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What My Vet Said About Fleas


ruthless
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Here's a Natural Anti-flea recipe. I like it for the idea of spraying bedding, yard etc. etc. as I really abhore the idea of spraying chemicals all around the place and then sleeping with chemicals as well.

Can't say I know how effective it is (although I've put it up on DOL a few times, have not received feedback). If anyone has or does use it, would love to hear from you.

I used Revolution on my girl. Never had a flea problem. Not once. Revolution kills adult fleas, flea eggs and flea larvae in the environment. It treats, controls and prevents flea infestations. Claims to control flea allergy dermatitis. Treats and controls ear mites and sarcoptic mange.

It also prevents heartworm disease, so if you haven't had your dog on heartworm protection, it would be adviseable to have him blood tested first before you administer.

Revolution is waterproof after 2 hours.

BUT Revolution does NOT provide protection against ticks. I am not in a tick prone area, so it never worried me. If you are, then you'll need to keep this in mind.

NATURAL ANTI-FLEA RECIPE (DOGS)

Recipe - One (1) big fat Lemon - slice it paper thin. Place the slices into a bowl add a tablespoon of crushed rosemary leaves (or a 6 inch sprig of fresh rosemary). Pour over a quart of boiling water - steep (soak/leave) overnight. Strain and put into a large spray bottle. Refrigerate - shake well before applying.

A GSD breeder in the US uses this recipe. The lemon and rosemary is meant to give the dog’s coat a healthier shiny coat while keeping fleas & bugs away. A tablespoon of Aloe pulp can be added if the dog has a dry skin or allergies. You can use the spray twice a week to repel bugs and you can spray it around the house on carpets or around the doors. During “flea” time you can spray daily on the dog’s belly and feet.** It can even be used on humans !

Note: Not sure if I would apply this on a dog whose skin is already irritated/abrased.

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thanks everyone. i bathed the dogs on fri eve and just dosed with advantage. angel's covered in lumps, she must be really allergic to the bites. might have to bring her to the vets tomorrow cause she's scratching herself raw still. going to pix up some permoxin for spraying the garden too. cheers.

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i use advantix on our 2 and they also get ACV in their brekkie which i believe helps from the inside :rofl: also generally keeps the coat and digestive tract healthy.

i have fosters come thru all the time and only the one i had last week has actually left them a little more itchy than normal - i put that down to it being the end of the month and they get the aadvantix on the 1st of the month - so they got it a couple of days early :scold:

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  • 1 month later...

We never had ticks for years but we did have trouble with fleas now we got rid of the fleas and we got ticks again. I guess it doesn't help that the cattle come right up to the fence now. :D

Seems like you can't win.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Try buying a lotion which is a Sheep Mulesing Powder or Spray, dilute it as per package instructions, and spray spray spray!! Try Maleban, its a good brand. I put some in a pump pack and saturate the ground, bedding, kennel and wherever else the dogs lay. It's safe to spray onto the dogs too, but I dilute it further so as not to dry their coats out. It's the perfect thing to use, as its primary purpose is to stop flystrike and other bugs getting into sheep after they've been mulesed. I spray once a year and never see a flea or tick around the place. Its brilliant stuff.

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  • 2 weeks later...

The frontline stopped working here too, and after reading this thread I tried Advantage, and it worked! :laugh: After all these months, and us being so damned desperate (and trying every damned product on the market for fleas) we finally found a product that works properly!

The reason I didnt try advantage earlier was because I thought it had the same chemicals as frontline, but when I found out they were different, I thought Id get a small pack and give it a go, I just hope it keeps working now :rofl::)

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  • 2 weeks later...

frontline doesnt work anymore, well at least not in sydney anymore... i gonna try advantage

been using capstars and fleabaths to try and keep control of em, but now the cat is infested and scratching himself raw too.... im pulling my own hair out trying to think of something

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  • 2 weeks later...
Hi,

We found 2 fleas on Angel this morn. She's been scratching like crazy for the last week but we didn't know why till today. She's scratched herself raw in places. I rang the vets and they said to wash all the dogs tonight with their normal shampoo and treat with spray on frontline tomorrow or the next day and wash all their bedding and hoover the house. I told him she gets Sentinel at the start of every month and he said that's not enough as it only sterilizes the eggs. He said we should use that and topical Advantage. Either all year round, but especially in the hotter months.

We're in Sydney and they don't hang out with other dogs very often, so I don't know where they could've come from. What's everyone elses flea routine?

