never really had fleas before....

[dogsarebetter]

I use bio-spot on my two dogs. This is all i have ever used and I have never had fleas. Ruckus had a couple once before when we went back packing, but nothing major. Well, Ruckus and Chance both have fleas. It is a minor infestation. I have only seen 4 on Chance and 3 on Ruckus. There probably is more, but their coats are so thick i cannot see them.

Well, now what? I cannot put any more flea and tick stuff on them until the 27th. I know i need to treat the house and the yard. But what do i use? How do you treat a yard?

Thanks everyone!

 

[lizzybeth727]

I used to use Bio Spot, and my complaint with it was that it only lasts 2-3 weeks. Sorry to see I'm not the only one with that problem.

Luckily we haven't had fleas in 2-3 years, but of course I knew that couldn't last forever.... This summer we've moved to a much more rural area, and suddenly have, as you said, a minor infestation. I started using Frontline on my dog and cat earlier this week, and actually found a *dead* flea on Luna this morning! We'll see how this goes.

Anyway, fleas are very hard to get rid of in the yard (my uncle's an exterminator, he won't even take flea cases because they're very bad for business). Saje posted this link a few days ago about some options for the yard, you could check it out: http://www.vitalitymagazine.com/node/384

 

[corgi_love]

http://www.elversonpuzzle.com/biospot.html
"Farnam's Bio Spot Flea & Tick Almost Killed Our Dog."

 

[DaVinci]

This year I'm trying Ivomec for my dogs I guess it is going okay. We have a ton of ticks around here the last few years. In the past I alwaysed used Brewers yeast with garlic and never had fleas or ticks. This year a forgot to order in march so I could start n april. You have to start earlier than the season as t takes a while for it to build up in their system and be effective.

 

[Suzzie]

The use of bio spot aside, here is an indoor product that I've heard many great things about: http://www.onlynaturalpet.com/products/Fleago-Natural-Flea-Control/126001.aspx

Plenty of people recommend using brewer's yeast with garlic as a natural pest control (when using a spot on, too), and I agree garlic is awesome for that effect (I take it myself), but it's toxic to dogs so I'd avoid that, in case anyone mentions it.

I've never treated the outside so I can't be too helpful there.

 

[Beanie]

No Ivomec for Ruckus or Chance - both shelties and BCs can have ivermectin sensitivity.

I use Frontline on my boy. I kinda prefer Advantix, because of the mosquito protection, but my vet only carries Frontline.

 

[dogsarebetter]

yup, i know all about the Ivomec.

I have used frontline and advantix in the past, and none worked as well as the bio spot has. I think the fleas have gotten use to the chemicals in the bio spot. At work tons of people are coming in and they use frontline and it simply does not work anymore on their dogs. and these people have treated the home and yard. I have also heard the same thing about advantix.

Well, as far as a spot on what do you guys recommend? Keep in mind, where i live fleas and ticks are bad. 80% of the dogs that come into the shop have fleas, and most of them have owner who know about fleas and try to stay on top of the problem.

 

[Beanie]

Hmmm, I was going to say that if Frontline isn't working in your area Advantix might. I know there are places where one doesn't work but the other does. But if both of them aren't working, that won't work!
Maybe the natural kind of solutions can help? I don't know anything about how Brewer's yeast works or how you use it. Hopefully somebody else can chime in... I know there are members on this board that don't use any of the chemical stuff!

 

[smkie]

I won't use any of that sort on my dogs i just don't trust it. I keep my home prepped with borax in the carpet and under the bedding. I bathe my dogs at least one a week. I haven't had a flea infestation since the children were small and now they are grown. Occasional One will pick up a flea somwhere but we kill it quickly and if it does drop off into my house it cannot lay eggs and survive. The cat didnt' have them either nor bring in any and he was an inside outside cat.

 

[dogsarebetter]

I will try brewers yeast. However i am very sceptical that it will work well enough. But why not give it a try? I will not use garlic with my dogs. If they are not suppose to have it, then it seems like a bad idea to give it to them daily. There is a natural spot on called Natures Guardian that i have used in the past and it works well, but i have to put it on every two weeks and it says on the box to use it every 3 weeks.
Is it okay to treat the yard using the Hartz, or biospot brand yard spray? I went to the farm store, and walmart and they do not have anything natural. I would order something online but i need it really soon, and its so expensive with the shipping to get it online.

 

[smkie]

GEt a couple big boxes of muleteam borax. I read it in dog fancy a a zillion years ago and have sworn by it ever since. Sprinkle it generously into your carpets and give it a chance to work down good before you vacuum. Put it under the chair cushions and dog beds. THe vet that wrote the article said that it is not harmful to us in anyway but hell on bugs, espcially fleas. His daughter was sensitive to pesticides and becuase i had to dip dogs in flea dip and got terribly sick from it at the kennels, i think my skin contact ratio must have been near the poisonous level, i jumped on the chance that this might work. It has ever since. IF there is a huge infest, then bombing is necessary but if you treat your home like this afterwards, all i can say is it works just fine for me. Even if one is brought it, it can't breed and dies.

