Flea/tick Prevention

[christinepi]

So I've heard conflicting info on flea/tick products for greyhounds. Advantix vs Frontline, or rather pyrethrins vs Permethrins. We got our hound Tracker 4 weeks ago and used Advantix on him recently. I can't stand the stuff how it sits on his back for 6 days, looks slimy and ominous and I feel I can't touch him there; also I heard after I applied it that there can be a seizure connection. Then there are natural products like Bug Off and Flea Free.

 

So two questions:

 

Does the poison work best, and if so, which one is the safest for everybody involved?

 

Or do the natural ones work really well also, and if so, which ones?

 

Thanks.

[Guest earlkattangrey]

Not to be a smarta**, but if you can have them, chickens do a great job of naturally preventing fleas (and ticks).

[greyhoundlady]

I use Frontline on my two greyhounds. I really don't like the idea of putting the 'poison' on them, but if you want dead ticks/fleas it is the only way to go. The natural stuff might repel them, but it doesn't kill them. Believe me, I have investigated a lot. What works for me is putting on the Frontline when flea/tick season starts here (in NJ) which is now and I only use it about every 3 months through October. Technically, the stuff kills fleas for 3 months and ticks for 1 month. Since I dislike putting the Frontline on them (or any poison), I only do so every 3 months. This takes care of the flea problem, and then I am just vigilant about checking for ticks. I also space out when I give them their heartworm medicine so it does not get in their system at the same time. So far, this has worked for me.

 

You will probably have lots of opinions here, and it also depends where you live. Also, the Frontline does leave a 'spot' on my greys, especially the white grey, but I let it dry really well and then brush them.

 

PS - I love the chicken idea I think guinea hens are the best for getting the ticks, but my DH is worried if I start with chickens, cows and horses won't be far behind...

[Guest Energy11]

<br />I use Frontline on my two greyhounds.  I really don't like the idea of putting the 'poison' on them, but if you want dead ticks/fleas it is the only way to go.  The natural stuff might repel them, but it doesn't kill them.  Believe me, I have investigated a lot.  What works for me is putting on the Frontline when flea/tick season starts here (in NJ) which is now and I only use it about every 3 months through October.  Technically, the stuff kills fleas for 3 months and ticks for 1 month. Since I dislike putting the Frontline on them (or any poison), I only do so every 3 months.  This takes care of the flea problem, and then I am just vigilant about checking for ticks.  I also space out when I give them their heartworm medicine so it does not get in their system at the same time.  So far, this has worked for me.<br /><br />You will probably have lots of opinions here, and it also depends where you live.  Also, the Frontline does leave a 'spot' on my greys, especially the white grey, but I let it dry really well and then brush them.<br /><br />PS - I love the chicken idea  <img src='http://forum.greytalk.com/public/style_emoticons/default/lol.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='' /> I think guinea hens are the best for getting the ticks, but my DH is worried if I start with chickens, cows and horses won't be far behind...<br />

<br /><br /><br />

 

I used to use Frontline Plus in Florida, and it stopped working. I SWEAR BY Adams Flea and Tick Mist (*the water based stuff). I use it on my five every Saturday, and last summer, no fleas or ticks. None so far this year, either. I HIGHLLY recommend it.

[Guest sorenkkg]

Where are you located, and how long do you have to use the stuff?

 

I'm asking b/c I live near Toronto, and it's cold enough here that we only do flea/tick repellant in the warm months-- we get them tested for heartworm around now, and then start giving Revolution on June 1st, 1x a month for 6 months (they say it works "retroactively" so the June dose covers anything that happeend in May... not a clue how this works )

 

The Revolution we use (not sure how many ways there are to dose it) is just one small vial per dog, per month. I give it in 2 or 3 places between their shoulder blades and lower back part of the neck. It soaks into the skin, make the fur a bit *crunchy* for a few days, but it's not really an issue once it dries initially in an hour or so I think.

 

So, that's what we do here and it seems to work.

 

Now, if only they could find a "paw injury repellant", that would be great

[winnie]

Our greyhound group (GPA-NoVA) recommends Frontline Plus. I only use it monthly during the warmer months - don't use it at all during winter. It works for us.

 

PS - I love the chicken idea I think guinea hens are the best for getting the ticks, but my DH is worried if I start with chickens, cows and horses won't be far behind...

