Saving Money on Pet Costs: Frontline Plus Flea Medication
Now that we have two dogs, we’ve had to keep a closer eye on pet costs. One regular expense is flea medication, for which we have found Frontline Plus to work acceptably. If you buy it straight from the vet or in a retail pet store it can be around $15 per monthly dose.
In the past, we’ve found that the cheapest price has been on eBay, getting costs down to about $8 per dose for the exact same 6-pack product packaging. But a recent development amongst eBay sellers is to sell the bigger vials made for 89+ lb. dogs, and then have the consumer split the medication fluid into smaller doses themselves. Here’s an example of the cost breakdown for a small dog (under 22 lbs).
| Store | Cost (w/ shipping) | Cost per dose |
| 1800PetMeds.com (”retail”) | $83.99 for 6-pack | $14 |
| Amazon.com | $58 for 6-pack | $9.67 |
| eBay (sample listing) | $47 for 18 doses | $2.61 |
At less than $3 a dose, you can save over 80% off of retail. The absolute savings are only about $7-$11 per month, but it adds up quickly. Especially if you have multiple dogs, the ongoing savings could be hundreds of dollars per year.
Of course, you could also just buy the extra-large doses from Amazon.com for $61.49, which equates to $3.42 per small dog dose. However, the eBay auctions also include a glass vial and a marked syringe/dropper to easily measure out the correct doses. (Some also include latex gloves.) If you’re going to go through the extra trouble, you might as well go all the way!
More Accurate Dosing
Another potential benefit of essentially buying this stuff in bulk is that you can more accurately dose your dogs. By default, Merial categorizes dogs into four broad categories: 0-22 lbs, 23-44 lbs, 45-88 lbs, and 89-132 lbs. This corresponds to vial sizes of 0.67 ml, 1.34 ml, 2.68 ml, and 4.02 ml. I don’t know about you, but I see a pretty big gap between 45 and 88 pounds.
If you take the largest size for each category and divide by the vial size, you get 0.0305 ml per pound every time. So if you have a 25 lb. dog why give them double the dose of a 22 lb. dog? Just give them a bit more (0.76 ml) and you should be fine - and save even more money!
As with all these flea medications, you can do some trial and error to see what brand and dosage level works for your dog. You might need more or less than indicated. Either way, with this method you should still save a good chunk of money.
Follow-up: I’ve had good experiences buying from eBay sellers with good reputations and become a repeat customer after I used their product, but as shown above you can also buy the XL packs from anywhere, split the medication yourself, and get most of the savings without eBay ($3.42 from Amazon vs. $2.61 from eBay). It’s easier to apply using a plastic syringe (w/o needle) anyway.
Find more in Frugal Living | 7/30/09, 7:01am | Trackback
July 30th, 2009 at 7:27 am
Sorry, but I think this is a really stupid gamble. Clearly, you’ve never actually had bugs on your dogs or in your house. Trial and error?? Have you ever tried to get rid of fleas!!??
If you’re not actually buying the right thing, or it’s expired, or it’s diluted, or it’s questionable from Mexico, it will cost you a lot of money.
It will cost a lot more than $10 to clean up that mess, and your dog will suffer.
July 30th, 2009 at 7:46 am
FWIW, I do this for our two dogs (that are about 30 and 40 lbs respectively). I didn’t buy one of the kits but just bought a vial and syringe from CVS or target or somewhere like that. Works great so far (on 2nd month)
July 30th, 2009 at 8:00 am
How is any of this a gamble? It’s the same stuff, I’m not making it by hand.
There are ways to detect counterfeit meds, not the least of which is they don’t work. eBay sellers also have to maintain a reputation.
Yes, I have had fleas when we washed the dogs so much after doing muddy hikes that the medication washed off. You just re-apply. Dogs have a naturally higher body temperature which attracts all fleas to them (as opposed to humans), and then they die.
July 30th, 2009 at 8:03 am
By trial and error, I meant that some people love Advantix, while other swear by Frontline. Some people actually give more frequent doses since it washes off in water or due to baths. Obviously, dosage is not an exact science if a dog twice the size 45 vs 85 lbs. can have the same dosage.
July 30th, 2009 at 8:20 am
I am not going to trust ebay sellers when it comes to this stuff.