 

[Buddy'sParents]

You can use diatomaceous earth for the outside and inside of your home. Just make sure to not make dust clouds and to have the dogs away from where you are spreading it. Google it for more information.

For the dog, they recommend garlic and brewer's yeast, but from what I've read a lot of dogs tend to be sensitive to the addition of brewer's yeast, so you do want to be careful and monitor that. And garlic is fine, I am going to start adding it to the Three B's diet as soon as I find out how much per their body weight.

You can also make your own sprtizes... lavender, eucalyptus are great for naturally keeping fleas at bay. I've also read that neem oil works great as well. Rose geranium is good for ticks.

 

[ttwillow]

Back in the 70's 80's and early 90's I used to buy brewer's yeast at the grain elevator where I had my horse feed recipe mixed. It cost about .09 cents a pound back then. I kept my dog and all the barn cats on it year around in Ohio for flea control. It really worked well. I think it helped to shine up the horses coats too.

One of my dogs reacted to the spot on treatment last time so I have them on brewers yeast again. I found it in powder form at Sun Harvest (like Whole Foods), for more than 30.00 a pound...wow! No grain elevators in the city or out laying areas that I have found.

This does not have garlic in it. It's plain brewer's yeast in powder form. I anticipate that it will not work well right away...but I plan on keeping my dogs on it year around here in San Antonio. The fleas and ticks never die out here and are rampant. I also bathe the dogs once per month and do daily visual checks. So far so good.

 

[colliewog]

Apple cider vinegar in the food (we used 2 TBS for the Collies) actually helped for years and I live in Florida. I use Advantage now about every 2 months and it works for me, but my neighborhood is pretty good about controlling their fleas. That's the key - neighbors helping. If you treat like crazy but the neighbors don't, the fleas can still breed elsewhere and just stop by to "visit".

 

[Ruby M]

Diomataceous earth really works well out in the yard. I use a 50 pound bag every few months plus Advantage and that does the trick for an inside out combination

 

[Punkygirl0101]

I bathe my dogs at least one a week.

I personally don't believe bathing a dog more than once a month (If even) is healthy for their skin. I bathe my dogs maybe once every 3-6 months (And if I do it more than that, only if they get into something that makes them dirty).

I use frontline, but we never have a flea problem thankfully..And for my cats, I put it on all the semi-ferals, and I put it on half of the cats that hang out inside the majority of the day and that always keeps the other cats flea free as well (And saves us money!)

My mom though has this obsession with picking fleas (She is like a primate lol). She will sit on her bed and pick whatever few fleas the dogs or cats get and kill them.

I prefer not to use any types of chemicals (yard flea killers,weed killers,bug killers, etc) in my yard for my pets safety!! But one thing that does work, cedar shavings! I put cedar shavings in some of the flower beds, and that does help! Cedar shavings ARE bad for small animals, but thats if they are living their entire lives on this bedding. But for outdoor use, in areas animals don't go in...its completely safe.

Why is it a lot of dog treat recipes (Mainly ones meant for flea control) use garlic? Garlic is NOT safe for dogs consumption!

 

[Buddy'sParents]

Garlic is NOT safe for dogs consumption!

Sure it is. The key is moderation.

 

[dogsarebetter]

I am not comfortable with feeding garlic, so i will just skip out on that. Thanks anyway!

 

[Gempress]

I don't use any of the bio-spot, Frontline or other flea control products. They're too expensive for what you get. I've noticed that I only have flea problems during certain times of the year...the first few weeks of spring, and the last few weeks of fall.

I just use good ol' Sergeant's Flea and Tick shampoo regularly during those times of the year, and maybe once every six weeks for the rest of the year. I actually prefer the flea shampoo. To me, it seems safer to use a bug killer you rinse off, instead of one you leave on your dog. We also treat our yard twice a year with a good lawn pesticide (we have horrid fire ant problems in this part of the country, so we have to do it anyway). I've never had a flea problem.

 

[~Dixie's_Mom~]

We have awful fleas and ticks where I am, and we use frontline one a month (this time we couldn't get into the vet, so we used bio spot - seems to be working). We went a week or so without a treatment, and Holly was COVERED in ticks. It was absolutely terrible. We put the bio spot on (we could have waited to get frontline, but this was an EMERGENCY) and ticks were falling off ALL OVER the house. I was vacuuming and sweeping 3, 4 times daily to get them all up. It was awful. They were even in my bed. I absolutely DESPISE ticks, so this was not a pleasant experience for me. And I'm sure Holly wasn't enjoying it either. Therefore, I don't plan to ever skip out on the flea/tick meds again. Those of you who can go 2 months without it, or just use shampoo I say "lucky "! Rofls! XD