Pesky Fleas

Dixie'sDad

Hi all,

This is my post as I am new here and I have a bit a problem with fleas. My little shelter rescue pride and joy, Dixie, picked up some fleas somewhere and now they're all over the place! For anyone who's ever had an inside dog with a flea problem you know just how disgusting it can get! I've been waging a full out campaign against them by vacuuming everywhere, washing her dog bed and all of my bedding 3 or 4 times a week , and giving her a bath every week. This has helped keep the lil buggers at bay pretty well, but it hasn't completely gotten rid of them. I put some Hartz flea drops on her yesterday after giving her a bath and I've noticed the fleas "fleeing" () from her. Now I'm finding them more and more on me, biting me and my family. Does any one have any similar stories or advice they can share?

Renoman

First of all, please if you love your dog stop using Hartz products. Dogs have been known to become violently ill or die from that crap. If you spend a little more for Frontline or K9 Advantix you will be better off in the long run.

Try putting a flea collar in the vac bag or canister if it's bagless. Once you're done immediately throw the bag out or empty canister. You might need to bomb the house. If you do, be very careful about following the directions and remove yourself, Dixie and any other pets from the house for the prescribed time. Do you have a dirt floor in the cellar? Do you live near the beach? These might also be contibuting factors.

As for Dixie, again, to start with, I'd try Advantage or K9 Advantix. They are more immediately effective against fleas than Frontline is.

animalcraker

You'll more then likely need to Bomb the house and get you pup a flea bath from a groomer while you bomb the house. It can be very dangerous using flea products that you can buy at the pet or grociery store. Flea products are essentially pesticides that you put on your pet. You should only use flea medicines that you get from a vet, since the other products can and have killed many pets before, some aren't even approved by the FDA!!! Frontline and advantage may be more expensive then the store brands, but they work, and are well worth it.

ScienceTeacher

This blood sucker is the most common of all fleas, infecting many other animals and thus is often a carrier of blood diseases. They are hearty, have a short life cycle and thus proliferate easily. After filling with the hosts blood, they will lay eggs on the fur or drop off to lay them in the soil or your carpet. Their droppings (flea dirt) are partly dried blood and serve as food for the young hatchlings. The eggs can lay dorment or develop into larvae within about two weeks. The larvae or pupae that hatch exist on dried blood and fecal matter, transforming into the flea form later on.

Adult fleas live on the host animal for three to four weeks. They are so hardy, it is hopeless to try and kill them, unless really soaked, to sufficate them. Repelling them daily breaks their life cycle. Each female flea can lay about 2,000 eggs during that time, but only if she gets blood! This cycle is why you must work regularly with flea control by treating your pets, vacuuming carpets and treating your living environment on a steady basis. Ortho Borate flea powders (contain Boric Acid Powder) should be dusted onto your carpets and using a broom or carpet rake, repeatedly sweep powder into carpet fibers until it is no longer visible. You may prefer to use food grade diatomacious earth for even greater safety. it being eatable. The powders penetrate the carpet weave, where it kills flea larvae and flea eggs for an entire year (plus all other insects), by abrasion of their bodies protective wax coating and thus death from dehydration.

For outdoors, the food grade diatomacious earth (not the swimming pool grade), can be dusted over the soil where pets frequent. Both are fine dusts, so be sure fans or A/C are off and work upwind so you do not breath an excessive amount. A powdered sugar shaker is great for spreading the fine dust.

To retain control, you must spray your pet with Kittensafe before going outdoors, to encourage the fleas to jump off outside and to prevent fresh fleas from wanting a free ride inside. Spraying favorite bedding areas will also aid in killing flea eggs or larve.

Mdawn

I know how you feel about the fleas!! We wage the same battle every year with them! LOL! I just have to say that I agree with everyone else...DON'T use the Hartz! The first 2 years after we got our cats that is what we used. The next day or so after we used it all they did is vomit all day. It was horrible. I mentioned it to my vet and he looked at us like we were crazy for using that stuff. He was the one to inform us that it has contributed to the death of several dogs and cats. I will never use that stuff again. Now I use Frontline on all of my pets. Although, I do have to say that Frontline isn't as effective as they claim. It is supposed to last a month. It doesn't. We have to apply it every 2 weeks for it to remain effective.

Here is a word of advice: Don't use ANYTHING that can be bought in a grocery store beside collars and food dishes. Nothing else is good there; not dog food, not flea medication, NOTHING! Not even dog treats! Nothing good for your dog can be bought at a grocery store!

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Elijah

Before anyone tries smoking up the house with those bombs, I'd give this a whirl first...Fleabusters RX. It's a powder you just sweep into the carpet, vacuum up and it's good for about a year. What it does is dehydrate the fleas/larvae and puts an end to them. I've got some on order even as we speak and intend on using it indoors and have sprayed Nematodes in the backyard so, hopefully, I'm covered (not in fleas). That's the best you can do.

http://www.fleabuster.com/

http://www.fleabuster.com/Products/R...ea_powder.html

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