Medicines that are Safe [And Unsafe] for Your Lactating/Nursing Dog

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You may have noticed that your female dog is acting a little differently lately. In any situation that shows she is not quite being herself, take her into the vet. It may be a cause for concern, or you may wonderfully discover that she was pregnant. If the latter is true, congratulations! Or maybe you discovered this news a while ago and she has already given birth to her pups and she is fully ready to nurse her newborns. Either way, you should be fully aware of what is going into her body.

Whether your dog is going to have puppies or has already had them, eventually she will be nursing them. Although you always want to be cautious about what your pet consumes, this topic becomes incredibly more important when newborn puppies are involved. If the new mamma needs any type of medication, either for the birth process or for any other reason, you will need to know whether or not it is safe to give to her.

What is Already Known?

In order to preface this commentary on medicines that are safe and unsafe for your lactating dog, it is important to know that there has not been an extreme amount of studies on this topic. Fortunately, the reason behind this is a good one. Most people are against conducting studies on animals that are pregnant due to the issue of morality that is underlying the situation. If scientists cannot perform an experiment on a pregnant pup, then they must recreate an environment that would yield similar results. As you can imagine, this can be difficult to do. However, enough studies have been done to distinguish the potentially safe medications from the not so safe ones.

Also be aware that when your dog is pregnant or lactating, if they consume medication, it has the potential to reach into their newborn pups. While this can be a frightening thought, don’t allow this to prevent you from giving your dog the medication that she needs. Instead, allow this fact to create an awareness of your dog’s reactions to the medication given, rather than a fear of what could happen because of it.

The Simple Meds

A question that might arise as soon as you find out that your dog is pregnant is, “Should I stop giving my dog medication that she has already been taking?” Well, let’s start with simple medications, as this question can yield multiple answers. You may have already been giving your dog vitamins in order to keep up on her health, which is beneficial to your dog’s overall well-being.

Thankfully, you do not have to be concerned about stopping your dog from receiving the majority of her vitamins. One that you do need to be careful of is calcium supplements. When your dog is in her later stage of pregnancy, her body may demand more calcium. However, by supplementing her calcium, you are potentially shutting off her body’s ability to produce it naturally. This is a case-by-case situation, and you should talk to your vet about whether or not calcium is okay for your pregnant pup. If it is not okay for you to give calcium to your dog while she is pregnant, it may be recommended that you give it to her while she is lactating. Calcium is important for the bodies of both humans and dogs, but you will want to make sure that you do not prevent it from being produced naturally. Again, this is a situation that you will want to talk to your animal doctor with as soon as you find out that your dog is pregnant. If your dog is not pregnant, it is still a good idea to get information from your vet if your female pup has the potential to become easily pregnant. This way, you can be fully prepared if it does happen in the future.

Topical Flea Prevention

Another type of medication that you may have been giving your dog before you found out she was pregnant is medication that prevents fleas from pestering your baby. This type of medication is also typically okay to continue using after you find out that your dog is pregnant. There are different ways for flea medication to be consumed by your dog, and this does make a slight difference in the possibility of the safety for your pregnant dog.

A common type of flea medication is one of a topical sort. This is applied (as the category suggests) on top of your dog’s skin and it is safe for you to continue using it, if your dog is pregnant or lactating. Because this is placed on top of your dog’s skin, this prevents the medication from passing from the mom to her babies. This is an important factor to take into consideration when your dog is either pregnant or already nursing.

Oral Flea Prevention

If you have flea medication that is given to your dog orally, you may want to be more cautious. There is not as much evidence proving that this is a safe source of consumption for your pregnant or lactating dog. When your dog is pregnant, whatever she consumes has the potential to pass over the placenta and into the systems of her babies that have not yet been born. Remember that even when the puppies have been born and your dog is lactating, whatever is given to the momma dog has the ability to be transported to her babies through her milk. If you feel uneasy about giving any type of medication to your dog during this time when she is more vulnerable, talk to your vet about other best possible options.

The Proper Use for Flea Medication

Even if you are generally healthy, you may opt to use gloves while administering flea medication. This is the safest way to give medication to your dog and will eliminate the cause to worry about disease spreading. You might as well take the extra precaution. It could save you a trip from going to the doctor’s office, and it is a healthy habit to have.

If you are pregnant, you may either find someone else to give the medication to your dog, or you must wear gloves while doing so. You do not have to rid yourself of your pet while you are pregnant, but be cautious whenever you have to give them medication of any sort or when you have to deal with any bodily fluids. Also, even with the use of gloves, make sure that you thoroughly wash your hands afterwards. This will prevent the possibility of toxic substances moving from your dog to you. Also, bringing your dog in the vet’s office for her regular checkups can prevent or catch anything that you dog has (such as fleas), early on, which could create a healthier environment for you while you are pregnant.

Furthermore, always check the details concerning the instructions on the container that the flea medication comes in. If you are giving flea medication to your dog, then make sure that the medication you bought is specifically for dogs. This can allow for the prevention of unnecessary, negative side effects. Also, always read the directions for how to administer the medication. Re-read the instructions if you need to, to ensure that you will properly give your dog her medication. It can’t hurt!

Is Bravecto Safe for Dogs?