 

Yes - guineas are the best for ticks. I have several horse friends that swear by them. On my horse, I use the Frontline Spray to help prevent ticks. It's marketed for dogs, but my equine vet recommends it for horses too.

[Guest kydie]

each has their own ideas, and I think what your pup is exposed to makes the difference, I live in a highly wooded area where all of mine are, and in flea and tick season, I use and swear by Advantix from April to Novmember, there is a product made by Bert's Bees, at Walmart, that is all natural, I would rather have the "yucky strip" on their back than have one of them with Lymes, did that once, won't do it again, just me Good Luck

[Hubcitypam]

When I worked at the day care more than a few customers said they tried the natural ones and they did not work.

Personally I wouldn't use Advantix. We are very lucky here to just have fleas, no ticks in this part of town so I just use Advantage -- it works way better on just fleas. When we went to Abilene every year I always dosed with Frontline that month as Oklahoma is a teeming mass of ticks and they would climb on the dogs when they got out for potty breaks.

[SAVED2]

Johnson & Johnson lavender baby powder , rub on every two weeks -- no fleas or ticks for years.

[Guest mrs]

I use Frontline Plus on all of my dogs (1 grey and 3 doxies) and also only put it on about every 2-3 months. It's worked great for us. After one year of a severe flea infestation in the house, I make sure to start it early enough. I'm not willing to try stuff that won't kill the fleas. Fleas in the house is no fun. They were everywhere and started biting us. Worst summer of my life.

[Guest FastDogsOwnMe]

Frontline stopped working for my dogs years ago, and now Advantage isn't working either. We don't know what to do- so I sprayed the house and the yard will be sprayed. Dogs are bathed every few days, and bedding washed daily or every other day. No carpet. House clean. Long haired dogs getting shaved...

[duncan41]

I'm at a loss, too. Frontline Plus stopped working here in FL a couple of years ago. Even our Vet agreed that there had to be something to it because there were just too many clients saying the exact same thing! Last year Advantage worked great. This year, not so much all of a sudden. Don't get it. I'm a bug magnet, so if they were in the house, I would be getting bites on my ankles, but I'm not. I'm hesitant to use any sprays because all three of mine are part feline - they are always grooming themselves - lick, lick, lick! How much of the spray stuff can they ingest before it becomes a problem? What's next: Capstar or Comfortis?

[Guest FastDogsOwnMe]

Spray your yard with Dawn dish soap

[duncan41]

Spray your yard with Dawn dish soap

 

In what proportions?

[Guest FastDogsOwnMe]

Now that I do not know. I just wing it...

[christinepi]

So I live on the California Central COast where we have a pretty long tick season.

 

It seems most people use/have used Frontline Plus. My question is: does Frontline also leave behind presumably toxic residue on the dog's back for 5-6 days? If it were no different from Advantix in that way, I'd be reluctant to try that route.

[cleptogrey]

as to dish detergent, my arborist swears by original palmolive dish detergent. he told me to put a band of it on the trunks of the trees for carpernter ants and other bugs. i use it to wash my bushes down. read jerry baker's gardening books for excellent organic advise and greyt humor. he believes in washing everything thing w/ soap. your lawn making a cocktail for them using shampoo, beer, amonia and i think epson's salts. can't remember the exact combo since we no longer have a lawn(felix has roto-tilled it).

 

ticks and fleas should be horrific this year in the north east. in ny we already have grass pollen being counted at the lincoln center pollen station, oak trees are a month early. the buggers should be following their pattern.i am using frontline until it stops working. but i do brush my pups off and check toes before i put them in the car after a walk in the woods. unfortunately i can't find the lavendar baby powder here in the nyc area, wanted to try that.

 

and yes, dawn detergent kills the fleas on contact.

Edited April 24, 2010 by cleptogrey

[Batmom]

The active ingredients in Frontline are extremely safe for mammals. IIRC your dog could bathe in it and eat many packages without ill effect except probably some diarrhea.

 

Detergents won't kill insects on contact. Get enough on them and they'll suffocate, but you won't kill a lot of them fast with a small amount of detergent in a lot of water. Try it with some bugs in your bathtub sometime.

 

One major factor in lack of efficacy of Frontline, Advantage, etc. is insects in the environment. If you have a flea/tick infestation in your house/yard, you are going to see fleas/ticks on the dog every day, regardless of Frontline/Advantage application. The products don't kill instantly. Sooooo, if you have applied products to your pet per the label and you are still seeing insects, treat your house and yard before giving up on the spot-on.