July 30th, 2009 at 8:23 am
After doing some web research on what is in these products, I decided not to use on my pets. I read a technical report that said up to 80% of the product is excreted in the feces of the animal which then enters our water supply. Yes, they kill fleas and ticks but are very strong pesticides so one needs to weigh the consequences.
July 30th, 2009 at 8:23 am
What’s the costco pricing? I noticed they are selling two packs at ours.
July 30th, 2009 at 8:35 am
Not sure about Costco, but as I outlined most of the savings is done by buying the extra-large dog doses, and splitting up yourself. 89+ lb. 3-pack = Small 18 doses. Just buy it anywhere you feel comfortable. Personally, I’ve bought from eBay for years with no problems at all. (Obviously not all eBay sellers are the same!)
July 30th, 2009 at 9:04 am
I used a work at a vet clinic so I have a little experience in this area. My first thought was that you could very easily be buying counterfeit meds. A lot of them are made to look *exactly* like the real stuff so its very hard to tell the difference. Best case scenario there is you might end up with a flea-ridden dog but a worse case might be a some illness or health problem caused by whatever chemicals are in there that you actually put in your dog.
Sound far fetched? Not at all. Look at how many health hazards come out of seemingly legitimate channels. Lead in toys from china sold by reputable companies. E. Coli in spinach or hamburger meat. Exploding or leaky batteries in cell phones from major players. Vehicle recalls, The bottom line is using certain products carries an amount of risk and I believe that risk only increases when you start to patron the vastly unregulated world of places like ebay or craigslist. The New York Times has an entire Topics page dedicated to this problem. It mainly centers around drugs for people but the point is it IS a gamble. Maybe one with poorer odds than you originally thought.
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/.....amp;st=cse
I know you think you’re being clever by saving some money. But there’s a reason that stuff is cheaper on ebay. You’re not getting the same thing. Your assurance of quality and safety for your pet is much higher at vet clinics and well established veterinarian pharmacies. That’s what you’re paying the extra money for.
July 30th, 2009 at 10:21 am
I can’t speak on flea meds because I don’t own any animals yet but as far as ebay goes. You can pretty much rely on any seller with a rating of 99% or higher. An ebay rating of 97% is actually quite low. Stick to 99%+ sellers and you should be ok and actually read the listings.
July 30th, 2009 at 11:50 am
There’s also petcareRX that’s currently offering a 15% discount if you go through upromise. I put both meds in 1800petmeds and petcarerx. Although petCareRX had the higher list price with the 15% discount it was cheaper.
I get the advantage multi.
July 30th, 2009 at 12:26 pm
I’m surprised that there isn’t any regulation of drugs on Ebay. Granted they’re for pets, but I’m sure that there might be some doggie narcotics that some humans might try to take.
July 30th, 2009 at 12:53 pm
ebay can be good for many small, lightweight items with low shipping cost. For example I get good prices on replacement electric toothbrush heads and razor blades. I generally stay away from sellers lower than about 99.7%.
July 30th, 2009 at 12:57 pm
To reiterate, you don’t HAVE to buy the frontline itself off of ebay.
I bought a vial, a syringe, and frontline for 89-132 lb dogs. Thus from one “normal” dose I get enough for my two < 40lb dogs (more than enough).
Again to be very clear, this works because a 3-pack (or 6-pack) of frontline is approximately the same cost whether it’s for a 20lb dog or a 132lb dog, despite the fact that there is much more of the actual chemical in the 132lb dog dose package.
July 30th, 2009 at 12:59 pm
Thanks - I never thought to check ebay for this stuff.
July 30th, 2009 at 2:06 pm
Johnathan,
I really like and appreciate your website. However, Frontline is a pesticide that’s regulated by the EPA. As a result, advocating its use outside of the manufacturers instructions can be considered illegal.
Additionally, if you split up the doses, its alcohol component (which is responsible for the product being absorbed into the skin) can evaporate, so none of the product may be absorbed on subsequent doses.
Finally, Merial guarantees the product when it is dispensed in accordance with instructions. A years worth of Frontline Plus still costs less than an office visit to the veterinarian for fleas (and the accompanying frustration). Additionally, what happens if the dog contracts Lyme disease (something that will not leave the dog, even if treated, for months to years)?
