BEWARE Of Advantage/Advantix!!

[isisbaby]

Originally Posted by KittKatt

An FYI....

A few weeks ago, I stopped by my vet's office to pick up some flea protection for my cats. The receptionist (who I had never seen previously b/c she was new) gave me a tube of Advantix. I asked her, "Are you sure you can use this on cats? I've always gotten Advantage...not Advantix."

She assurred me that yes, it was for both dogs & cats. I couldn't ask my vet for reassurance, b/c he wasn't available. I assumed that the receptionist must know what she's talking about if she worked there. But I was skeptical....

Before I applied it to my cats, I decided to do a little research online. I found what I was looking for, and sure enough, Advantix was NOT to be used on cats. There is an ingredient in it that is fatal to cats (it starts w/ a "P", but I don't recall what it is). After I found what I was looking for, I got the tube of Advantix, and it specifically states on the tube, "DO NOT use on cats!" Needless to say, not only was I upset, I was also pretty furious.

If I would have listened to the receptionist, all my babies would have died. Thankfully, I listened to my "gut instinct" and not her.

I took the Advantix back to the vet the next day, and told him what had happened. He verified what I had found out, and asked me who it was that had sold it to me. I told him I didn't know her name, but that she was new and described to him what she looked like. I found out later in the week that the vet fired her. I certainly didn't want for her to get into any trouble or get fired, but then again, if she didn't know what she was doing, she shouldn't be working where she was. God only knows if whether or not she had sold the Advantix to someone else who DID end up applying it to their cats. I sure hope not...

I'm sure that most of y'all here know not to apply Advantix to YOUR cats, but just in case there's someone who doesn't know, I wanted to take the time to warn y'all. I know how I would have felt, if I inadvertantly would have harmed my babies...especially ALL of them. It hurts enough when you lose just one.

I sure hope that this experience NEVER happens to anyone else.

Regards,
KittKatt

OMG THANK YOU!! I just called my vets office and wanted to know if they carried Advantage for my kitty and the price. A new receptionist/vet tech answered and told me they had something called, "Advantix," for her. She put me on hold to go look at the price, I thought to myself, "That sounds like an off brand."

I'd never heard of it before so, while on hold, I jumped on this site and did a search on Advantix and found your thread. THANK YOU SO MUCH! She obviously doesnt know what she's telling people. Im wondering should I call back and talk to the vet about this. Again, thanks for your warning.

 

[robertm]

Originally Posted by IsisBaby

She obviously doesnt know what she's telling people. Im wondering should I call back and talk to the vet about this.

In my opinion you definitely should --- for all the reasons that KittKatt and the other posters gave. The next person who receives Advantix from your vet's office for his/her cat might not be as observant/aware as you were. And we all know what the end result would likely be in that case.

 

[yosemite]

Originally Posted by IsisBaby

OMG THANK YOU!! I just called my vets office and wanted to know if they carried Advantage for my kitty and the price. A new receptionist/vet tech answered and told me they had something called, "Advantix," for her. She put me on hold to go look at the price, I thought to myself, "That sounds like an off brand."

I'd never heard of it before so, while on hold, I jumped on this site and did a search on Advantix and found your thread. THANK YOU SO MUCH! She obviously doesnt know what she's telling people. Im wondering should I call back and talk to the vet about this. Again, thanks for your warning.

I would certainly call the vet and let them know this. He needs to make sure his staff know what they are doing, ESPECIALLY in regards to medications.

 

[raggiekitty]

Yes, please call!

 

[kittkatt]

Originally Posted by IsisBaby

OMG THANK YOU!! I just called my vets office and wanted to know if they carried Advantage for my kitty and the price. A new receptionist/vet tech answered and told me they had something called, "Advantix," for her. She put me on hold to go look at the price, I thought to myself, "That sounds like an off brand."

I'd never heard of it before so, while on hold, I jumped on this site and did a search on Advantix and found your thread. THANK YOU SO MUCH! She obviously doesnt know what she's telling people. Im wondering should I call back and talk to the vet about this. Again, thanks for your warning.

I am soooo glad that posting this had ended up helping someone else, too!

And kudos to you for following your instincts and not applying the stuff to your cats!!

And please do inform your vet's office of this mishap, before it happens to someone else!!

~KK~

 

[callista]

Happens with human medications too! For example, I had this prescription and when I didn't need it anymore, the doctor said, Oh don't worry, there aren't any withdrawal symptoms; you can just stop taking them. I did some Internet research and guess what--withdrawal is severe and tapering off the pills should take a month! She's going to get an earful next time I see her.

Moral: Don't trust your doctor to be perfect. Check everything yourself. S/he has to know thousands of medications--you, only a few or just one. Chances are, if you have to take it any length of time, you'll know more about it than the doctor by the end anyway.

 

[jeep_kitty]

lets hear it for gut instincts! glad everyones kitties are all right : )