Neutering, Shots, and Medicine

Question
Is Revolution the best way to go? Or should I go with 2 separate medicines, one for fleas and ticks, and one for heartworm? Because the Revolution is so much cheaper buying just that since it treats flease, ticks, and heartworms. But my puppy is a lab and he will be playing in the water often in the summer so I want the heartworm medicine to work wonders for him.
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The text above is a follow-up to ...

-----Question-----
I have a 6 week old male lab and I am wondering when he will be old enough to get flea and tick medicine, and heartworm medicine. I am also needing to know which medicines are the best. Also, how much does it cost to get a dog neutered and get its shots?
-----Answer-----
Right now I wouldn't use any kind of flea or tick medication on him.  If he has fleas just give him a bath using a mild soap.  Advantage (which kills fleas) is safe to use at 7 weeks in puppies.  Frontline (which kills fleas and ticks) I believe is safe at 9 weeks.  You can get him started on heartworm prevention right now.  There are many products out there, and all of them work great.  Interceptor and Heartgard are the two most common.  Both are monthly preventatives that also prevent hookworm and roundworms.  Interceptor also takes care of whipworms.  Puppies generally get a series of 4 distemper combo vaccines, starting at 6-8 weeks of age, and given every 2-3 weeks, so you'll want make an appointment for him soon. I can't exactly tell you how much it is going to cost since every clinic is different.  Some clinics offer "puppy packages" that you can get where the vaccines are a little cheaper.  Congratulations on your new addition and if you have any other questions, please ask.

Amanda

Answer
Revolution is a great product, but if you have an active flea infestation it's not always the best product to use.  If you are just using it to make sure he doesn't get any fleas or ticks, then it works great since you are only having to give them one medicine monthly, and its not bad for your pocket book either.  It works just as well for heartworm prevention as Interceptor or Heartgard, so you don't have anything to worry on that end as long as you are giving him the proper dose for his weight.

Amanda