Thanks :)

Generally just wash the dogs in any proven soap or shampoo, sray areas where dogs sleep or lay about & same to the bedding. i apply 1ml of confidor (concentrate insecticide, from bunnings) between the shoulders, my dogs are Dobes. Also you must wait about 2 days after washing to apply the concentrate as this allows the dogs oils return to the coat & this is what makes the product work over the entire dog, regards Garry

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If you wanted to kill the fleas ASAP, there's a tablet called Capstar made by same people as Sentinel Spectrum, which will kill all fleas on a dog in a 24 hour period. Most our clients by a 6 pack, and give their dogs a tablet every 2-3 days until finished. They're also helpful if you ever take dogs to dog parks - give dog tab before you get in the car for ride home, and won't be bringing fleas back with you. Usually helps eradicate most of the fleas present, but also a good topical product like Advantage will do the same.

can you please tell me where to get this capstar. i have had my BC for a year now, and i can't for the life of me get rid of her fleas. i was going to post a new comment, but i will just add to this, as i also had another question. we just moved house, to a house with a pool and virtually no dirt, it is all grass and pebbles. i washed her the other day in her usual oatmeal shampoo, but for some reason this time after she dried off, the next day i noticed dandruf. her skin was flaking mainly around her back/bum area, but still it is all over. can i get a suggestion on a good shampoo and conditioner for her? and it seems that advantage is the way to go with fleas, i really would like to get rid of these pesky little buggers, i will try advantage. just to let you know, i have bathed her previously in malwash, it worked for a day but then straight back on her, also i have a diluted solution of permetheran, which i use, but again doesn't seem to work, she seems to be a flea breeding cycle :D

thanks for all this quality advice.

Bret

Advantage kills fleas, flea eggs, flea larvae, and forms crystals which will fall off in the dogs environment and kill the fleas in the surrounds also.

But to be effective you have to treat every pet in the household, and also won't be as effective if you have roaming cats coming into your yard.

Hope this helps!

-WithEverythingIAm

Edited by bret
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can you please tell me where to get this capstar. i have had my BC for a year now, and i can't for the life of me get rid of her fleas. i was going to post a new comment, but i will just add to this, as i also had another question. we just moved house, to a house with a pool and virtually no dirt, it is all grass and pebbles. i washed her the other day in her usual oatmeal shampoo, but for some reason this time after she dried off, the next day i noticed dandruf. her skin was flaking mainly around her back/bum area, but still it is all over. can i get a suggestion on a good shampoo and conditioner for her? and it seems that advantage is the way to go with fleas, i really would like to get rid of these pesky little buggers, i will try advantage. just to let you know, i have bathed her previously in malwash, it worked for a day but then straight back on her, also i have a diluted solution of permetheran, which i use, but again doesn't seem to work, she seems to be a flea breeding cycle :)

thanks for all this quality advice.

Bret

Bret, during this very dry period we lost all our grass and only have dirt for a backyard and runs (growing now a bit with the use of our grey water), so we brought home fleas from somewhere. One of my dogs is just so allergic.

Washed them in Nucidol, then sprayed the whole yard, runs etc with "Grubkill" from the local produce store. Did it twice, a week apart, no problem but still give a final rinse with Nucidol before a show so they bring nothing home. I also have a spray bottle with some diluted Nucidol for those occasions when someone might have a bit of an itch.

I keep Capstar just in case and can buy it from IGA, Woolies etc.

I find that conditioner on dogs only seems to increase the dandruff, try putting a little Glycerine in the rinse for a shine, just a little, a few drops only.

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  • 2 weeks later...

fleas are little sh*ts... they breed like crazy and lay their eggs everywhere and the eggs are activated by humditiy and vibrations. So with all this crazy weather we have been having this year, we have seen more fleas. Secondly if you have any wooden floors in your house, it send massive vibrations between the floor boards where the eggs are and "wakes" them up. Thirdly if there are any cats around, you will most probably get fleas. The majoirty of fleas on dogs are actually cat fleas ,yes thats right there are 2 species of fleas and cat fleas love to get on dogs. Next if you have sandy soils around/under your house, its a breeding haven for fleas. Ok i think i have talked about where fleas come from now onto products

the shampoos are good for some instant relief but its good to use a shampoo that has oatmeal and aloe vera in teh skin to soothe it.. staffy's are known to have bad skin in general and usually require a little more care. The thing people often forget is that when you wash a dog you wash all that essentail oil - sebum- out of the skin and this is needed to protect the skin from the fleas and bacteria etc. It is also needed to carry the advantix or frontline around the body, so if you do wash your dog remember to wait 24-48hours BEFORE and AFTER to put the treatment on. And also if you put it straight on after a wash you can cause skin irritation cos the product just sits there and doesn't move. The capstar is a great tablet what it does is it kills all the adult fleas that are BITING - so it just gives the dog (and you) some relief from all the itching. the tablet is absorbed into the blood and the next time the flea bites and sucks up some blood it also gets the tablets which kills it. So it doesn't kill the larvae or immature fleas. so you need to use it inconjunction with the advantix etc. The advantix and frontline are all good products but the fleas get used to the one chemical and actually become immune to them, so its good to change over brands (which use different) chemicals to keep those fleas on their toes.

now the bad part. at any 1 time, there is only 1% of the flea population on your dog... that means 99% are in your house!! so its not good enough to only look at the dog, you need to treat the house garden etc.

ok i think i have babbled enough... i hope this helps...can any tell im a vet student! :laugh:

oh and flea collars dont really work - the little monsters just learn to stay away from the neck area.. hence why u see them all arund the bum and inbetween the legs (plus its much warmer there!!)

Edited by animalsluvbree
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