If you are familiar with administering flea medication to your dog, then you may be familiar with bravecto. This type of solution for flea problems is taken orally. It is suggested that you mix this medicine within your dog’s food, as this will enable it to work more effectively. This will activate the main ingredients within this medication that will cause it to work in the best way possible. In general, this is safe to give to your dog. However, you will want to make sure that you watch her behavior. If you see any big changes in your dog’s behavior or any unwanted side effects while using this medication, bring her into the vet immediately.

Relief for Your Pregnant Dog

If you, or someone you know has ever given birth before, then you have probably understood that there is a tremendous amount of pain associated with giving birth. One of the questions that might come into play as your dog is giving birth is, “Are they able to receive antibiotics?” Thankfully, the answer to this question is, “yes.” You can relax, knowing that your dog will be able to experience some relief from her pain during birth. Included within antibiotics is penicillin. This is okay to give your dog while pregnant. Furthermore, included under the umbrella of penicillin is Clavamox, which has also been approved as being safe to give to your dog. Cephalexin is another type of antibiotic that is generally okay to give to your dog. Monitor her behavior. Do not give it to your pregnant or lactating dog if she has had any unwanted effects from this type of medication in the past.

Is NexGard Safe for Nursing Dogs?

NexGard is a chewable substance that will rid your dog of fleas. They are safe for puppies that are eight weeks old, weighing in at four pounds. However, studies have not been done on the effects that occur from giving this to a dog that is nursing. It is unfortunate in the sense that we cannot know for absolute certain whether or not these chewable tablets could have an adverse effect on nursing dogs. It is fortunate in the sense that studies have not been done in order to be cautious in how to treat dogs who have just given babies. It is better to err on the side of caution rather than to unintentionally cause harm to a newborn pup.

Is Deworming Medication Safe for Pregnant Dogs?

You may already be treating your dog with medication with will prevent worms. What if you need to while your dog is pregnant? Will she be safe? One potential indication that your dog has an issue with worms is if they do not produce any milk when it comes time to lactate. Check this out with your vet to be sure that this is the problem at hand.

As always, it is a good practice to check in with your vet before giving your dog medication that you may be skeptical about. However, if you have a dog that is pregnant, it is entirely more important that you consult your vet before giving her medication.

As far as deworming medication goes, there are certain brands that have been deemed as acceptable to use on pregnant dogs.

They are as follows:

Fenbendazole
Revolution
Frontline Plus

How Safe is Sentinel?

When the topic of deworming comes up, the name Sentinel might come along with it. Thankfully, this type of medication has been approved for dogs who are either pregnant or nursing. As with any other medication that you give to a pregnant animal, monitor their behavior closely afterwards. Follow the instructions carefully for how to administer this successfully. If you miss giving your dog a dose, do not give them double the amount. This may cause them harm and will probably not follow the same healthy logic that you are thinking it will follow. These tablets are ultimately used as a preventative measure for parasites taking over your dog.

Is Seresto Safe for Pregnant Dogs?

Seresto, along with many other flea medications listed within this article, are known to be safe for pregnant and lactating dogs. This is mainly because the medication rests on the outside of your dog’s skin, rather than being absorbed into their skin. This is especially good news for when your dog begins to nurse, given that whatever is absorbed into their blood stream has the capability to be transferred over to her newborn pups.

How Safe is Frontline?

Frontline is one of the medications that has been labeled safe for both pregnant as well as lactating dogs. This is good news for those who have to use this medication on their female pups. Even better news is that this medication begins to start working effectively within a half hour. This means that fleas are already dying off at this point. This medication will rest on your dog’s back and is not very invasive as far as medications go. All around, this brand of flea medication provides many benefits. Be sure to read the directions, as there is no need to apply this more than once a month, and there is a specific way to apply it. Other than following a few details, there is nothing to be concerned about with this medication. Because this is to applied monthly, it may help you to set alarms on your phone as reminders for when to reapply it. If you do happen to forget to apply it one month, you can go ahead a reapply it when you remember to. However, you must also remember to change your monthly date of when you apply the medication.

In Conclusion

You can take a breath of relief, knowing that the good news about most pet medication is that it still safe to administer to your dog while she is pregnant or lactating.

In reference to flea medication, it is more safe to give your female pup the type that is applied topically. This will still allow your dog to experience relief from the flea problem, and will also prevent the chances of this medication from streaming over to her puppies. When using oral flea medication, you should consult your vet before you give this to your pregnant dog. This has a higher chance of getting into the puppies bodies, whether it be directly through the placenta, or indirectly through the mom’s milk. Overall, it has been acceptable to use on dogs that are pregnant or nursing.

Concerning antibiotics, these are also safe to give to your dog that is pregnant. This will serve as a major source of relief for both you and your dog that is giving birth. Your dog will be able to be void of some of her pain during the birthing process and you won’t have to watch your dog go through the pain.

Last Minute Tips

As with any use of medication, you will want to talk to your vet about any concerns that you may have. This is especially true if your pet has ever had any negative side effects from any medication that has been given to them in the past. In addition, always ensure that you are carefully reading the directions that are attached to the medication, before you actually give the medication to your dog. This can prevent any unnecessary complications and will ensure that you are doing everything within your power to properly administer the medication. While there have still not been many experiments revolving around the effects of medication on pregnant dogs, most medications have been claimed to be safe for them.