July 30th, 2009 at 3:51 pm
We had an issue ordering HeartGard from PetMeds.com. They require a note from a veternarian before they’ll complete your order. Our vet refuses to give her consent, saying she doesn’t trust “those websites.” My wife thinks she’s trying to keep our business captive. She’s an older woman, and a bit cooky, so I think it’s plain old distrust of new technology. Anyway, she’s extremely good with animals and a 3-minute walk away, so that outweighs the hassle of buying heartworm meds. I haven’t checked eBay for HeartGard….but I will right after this comment is typed.
We’ve used eBay for flea medication for over 2 years and never had problems. This concept of splitting doses is new to me. We apply Frontline once a month, so I’d be worried about the unused half spilling or spoiling before the next application.
July 30th, 2009 at 7:17 pm
@randy
frontline should be available without a prescription.
heartguard should only be available with a prescription - i would be leery of anyone selling hearguard without a script.
July 30th, 2009 at 7:25 pm
My wife works as a vet tech as an average sized vet hospital and she has first hand experience with unknown medication for pets. People are always bringing in a pet that is suffering from a multitude of symptoms that end up being as a result of renal (kidney) failure. Most cases of this in animals is as a result of consuming something poisonous. A certain number of these cases are as a result of counter fit flea meds.
How Advantage/Advantix and Frontline work is different then other flea meds you may find over the counter in your grocery store. Advantage/Advantix and Frontline work by not absorbing directly into the blood steam. However, other flea medications do absorb into the blood stream, where your pet’s kidneys have to work to filter it out. For users of Capstar, don’t think your medication is any better, most vets will tell you “its normal for your pet to vomit after the first dose or two.” It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that anything that makes your vomit is not good for you.
Counter fit Advantage/Advantix and Frontline are prevalent on EBay and even at your vet’s office. For example:
http://www.petpeoplesplace.com.....oducts.htm
http://www.entirelypets.com/epavefoflco.html
Saying “Oh this EBay seller has a 99.99999% positive feedback they must be selling the legit stuff.” is definitely flawed logic. This about how long it takes before people leave feedback on average… a week after the purchase usually.. a max of 90 days (as per EBay). By the time people’s animals get sick, they’ve already left a positive comment and there’s no further follow up they can make. It takes many months and even years for you to notice what its doing to your pet. And even then, how many people know that their pet died as a result of renal failure due to counter fit medication.
You’re just ending the life of your pet early to save a few dollars off of EBay. I’ve been a long time reader of Jonathan’s blog for many years and have followed a lot of his tips over the years. But this is one I strongly recommend that no one follow and even Jonathan himself discontinues.
July 30th, 2009 at 7:58 pm
@Randy.
My vet called me telling me they would price match to the price on the website. I told them about the additional 15% I got and could show them the receipt if they could match to that. They said they couldn’t and they faxed over their consent latter that afternoon and I received my order a few days latter. Also these medicines aren’t meant to stay on their skin, they are absorbed into their blood.
July 30th, 2009 at 9:48 pm
I am from a time when you did not inject your animals for fleas! With any sort of vaccine - we all ‘flea dipped’ our animals and they were just fine! Fleas do not come from the inside of an animal. And the flea dip coated the skin and hair and was a protection and none of my animals or kids ever got sick from flea dipping. You may have to do this twice a summer - but it is low cost and very effective. Thank you, Carol Baldwin. Also it is safe, in comparison.
July 31st, 2009 at 8:05 am
Carol:
Frontline/Advantage don’t involve any sort of injection…You just put a small amount of liquid on the animals neck, between the shoulder blades once a month.
The syringe is just for meting out the dosage.
July 31st, 2009 at 4:38 pm
Frontline contains a very destructive pesticide called fipronil and should not be used on any animals ever. You are worried about “counterfeits” maybe hurting your pets when the real thing is at least as bad.
http://www.biol.sc.edu/~coull_lab/staton/ab17.html
The old flea dips did send many dogs into convulsions over the years so that was never an option anyway.
