Advantage Multi for Dogs is an all-in-one topical treatment. With one product, you can protect your dog from fleas, heartworms, and parasitic infections. Possibly because it’s so efficient, it can be costly:
You can buy a pack of three Advantage Multi for Dogs treatments here starting at around $75.00.
Interceptor Spectrum
Interceptor Spectrum is a chewable tablet that offers dogs broad-spectrum parasite protection. This means that, much like Advantage Multi for Dogs, Interceptor Spectrum protects pets against intestinal parasites, ticks, fleas, and heartworm year-round (regardless of their breed or where they live).
You can buy a pack of six Interceptor Spectrum treatments here starting at about $70.00.
Comfortis Plus for Dogs
Comfortis Plus for Dogs is a medication that protects dogs from fleas, intestinal worms, and heartworms. This beef-flavored tablet is popular with most dogs, but if it doesn’t work well for your pet, you have other options.
You can buy a pack of six Comfortis Plus for Dogs treatments here starting at about $90.00.
Sentinel Spectrum
Sentinel Spectrum is a popular preventative medication that protects dogs from intestinal worms, fleas, and heartworm.
You can buy a pack of three Sentinel Spectrum for Dogs treatments here starting at about $65.00.
Trifexis
Trifexis, another combined heartworm, flea, and worm infestation prevention tablet, is one of the pricier options on this list. If it’s the medication that works best for your pet, you shouldn’t have to feel like the price is standing in your way.
You can buy a pack of six treatments of Trifexis here starting at about $140.00.
FAQ: How to Save Money on Heartworm Medication for Dogs
The world of pet healthcare (and pet prescription and non-prescription medications) can be overwhelming. Here, we’ll provide concise answers to a few commonly-asked questions to help you navigate that world with more clarity and confidence.
What Is Heartworm Disease? Why Is Preventing It Important?
Heartworm disease is a very serious condition caused by worms that burrow into the heart and lungs of dogs. If untreated, it can lead to severe, life-threatening organ failure.
Preventing this disease is much easier, cheaper, and safer than treating it – which is why so many dogs take a once-monthly heartworm prevention medication.
How Can I Save Money on Heartworm Medication for Dogs (And Other Pet Meds)?
Buying larger supplies of medications, shopping online through safe international pharmacies, and taking the time to compare prices are all ways to save money on the medications your dog needs to thrive.
Which is the Best Heartworm Medication For My Dog?
The proper medication for your dog will depend on your dog’s specific needs.
Ask your doctor about the specific parasites your dog may need protection from, which could depend on your dog’s breed, region, and lifestyle. You may also be able to find different types of prevention meds (e.g., oral pills vs. topical treatments) to cater to your dog’s preferences.
Is Skipping Months of Medication to Save Money Okay?
If you skip months of prevention, you risk heartworm disease for your dog. Heartworm disease, and many other parasitic infections, can be contracted year-round.
Being consistent with any medication is essential for your pet’s well-being. If you need to save money on their meds, it’s a far better idea to find a reliably affordable way to buy the prescription products you need – for example, by buying pet meds through an online Canadian pharmacy.
Saving Money on Healthcare Products and Heartworm Medication for Dogs
Need to save big on the medications your canine best friend requires to survive? You’re in the right place.
When you first brought your dog home, you likely knew pet ownership was expensive. That doesn’t mean you’re necessarily interested in spending hundreds of dollars per year to make sure your dog is free of fleas, ticks, and worms.
Yet that’s part of responsible pet ownership, which can put you between a rock and a hard place (especially as medications for both humans and animals continue to skyrocket in the United States).
At NorthWestPharmacy.com, we don’t think that pet owners should have to spend vast sums of money to provide stellar care for their pets. Good news: By purchasing your pet’s medications through a safe, reputable online Canadian pet pharmacy, you don’t have to. For many reasons, pet meds are often cheaper in Canada than they are in the States.
We have more good news for you: Buying your pet’s meds through a Canadian pharmacy website is likely more straightforward than you think. Start by asking your vet to send your pet’s valid, updated prescription to NorthWestPharmacy.com.
Then, navigate to the page for the medication you need. (Check out our organized, easy-to-navigate pet medication category right here!). Then, click “add to cart” and check out through our private payment portal. If you’d rather order over the phone, you can do that, too. Simply call 1.866.539.5330 seven days a week, and our friendly customer service team will help you with anything you need.
Ready to check out what NorthWestPharmacy.com can offer you and your pet? Browse our pet medication offerings, check out our customer reviews, or reach out with any questions you may have. The team at NorthWestPharmacy.com is here to help you and your pet thrive.
