My three year old rat terrier has fleas. We have done everything we can think of, including going to the vet for medicine. Nothing has worked so far. Is there anything else that we can do?
By Mandi Lou from Wilmer, AL
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There is a new product on the market called Comfortis. Our vet highly recommended it because it is a once a month pill that kills fleas with bacteria instead of insecticide. Dogs have a much better reaction to it than they do the other stuff. Give it a try!
How much does this cost? We have 5 dogs, 3 small and 2 are medium to large in size. We aren't able to afford the vet either...
Please, please give that suffering little pup a good bath using the original blue Dawn dish washing liquid. It will kill the fleas on contact and will not hurt "Fido." (This goes for cats as well as dogs.)
You should repeat the shampoo again in 3 days, then follow up with a good dusting of food-grade diatomaceous earth, rubbing it into the fur really well and being careful not to have the dog breathe in the dust. Avoid the eyes as well. Then sprinkle it over "Fido's" food.
In over 50 years, we've never found anything better than diatomaceous earth for fleas, and for getting rid of them immediately, bathing them in the blue Dawn which does give the poor baby quick relief.
If your pet is indoor-outdoor, be sure to sprinkle the food-grade diatomaceous earth where the animal sleeps as well as places where they spend a lot of time.
Some people don't like to have their homes made dusty, but I'd much rather clean up dust than to watch another living creature suffer with things that bite them incessantly.
Hope this helps in a hurry.
Julia in Boca Raton, FL
My favorite things are a lice comb from the drug store, a bottle of peroxide, baby shampoo, and Dawn. I would, if you are able to, bathe the dog with Dawn first and then rinse. Then put baby shampoo in the palm of your hand, and pour a capful of peroxide into the glop of baby shampoo in your hand. Shampoo the dog and let it sit, then rinse two or three times, softly praising the dog the whole time.
I am going to try the SSS. I've never heard of that. I know the Frontline doesn't work on any of my dogs anymore, and it did work for a number of years. Don't use Frontline. I am also going to try using the comfortis pill.
Also, salt (regular table salt) kills fleas in carpets, and vacuuming is great too for killing eggs, and such. Make sure if you go the D. Earth route, you do not buy the pool kind at the store. You will have to look it up and order it online.
I always put salt under my sheets, on the carpet all over the house, sometimes I leave it for days. Nothing beats Dawn.
Remember, peroxide is poison so make sure the animals doesn't ingest it. Fleas are a pest! Good luck. I would bathe the dog a lot, and after the dog is dry, go over it with a flea comb, etc. Drop the comb in warm sudsy water to kill the fleas.
Note: Don't try the brewers yeast for fleas, as most dogs are allergic to yeast and will get ear infections.
Also, for all our dogs, I take a rag and wet it and go over them and massage their skin every so often. It is like a bath and gets the pollen, dust, etc off their coat. I spray their feet with the water too, it really feels good for them. If the dog has fleas, have it wormed at the vet, since the little buggers get swallowed while the pet is itching and it causes worms which cause the pet to be uncomfortable.
Go to earthclinic.com and check out the pets page for care and prevention.
Blessings,
Robyn
I agree with the food grade diatomaceous earth. You can find it in the home improvement stores like Home Depot. Again, just be sure to get the food grade, not the pool grade. I use it on my pets and in my yard.
Pat
Have you tried the oral medication from the vet for fleas? I told my daughter's pediatrician we had fleas on just one cat (we have 3 cats), and she wrote the name of a med (pill) for me. It is cheaper than the topical treatments, works in a few minutes, and I think lasts a month. Unfortunately, they don't have that particular med for cats (the month-long oral med). BUT they have an inexpensive oral med that can be given every day. One treatment, and that ended the flea cycle for us.
I don't remember the name of the med. When I have a little more time later, I'll check and post it if I can find it. Best of luck!
My vet sold me a combination of Boric acid and fine granulated sugar. You sprinkle it on all your carpet, mostly where your pets won't get it (leave it on a day or two) Or if you have the ability to let it set for about two hours with no pets around. Then simply vacuum it up. Much better and faster than the store stuff. Also some pets are not just infested, they are allergic to flea bites, which makes their scratching worse. The mixture if you can get Boric acid is half and half.
"Avon Skin So Soft". You can dilute with water and put in spray bottle. Just spray on your pet and witness the immediate death of all fleas -- an added benefit is that your pet will smell nice. You can also dilute and pour on your pet after bathing--do not rinse off. You may see oily residue on the pet's bed--that gets the fleas out of their bed and it also will have a nice smell.
Put Avon SSS on yourself to keep the mosquitoes (and other summer bugs) away. It really does work!
No, I am not an Avon Sales person, but I'm sure you can find one in your local Yellow Pages.
I was overrun with fleas for a good 6 months (they bothered me so much, that I wrote an editorial called "Flea from Me, Satan"). I had never had a problem until I got a kitten. After trying borax, Dawn, setting a candle on a platter of cooking oil in a dark room to attract and kill the fleas, and using foggers, sprays, drops, etc, I finally had both pets dipped, got them on Frontline (can't do same day as dipping), and signed a contract with Terminix. They came and treated house and yard, and came back several more times (they'll come as many times as you see fleas). I've kept the pets on Frontline year-round. Terminix comes every few months (4 times a year as preventive), and we are DONE with fleas! I wouldn't waste time, money and energy trying anything else ever again.
I buy the Hertz brand flea shampoo at Walmart and the cheapest flea medicine (comes in a tube) to apply on neck and back. It works well. Nowadays there are many remedies. There is no excuse for this poor baby to suffer.
You must treat everything inside as they multiply quickly. You can treat your yard also. Jeannie
My dog suffered terribly from fleas and I tried everything I knew of. Finally my vet recommended NexGard. One pill is given for a month. I gave it to my dog, a French Bulldog, and after 12 hours no more fleas. I also had an exterminator come and spray my back yard and inside my house which also were infested. For over a month now I have not seen any more fleas. Our whole life has changed.
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