Flea & Tick Prevention

Dogs living in Randwick and Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs should be protected against fleas, paralysis ticks, heartworm and intestinal worms. Parasites are present throughout the year in Sydney, and some — particularly paralysis ticks and heartworm — can cause serious or life-threatening disease.

At Struggletown, our preferred program for many adult dogs is once-yearly Bravecto flea and tick protection, once-yearly ProHeart heartworm prevention, and regular intestinal worming. We recommend intestinal worming every three months for most adult dogs, although some higher-risk dogs may require more frequent treatment. Our puppy program starts parasite prevention early and continues it throughout life.

Yes. Indoor cats generally have a lower parasite risk than cats that roam outdoors, but they are not completely protected. Fleas can be brought into the home by other animals or people, mosquitoes can enter the house, and intestinal worms may be acquired through fleas or other sources. Even access to balcony areas or just the backyard for short periods will increase the risk of access to parasites

At Struggletown, we recommend year-round flea prevention and regular intestinal worming for all cats. Our standard kitten program progresses to intestinal worming every three months for life. For cats that go outdoors or visit areas where paralysis ticks occur, we also recommend ongoing tick prevention.

Paralysis ticks occur along Australia’s east coast, including Sydney, and can cause rapidly progressive paralysis, breathing difficulties and death. For dogs living in or travelling through Sydney and other tick-risk areas, we recommend year-round prevention rather than relying on a traditional “tick season”.

At Struggletown, our preferred option for adult dogs is the once-yearly Bravecto injection, which provides 12 months of flea and paralysis tick protection, and is highly effective, safe, and convenient. Other options, including chews and spot-on treatments, may be more appropriate for some dogs or puppies, but need to be given with regularity.

No preventative provides a reason to stop checking your dog. When travelling to particularly high-risk areas such as bushland, coastal regions or the Northern Beaches, we recommend careful daily tick searches, and ideally twice-daily searches in very high-risk situations.

Usually, yes — but it depends on the products being used. Many modern parasite preventatives are designed either to be given together or to protect against several parasites in a single treatment.

For dogs, for example, Struggletown’s annual ProHeart heartworm injection can be given alongside the annual Bravecto flea and tick injection, with intestinal worming continued separately as required.

For cats, some combination products make parasite prevention even simpler. If application every 3 months makes things easier for you, then using Bravecto Spot-on + an intestinal allwormer (tablet or spot-on) every 3 months is easy and effective. Alternatively, NexGard Spectra spot-on, is used every month to protect against fleas and paralysis ticks as well as heartworm and major intestinal worms, including tapeworm.

Because different products overlap in what they treat, it is important not to simply add treatments together without checking first. Bring us the names or photographs of the products you are using and we can make sure there are no unnecessary duplications or gaps in protection.

There is no single parasite treatment that is ideal for every dog or cat. We consider your pet’s species, age, weight, lifestyle, outdoor access, travel, hunting habits and local parasite risk, as well as which treatment you are most likely to give reliably.

For many adult dogs, our preferred simple program is the annual ProHeart heartworm injection + annual Bravecto flea/tick injection + regular intestinal worming.

For cats, our program is tailored more closely to lifestyle. Options include 3-monthly Bravecto spot-on for fleas and ticks with separate intestinal worming, or monthly NexGard Spectra spot-on, which provides broader parasite coverage in a single treatment.

Cats that go outdoors have greater exposure to paralysis ticks and other parasites, so their prevention program is particularly important. Never use a dog flea or tick product on a cat unless your veterinarian has specifically told you it is safe. Some dog products containing permethrin can cause severe poisoning and may be fatal to cats.