 

I had a flea infestation in the house @ a year ago, brought by human visitors. Caught it early and it still took 3 rounds of house treatment and an enormous amount of laundry to get rid of the dratted things.

[Guest earlkattangrey]

as to dish detergent, my arborist swears by original palmolive dish detergent. he told me to put a band of it on the trunks of the trees for carpernter ants and other bugs. i use it to wash my bushes down. read jerry baker's gardening books for excellent organic advise and greyt humor. he believes in washing everything thing w/ soap. your lawn making a cocktail for them using shampoo, beer, amonia and i think epson's salts. can't remember the exact combo since we no longer have a lawn(felix has roto-tilled it).

 

ticks and fleas should be horrific this year in the north east. in ny we already have grass pollen being counted at the lincoln center pollen station, oak trees are a month early. the buggers should be following their pattern.i am using frontline until it stops working. but i do brush my pups off and check toes before i put them in the car after a walk in the woods. unfortunately i can't find the lavendar baby powder here in the nyc area, wanted to try that.

 

and yes, dawn detergent kills the fleas on contact.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Johnson-27s-Baby-Powder-Lavender-Chamomile/dp/B000GCE2R4/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=grocery&qid=1272132811&sr=8-3-spell

 

I think I might try that too.

 

I use Repel lemon scented Citronella insect repellent when out on hikes for ticks. As far as fleas, we don't go to dog parks or hang around other dogs much, I haven't had fleas in years. I know holistic "extremists" believe if your dog is 100 per cent healthy/not compromised by certain regularly-applied toxins they will naturally 'resist' getting fleas under normal conditions. I don't know if there's any truth to that, but Meeve (Kattan is new this year to me) at age 9 stopped getting vaxed at age 6 or 7 (following a very bad bout of vaccinosis), doesn't get flea preventative or really anything other than TOTW. And like I said, hasn't had fleas in years. I'm in an urban area of Indy btw.

[Guest eaglflyt]

Our greyhound group (GPA-NoVA) recommends Frontline Plus. I only use it monthly during the warmer months - don't use it at all during winter. It works for us.

 

PS - I love the chicken idea I think guinea hens are the best for getting the ticks, but my DH is worried if I start with chickens, cows and horses won't be far behind...

 

Yes - guineas are the best for ticks. I have several horse friends that swear by them. On my horse, I use the Frontline Spray to help prevent ticks. It's marketed for dogs, but my equine vet recommends it for horses too.

 

Yep, guinea chickens are the best for tick control. However, you'll never get to sleep in on a Saturday morning again. They are NOISY and always choose to be extra loud on Saturday mornings.

[GreytNut]

Ducks are great for tick control, as are turkeys and chickens. They love them and will gobble them as fast as they find them. Guineas are useful for the same purpose, but they are loud, annoying and dumber than a box of rocks.

 

You may try using diatomaceous earth in your yard if you choose not to go the poultry route (though fresh eggs from free-range chickens or ducks are about the best things on earth... just sayin'....)

 

Jey is right in that you have to treat your yard to really control the problem. I wouldn't give up on Frontline just yet.

[Guest mcsheltie]

Frontline stopped working for my dogs years ago, and now Advantage isn't working either. We don't know what to do- so I sprayed the house and the yard will be sprayed. Dogs are bathed every few days, and bedding washed daily or every other day. No carpet. House clean. Long haired dogs getting shaved...

Same going on here. Frontline didn't work at all last year. And now Advantage isn't either. I am going to have to give Comfortis a try.

[Guest mcsheltie]

The last flea infestation we had I put nematodes out in the yard. Got them from Flea Busters. I figured I had just thrown $50 down the drain, but what the heck. I didn't want to spray chemicals where the dogs were. And to my surprise they worked! If you go this route, follow the directions, if they dry out they will die.

 

If you didn't want to try them I would suggest IGR spray for the yard. It isn't an instant kill, but it will get them all eventually and not do the dogs any harm. I found one that lasts for the season. Rain doesn't bother it.

 

Vacuuming kills fleas (per study done by OSU) so if you have a flea problem make sure you vacuum every nook and cranny daily and you will go a long way to ridding your house of fleas with this alone.