Seresto collars

We have had many people reach out to us in the past few days asking about the newspaper article that was recently published about Seresto collars.  We wanted to reach out to as many people as possible with our stance on them.

1. Have we seen reactions to Seresto collars?  Yes, we have seen a very few pets have mild reactions which have typically consisted of a rash on their neck that either resolves spontaneously or, if not, once the collar is removed.  ANY medication can stimulate an allergic reaction (just like any vaccine, food, or insect exposure), but since Seresto is not absorbed systemically, the reaction is similarly limited to contact areas.
2. Along those same lines, a toxin should result in similar clinical signs among all symptomatic animals.  The article is claiming anything from a ruptured ear drum to liver failure to kidney failure to seizures could be linked to Seresto.  You should be skeptical of such a laundry list of problems from a single product.
3. If some of the reported reactions are from a collar, it is highly likely that the collar was a counterfeit.  If you search on Amazon for Seresto collars, the first 3 collars that show up are NOT Seresto, but rather ones that are made to look like it to an untrained eye.  Unfortunately there is a lot of money to be made by selling imitation products (just ask Gucci or Levis or Uggs), and these products are NOT safe – at best they are ineffective, at worst they can be toxic to your pet.  Only buy Seresto collars (or any other pet product) from a trusted retailer.  If you purchase your product directly from your vet, you get the full support of the companies too for any questions or concerns.
4. For the article, you may notice that there were not any veterinarians, veterinary toxicologists, nor veterinary parasitologists quoted or studies referenced.  The expert animal care field has NOT seen a record number of adverse reports about Seresto.  Many veterinary toxicologists, internal medicine, and neurology specialists have been questioned since this article appeared, and they believe that the products in Seresto (imidacloprid (10%) and flumethrin (4.5%)) are as safe as possible for effective flea and tick control.  As mentioned above, all products have a potential for a reaction, but we need to assess the risk and benefit ratio to determine if we use a particular product.
5. The article weighs heavily on anecdotal reports from owners, but falls short of establishing a link between the collars and the type of harms alleged in the article.  Just because two events happen (a Seresto collar is placed, and a pet dies), that does NOT mean that one event caused the other (a blue sky day doesn’t cause your washing machine to break though they may have happened simultaneously).
6. Keep in mind that ANYONE can file a report with the EPA at any time for any reason.  The EPA and other health agencies collect and monitor these reports to determine if there are problems that merit investigation.  The reports quoted in the article are not followed by actual data (toxicology reports, post mortem results etc.).  A properly performed necropsy on any of these suspected cases would either show an obvious cause of death and if not, tissue and hair samples could be collected to assay for the ingredients.  Unfortunately without these procedures, everything is speculation.
7. Yes, we have seen a rare skin rash reaction from Seresto; however we have seen MANY more pets have lifelong severe complications from tick borne diseases, up to and including death.  Ticks are a fact of life in VT, and we can’t be passive about protecting our pets from them in as safe a manner as possible.

The vets at Country Animal Hospital have spent a LOT of time researching and learning about vaccinations, medications, treatments, and preventatives, and we truly want what is best for our community’s pets.  We continue to believe that Seresto collars are as safe a product as any on the market.  If your pet has an adverse reaction to Seresto, there are other products that we endorse (we carry two topical options for cats, and an oral pill for dogs).  We always want to tailor all of our recommendations to your particular pet.  Perhaps the best endorsement of the Seresto collars at this time is to acknowledge that many of our staff chooses Seresto for their pets’ preventative product, and will continue to do so in the future.