And Advantage is no better.
http://npic.orst.edu/factsheets/imidacloprid.pdf
Stop poisoning your pets and your families with this garbage! Look into natural alternatives like diatomaceous earth, nematodes, species appropriate diets.
http://www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/avictim.htm
July 31st, 2009 at 8:14 pm
I, for one, thank you for this post. I had never thought about buying on e-bay and with 100% feedback, I’m going to take the “risk” and go for it. With three dogs, we are spending a ton on flea meds. Thanks again!
August 1st, 2009 at 8:47 am
I agree that everyone should do a little research on fipronil as cyndiann states. I think a lot of people are under the impression that it is harmless to your pets. It seems to me like the fleas and ticks just get stronger and meaner the more we pollute our world with stuff like this.
August 1st, 2009 at 12:25 pm
Once you open a vial, you’re exposing it to air (oxygen). Wwhat makes you think that the active ingredients fipronil and S-methoprene both will be stable for 6 months when exposed to air?
I would say that this is a bad idea. Many compounds in solutiond degrades when exposed to air and I would be surprised if an open vial lasted for many months.
August 1st, 2009 at 6:35 pm
The reason people think it is harmless is because they don’t call it what it is, a pesticide. It is not a medication.
When you put raw pesticides right on your dog it makes them ill and fleas will attack more when an animal is not totally healthy. Catch 22 unfortunately.
You can actually make your dog more flea proof by feeding a better diet.
Oh, and Whitney, if you insist on using Frontline or something similar you don’t need to put it on every animal. Back when I used Advantage I would treat just one dog and none had fleas. At least this way only one gets poisoned.
August 1st, 2009 at 9:44 pm
cyndiann/orngkat:
Neither of you have provided any links and any information that indicates that frontline is harmful to either dogs or people (I’m assuming cyndiann you linked to that url because t used lots of big words and you assumed people wouldn’t understand what it’s saying?). If you’re going to make such statements as it “makes your dog ill” you are “poisoning” your dog AND your family, I really think you need to back it up.
I’m more than willing to evaluate evidence that frontline makes pets and people sick, but let’s see it.
And here’s a link of my own… search for pesticides… American Cancer Society FAQ on Diet
August 5th, 2009 at 7:16 am
I fully support this concept of buying in bulk and not allowing the manufacturer to overcharge due to customers’ ignorance.
I am NOT a fan of chemicals, drugs or even medicines for that matter.
But our dog was suffering for weeks from a flea infestation, and after realizing that several natural products had little effect, we finally broke down and used Frontline Plus.
I spoke to a rep from Merial (the maker of Frontline Plus) about this specific issue. He clearly couldn’t overtly recommend the practice, as it would impact the company’s profit, but when he considered the practice of carefully measuring the correct dose from a larger quantity, he offered no resistance. He clarified that every size vial (or pipette) of product contains the identical concentration and % of active ingredients. The ONLY difference is the volume quantity in each package.
The different sized pipettes contain an extractable volume of 0.67ml, 1.34ml, 2.68ml or 4.02ml.
the largest one is 6x more product for roughly the same price.
I agree with Kuzbad in the previous comment, in that, the article mentioned by cyndiann, albeit interesting, didn’t really convince that fipronil was especially harmful to mammals.
Actually, the article left me with the impression that fipronil is better than the alternatives. (again, i don’t like chemicals, but there may be times when one must choose the lesser of evils)
cyndiann makes a great point re “counterfeits” maybe hurting your pets when the real thing is at least as bad.
If you know something safer that protects your pet from fleas, then don’t use Frontline!
cyndiann is also correct that (paraphrasing) Fipronil is an insecticide
and it’s incorrect to call it medication.
That’s marketing for you.
Another aspect of marketing is how they sell prepackaged vials in different sizes for different sized animals for “convenience” rather than just selling their product in a bottle.
Clearly, we all care about our pets, and we should minimize the use of chemicals.
Specifically we need to be certain not to overdose with Frontline Plus.
Our dog is 8 pounds, so we got the 0-22 pound dose (the most exorbitantly priced).
We should probably use only half of the smallest dose.
An interesting note from Merial’s literature regarding Frontline Spot On: “No adverse effects were observed in target animal safety studies in 8 week old puppies, growing dogs and dogs weighing about 2kg treated once at five times the recommended dose.”
