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Originally Posted by House  I live in Florida and it is warm like 9 months a year. I've only had Harls for about 4 months, but she is (and will be) on Sentinel year round.
Sentinel prevents worms and keeps fleas from reproducing. I was considering K9 Advantix because of mosquitos and ticks, but my vet said the mosquito preventive really only works about the first 72 hours after application.
I currently do not use any topical cream. However, I give her a bath once a week and use Dawn before using her regular oatmeal shampoo to kill any fleas if they are alive.
I would prefer to not ever use a topical, and I am waiting for Comfortis to get some history behind and I might use that. My girl is under 3 lbs and I worry about it all being too much medicine. |
I also live in South Florida and my girl is 2.7 lbs. I am of a very holistic bent, so, I don't use any topical pesticides, only all an natural spray made from Critter Oil (
Critter Oil Flea Repellent)
which I spritz on before walks. It deters pests and in my experience, works great.
I keep my dogs on heartworm preventative year round and nothing else. I haven't had much of a problem with fleas, we found one or two, put them straight into the bath and that was the end and I have only found 2 ticks on my bigger dog, one embedded on his ear and we promptly removed it and the other I found before he embedded, so we washed him down the drain.
Flea combing your dogs after each walk is a great way to see if they picked up anything and if you find a critter, put them straight into the bath.
I can't emphasize this enough: A strong immune system is the best deterrent for pests. A natural, healthy diet, limited immunizations, vitamins and holistic care deters parasites more then any chemical can. Parasites look for vulnerable hosts to make their home - its nature. Chemical pesticides weaken the immune system. Do what's best for you and your pet, but look into alternative methods!