FAQs

NexGard PLUS chews contain 3 active ingredients: afoxolaner kills fleas and ticks, moxidectin prevents heartworm disease, and pyrantel treats and controls roundworms and hookworms.

You are likely seeing NEW fleas on your pet, which are jumping on your dog as they move through infested areas. These fleas will be killed quickly by NexGard PLUS chews before they can reproduce. Depending on the severity of an already existing infestation as well as environmental conditions, you may continue to see new fleas jumping on your pet for 3 months or more. To prevent new infestations, continue to give NexGard PLUS chews consistently each month throughout the year.

NexGard PLUS chews provide powerful protection against fleas and ticks for a full month. Each monthly chew works to prevent heartworm disease by killing any heartworm larvae that were acquired in the previous month. It’s important to ensure that your dog receive a monthly NexGard PLUS chew year-round to keep your dog protected against fleas, ticks, and heartworm disease.

Treatment with NexGard PLUS chews may begin at any time of the year. Dogs should be tested for existing heartworm infection prior to starting NexGard PLUS chews.

Heartworm disease is a potentially fatal threat that occurs in dogs and other animals. Heartworms (Dirofilaria immitis) are parasitic worms that are transmitted to dogs by infected mosquitoes. Microscopic larvae of heartworms develop and grow under the skin, then migrate to the blood vessels of the heart and lungs of the infected animal where they rapidly grow, becoming adults that are 5-12 inches in length.¹

Dogs get heartworms by being bitten by an infected mosquito. Larvae are deposited on the skin when the infected mosquito bites. Then when the infected mosquito leaves, the heartworm larvae enter through the bite wound. One bite is all it takes.²

There are 3 things you can do to help reduce the risk of heartworm disease:

1. Use heartworm disease preventives, like monthly NexGard PLUS chews, on a year-round basis to prevent heartworm larvae from growing into dangerous adult heartworms.³

2. Reduce mosquito exposure by eliminating standing water where mosquitoes can breed, avoid known mosquito habitats, and limit outdoor exposure during peak mosquito feeding times.¹

3. Get your dog tested every year. Before getting a prescription for a heartworm disease preventive, your dog should be tested for heartworms. Talk to your vet about testing options.¹

The only effective natural prevention for heartworm disease would be to eliminate all mosquitoes from your dog’s environment. Since this is impossible to do 100% of the time, there is no natural prevention against heartworm disease.

Not all dogs develop noticeable clinical signs. While blood tests performed by your veterinarian are the only way to confirm a diagnosis of heartworm disease in dogs, here are 5 warning signs that are reported in dogs with heartworm disease:

1. A persistent, dry cough is a common sign seen in dogs with heartworm disease.

2. Lethargy and reluctance to exercise are also common signs described in dogs with heartworm disease.

3. Some dogs have a decreased appetite and, as a result, lose weight.

4. As heartworm disease progresses, it can lead to heart failure. You may notice that your dog’s belly appears swollen from fluid in the abdomen.

5. In the most advanced cases, dogs can develop more severe respiratory issues like rapid breathing in addition to coughing.

Yes, it can be treated, but heartworm disease is a serious condition that can cause heart failure, permanent damage to your pet’s lungs, and even death.³ Treating heartworm disease is costly and complicated.⁴

Your dog will need an annual negative heartworm test and a prescription for NexGard PLUS chews from your veterinarian.

Fleas can cause itchy, painful skin conditions on your dog. Signs of fleas include scratching or biting at the skin, hair loss, scabs, and irritation.

If fleas go untreated, they can quickly multiply to cause an infestation. A single adult female flea can lay up to 50 eggs per day, which means that a small number of fleas can grow into the thousands.⁵ An infested dog will scatter flea eggs throughout their home environment, and fleas will bite other animals, including humans.

Yes. Ticks are carriers for several dangerous diseases. If a tick that is carrying a pathogen bites a dog, that dog is at risk of becoming infected as well.

Ticks can be hard to spot on dogs. Since they bite the skin, underneath your dog’s fur, it can be difficult to locate them. They also may bite hard-to-reach areas, such as under the neck or beneath the armpits. Your dog may scratch at or gnaw on tick bite locations. Ticks can also transmit various life-threatening tick-borne illnesses.