A concern expressed here which i thought was logically presented was from ‘troop’ who states “Many compounds in solution degrade when exposed to air and I would be surprised if an open vial lasted for many months.”
I can’t verify the following statement, found at http://doyourownpestcontrol.com/fipronil.htm
however I find it believable
“Fipronil is not volatile, therefore there are not airborne active ingredients released”
And regarding a different product also containing fipronil
it has “a shelf life of approximately 2 years in an unopened container.
Once they are applied, they will last at least one year”
I would proffer that if kept in a proper container after opening, it’s unlikely that the product would dissipate or lose its effectiveness, but the worst case scenario is that it would be somewhat less effective over time, therefore less harmful to the pet.
Many comments left in this thread seemed to miss the point, imho.
There are many potential pitfalls:
not buying from a reputable source,
obtaining counterfeit product,
poorly administering the pesticide, etc.
If you believe you know with certainty where the best, freshest, genuine package of Frontline Plus is sold, buy it there. That should obviate the need to discuss if a 99.7% or 97.9% ebay
rating is more likely to sell you real product.
This topic was not whether consumers can be duped into buying bad products, or whether pesticides are healthy for dogs.
The main thrust of this topic was simply IF you choose to use Frontline Plus on your pet, then buy in bulk and divide into proper dosages.
That is an excellent idea.
August 12th, 2009 at 9:25 pm
We have a 12 week old puppy and were given Frontline and Heartguard from our Vet when he was vaccinated. In less than 24 hrs from the Frontline Vaccination, our puppy started vomiting. We thought maybe he ate too fast, he vomited again, but it was still kibble so, we figured he just gobbled it up too quickly. The next morning, we woke up to find more vomit and he started with diarrhea. He was still rather playful, but we started to wonder..by that evening his interest in food and water and playing were gone. He continued vomitting through the night and we took him to the emergency vet where he was given antibiotic shots put on anti vomitting and anti diarrhea medication (3 of each pill every 4 hrs administered orally), sent home with a liquid diet to be given to him orally 5 cc’s or less whatever he could keep down the longest every 15 minutes around the clock. We stayed up all day and night administering his meds, but the vomitting continued and he progressively worsened and began tremoring. We got him to the veternary hospital and he was kept there to recieve IV Fluids and meds. Not an hour after we left we received a phone call from the vet asking if we had put any flea medication on the dog…that’ when I told him that I had put the frontline on him. That is what caused this reaction along with the tremors. At this point the doc was doing everything he could to try to get him through it, he stayed for 2 nights and 1 day. When we went to pick him up tonight we were told he is borderline kidney failure with a BUN reading of 139. He is now on kidney failure meds, vitamins, and prednisone not to mention a diet of chicken and rice and measured amounts of water. He goes back in a week to check his kidney functions. There is no cure for the damage this product has done. I am greatful to the emergency vet for pinpointing the problem. Our little Cub was in bad shape, he is now going to have a lifetime of problems from this. It’s all because the original vet we took him to could’t wait to give us our welcome puppy kit with these products in it. Shame on the manufactures of these toxic chemicals…you wouldn’t put pesticides on your children on a monthly basis to prevent lice would you. You have to look at what’s important here. This product has permanently damaged our beautiful new family member for life.
August 12th, 2009 at 9:30 pm
And yes, I know Frontline is not a vaccination, I meant application. These laptops are a little tricky, so sorry for the bad spelling. I hope you really think about it before using these products, they are dangerous and anyone who tells you otherwise has not done there research.
September 10th, 2009 at 11:54 am
why are you all dwelling on ebay!!!All they are saying is that they buy the biggest tube and share it.You can purchas it anywhere you please. If You don’t like e-bay buy from where you want.I would like to say thank you for the helpful tip
November 3rd, 2009 at 2:12 am
I agree with kevnet. People are totally missing the forest for the trees on this one. The original post is NOT about trusting people on ebay, or that Frontline Plus is the best flea product ever. It’s about SAVING MONEY by properly dividing doses of flea medication — as the title of the post (AND blog) indicates. This isn’t a blog about how to take care of your pet! Read the bold print, people!!
[end rant]
By the way, moneyblog writer — i think your idea is great. My friends also do this with their pets, and they’ve been flea free for years. Basic math does come in handy!