Drontal Plus for Dogs, Drontal Cat & Droncit Wormers

Drontal and Droncit Wormers

Drontal is a multi-wormer designed to treat all types of worms in a single dose. It is available in several different formulations to treat dogs and cats of different sizes. It is a very safe and effective product and can be bought without a veterinary prescription. Droncit is a related product available from the same manufacturer. It contains only one of the ingredients found in Drontal, and is specifically effective against just tapeworms.

Drontal Plus Flavour Tablets

These are pale brown, palatable tablets intended for dogs. They are effective against all the different types of worms found the United Kingdom, plus many of the worms occasionally found in imported dogs. This includes Roundworms such as Ascarids, Hookworms, Whipworms and also Tapeworms. It is particularly effective against Toxocara worms which have been reported as being able to cause blindness and other defects if transferred to children.

Drontal XL Tablets

These are intended for large dogs. They contain the same ingredients as the regular tablets but in a larger dose.

Drontal Oral Suspension for Puppies

This is a pink liquid wormer which is active against roundworms, particularly the Toxocara worms which can build up to huge numbers in un-treated puppies, and can rarely be transferred to children. The oral suspension is not effective against tapeworms, but these are very rarely found in puppies.

Drontal Cat Tablets

These are pale yellowish, coated tablets to treat cats for Roundworms and Tapeworms.

Drontal XL Cat Tablets

These contain a larger dose of the active ingredients and are intended for larger cats.

The Worms - Where do they live, how do they get there and what do they do?

• Dogs can potentially be affected by many types of worm. The different types of worm have complex, sometimes bizarre life cycles, which make an interesting story in themselves. The most important worm is probably Toxocara gondii. It is extremely common, can build up to huge numbers in puppies or debilitated animals, and can occasionally affect people, sometimes with serious consequences. Adult Toxocara live in the dog's intestines, laying microscopic eggs which are passed in the faeces. These eggs are surrounded by a thick coating so that they can survive in the environment for years. The soil in areas where dogs are regularly walked, usually contains large numbers of these eggs. If eggs are accidentally swallowed by a dog then they hatch in the intestine and then embark on an unlikely migration. The tiny worm larvae penetrate through the intestine wall and travel through the blood supply to the liver where they develop further. Then they use the blood circulation to travel to the heart then on to the lungs. From here they pass into the airways, are coughed up and swallowed by the dog, so ending up back in the intestines. Here they complete their development and start breeding. However it is only in puppies that large numbers of worms will complete the life cycle and end up in the intestines. In older dogs the larvae tend to remain in the liver, or encysted in muscles around the body, sometimes for years. Then at a future time they become active and start migrating further. This particularly happens in pregnant bitches, so that the larvae will migrate directly to the developing puppies in her uterus. They will also migrate into the mammary glands and can be passed out in the milk. Hence puppies can be born with worms, and they can quickly build up huge numbers in their gut. Only the adult worms in the gut tend to be killed off by wormers such as drontal. This means that puppies have to be wormed repeatedly to kill off the new worms which are arriving in the gut. It also explains why it is very difficult to stop worms developing in pupppies. (It is possible to prevent this by treating the bitch every day for most of her pregnancy using a different wormer called Panacur, see the Panacur literature.) Most of these worms do no harm to the dog unless they build up into large numbers, when they compete for food and can even block the intestines. If however the worm larvae are swallowed by children, they will attempt to complete the life cycle and migrate through the child's body. They cannot do this very well and the migration tends to go wrong. They can cause some damage to internal organs leading to pain, asthma and even blindness if they end up in the eye. This is the main reason why dogs, especially puppies, should be wormed frequently. It is also important for children to maintain good hygiene when in contact with dogs, especially puppies.
  
• There are many other worms sometimes found in dogs. Some usually cause no significant harm, some are potentially fatal to the dog. In warmer countries than the UK dogs are affected by worms which can live in the lungs or heart. With global warming and the increasing movement of dogs between countries, these parasites will probably become more common in the UK. Some of them require specific treatments and for dogs which might go abroad, it is important to get veterinary advice regarding specific treatments needed, depending on where the dogs visit. For dogs which stay in this country, regular treatment with Drontal should be effective against all worms likely to be encountered.
  
• Cats are affected by a different species of Toxocara which has a very similar life cycle. It is unclear if this worm causes the same sort of problems if it is transmitted to children, but the same precautions should be applied. Cats quite commonly become affected by tapeworms, which have an even more complicated life cycle than Toxocara. Tapeworms always have to complete part of their development in a different species of animal than the one the adult worms live in. The commonest cat tapeworm has to spend part of its life living in a flea, and can only develop to an adult worm if the cat swallows an infected flea whilst grooming its fur. Hence tapeworms in cats are best controlled by treating for fleas as well as the adult worms themselves. Modern flea treatments such as Frontline Spot-on are so effective against fleas that these worms will probably become much less common in future.
  
• Dog tapeworms have to live part of their life (depending partly on the species of tapeworm) in either fleas, lice, rabbits, sheep or sometimes slugs and snails. Controlling external parasites and preventing scavenging of wild rabbits etc will help control tapeworms in dogs.
  

How often should drontal wormers be used?

It is recommended that puppies should be dosed every 2 weeks from 2 weeks of age until 12 weeks of age, then every 3 months after that.

Adult dogs should generally be wormed every 3 months, though veterinary advice might suggest a different frequency for some individual dogs. Pregnant bitches can be treated as long as care is taken to provide an accurate dose. Lactating bitches should be treated every 2 weeks, at the same time as the puppies.

Kittens should be treated from 6 weeks of age, then every 2 to 4 weeks until 12 weeks old. After that, cats should be treated every 3 to 6 months.

All Drontal products can be given directly into the mouth, or mixed with a little food. For full dosing information see the data sheets by using the links in the blue bar at the top of this page.

How safe is Drontal?

Drontal is regarded as a very safe product. The main ingredient active against roundworms is virtually not absorbed into the body, but passes through the gut where the worms are found. The other ingredients are very safe, even when accidentally given in high doses. Many hundreds of thousands of doses have been given and there are no real concerns regarding safety. It can cause vomiting in some individuals, though usually this will not occur unless a 5 to 10 times overdose is given.

Drontal can cause trouble if given at the same time as the drug piperazine, which is also used to treat worms. Drontal should not be given with this drug, or with any other drug without taking veterinary advice.

Droncit Tablets

These are pale yellow tablets which can be given to either dogs or cats. A single dose is effective but treatment can be repeated every 6 weeks if re-infestation occurs. Preventing re-infestation is aided by careful flea control (especially important in cats) and by stopping dogs consuming rabbits, rodents or uncooked offal.

All Drontal/Droncit is manufactured by Bayer PLC, Animal Health Division, Bayer House, Strawberry Hill, Newbury, Berkshire RG14 1JA.