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Fleas back again! Help! Around Sept 13th, I was at home giving Dollar a good rubdown when i noticed this type of black sand on his back by his tail. i went online and sure enough it was a sign of fleas. i gave him a bath with flea shampoo (did not work) and took him to the vet on the following weekday. she prescribed me frontline, capstar and allergy medicine because she thought he was allergic to the bites. the vet applied the frontline on the spot and i gave him the capstar and allergy medicine and took him for a walk for 45 minutes to shake off the dead fleas from the capstar. cleaned the floors with a lavendar scented cleaner and spayed the areas my pet frequented with a spray(had to leave the house). The next day I saw him scratching again so i checked for fleas and there it was. I took him to the vet the following day and the vet who saw dollar gave him a shot for the itching and prescribed me sentinel. Then he started talking about how my dog should be neutered and that his baby tooth should be removed asap and that i should schedule a date with the receptionist up front. it seemed like he really didnt care about the fleas and was more concerned about making money from the surgery which made me furious. So anyways, Dollar has been good up until yesterday when he started scratching again and i found another flea. today i gave him another flea bath and killed 4 fleas. I've spent $370 dollars at the vet already and i do not have that kind of money to spend. If anyone who has had a similar problem could help me get rid of these fleas for good please let me know.Dollar absolutely hates the spray i use on him and any kind of collar around his neck unless hes going for a walk. I love my dog very much and it kills me to see this happening to him. the area below his stomach is full red bumps. :mad: P.S. sorry, i know its long. |
our baby girl suffers from flea allergy too.. we front lined the end of august around 24th but by 5th Sept her back was near bare and she had sore red blotches on her stomach.. with no fleas to be seen!!! our vet prescribed stronghold flea treatment and some meds a week later her red sore spots were gone.. we usualy have to repeat a few times especialy during summer the problem with most flea treatment is that they have to actualy bite our babbies in order for the treatment to kill the fleas.. which for a dog with flea alergies is bad news as one bite is all it takes to cause sevear reactions :thumbdown if you have a dog with a flea allergy you really need to stay on top of it or your dog may well literally rip hair out in no time at all.. we have 3 yorkies and she is the only one who reacts soo soo bad between flea treatments we shampoo with medicated tea tree and lavender .. you also need to be aware of areas you walk your dog, fleas live in long grass.. and places frequented by other dogs we also ripped out all our carpets last summer from our home and replaced with hard flooring and hoover daily :rolleyes: good luck ..would luv to know what others do for flea alergies so will keep an eye on your thread :thumbup: |
So your vet gave Frontline, Capstar and Sentinel all in the same month??...That would be a lot of toxic chemicals in a months time on your pet....The chemicals you put on Dollar don't repel fleas they work by putting toxins in your pets system, then the flea has to bite to be exposed to it, them they die..... Once the fleas come into the house the adults you see are just part of the problem. You now have eggs, larvae, and pupae stages to get rid of....Most of them are in the egg and larvae stage, probably around 80% of them. . I would not recommend bombs for your home. You will cover every surface in your home with an oily toxic chemical. After all they are made to kill. This would only have an effect on the adults. The best thing you can do at this point is to get out your trusty Hoover and get busy. This would be the most effective yet safe thing you can do.....It's important to do this daily and make sure you do along the base boards and under furniture, the larvae likes to get to dark places and hide, and everywhere Dollar sleeps. From egg to larvae, to pupae to adult you might be looking at 6 weeks of new fleas hatching, maybe longer. That's why it's important to get sweeping since you have only seen a couple.... Here are two studies on this..... Sciencedaily .com: Lead study author W. Fred Hink, professor emeritus of entomology at Ohio State and a longtime researcher in nontoxic controls of fleas on dogs, sought to test the effects of vacuuming on all flea life stages and whether any extra disposal steps or additional chemical controls are necessary. The study involved groups of 100 adult fleas at a time, as well as groups of 50 pupae and 50 larvae, by vacuuming them up from a tightly woven kitchen-type of carpet. Six tests of vacuuming the adult fleas yielded an average of 96 percent of fleas killed; three tests of vacuumed pupae and one test of vacuumed larvae (in their third stage of development) resulted in 100 percent killed. In comparison, an average of only 5 percent of adult fleas died after being held in paper vacuum bags to test for toxicity, and an average of only 3 percent died when circulated in moving air. “I did not include eggs in the vacuum study, but I'm sure they would not have survived,” Hink said. Dutch journal Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata: The old upright is not only lethal to adult bugs, but it completely wipes out their young. Scientists from Ohio State University had set out to determine what additional measures might be needed to kill a bunch of Hoovered-up fleas: burning, freezing, poisoning, maybe even a little good old fashioned stomping. But it turns out that getting sucked into a vacuum bag does the whole job. The researchers were so surprised by the results, they repeated the study several times. In each experiment, they sprinkled a kitchen carpet with 100 cat fleas, either adults or juveniles. And they found that the vacuum snuffed out pretty much all of them. Good luck!....:) |
Yes, i found it somewhat odd myself but didnt bother to question the vet. I have wooden floors and so far ive sprayed the areas dollar frequents with a spray thats supposed to break the life cycle for up to 7months. so far the results havent been to great and it does leave a oily coat all over the floor. i dont know where i should vacuum besides the obvious. ive got boxes willed with sneakers in one corner next to where Dollar frequents, leather seats with cloth on the undersides, and i have a pile of clothes on the floor where he lays all the time and he lays on all the sofas and beds, rugs, pretty much antyhing you can think of. should i open up all 200 boxes of sneakers and look for any sign of infestation? Vacuum the seats regardless of leather? vacuum the beds? Im going to buy a vacuum tomorrow, does it have to have a bag in it? or can i puchase a bagless one? any suggestions? Ive read that people put flea collars inside the vacuum bags to kill them wile inside. can i do the same with a bagless vacuum? I have a closet and i always leave one side open. should i be worried about the clothes inside? thankyou for all the useful information. i would be lost wihout you guys :animal-pa:animal-pa |
ohh wow you getting in a state over this .. step back take a deep breath and look at your luvly little guy .. arghh cute .. never heard of fleas opening up boxes to live .. but it may be a good idea to remove them off the floor once in a while and hoover the area clothes on the floor ..hmm perhaps put them away or buy a laundry basket if its dirty clothes any hoover will do .. i have a Dyson hard floor hoover downstairs and a Henry for upstairs mostly because i don't like carrying them up/down stairs ..so have 1 with bag and 1 without personally i find just the fact Ive hoovered is enough so don't bother with flea collars ect in the hoovers if you have hard floors throughout get a hard floor hoover as regular hoovers tend to spit out junk rather then suck it up .. i don't hoover my sofa which is a white large corner leather thing .. i sweep it with a soft hand brush and wipe it with leather wipes and the junk that comes of it i hoover off the floor no need to hoover your bed but hoover your pet bed :D .. sorry the thought of somone standing on a bare mattress with a dyson gave me the giggles |
We had to take Smokie to the Vet today because of his fleas. They put him on a new medication for fleas called Comfortis Tabs. This is taken orally, and needs to be taken with a meal. I posted the details of the visit under the post Donnie has fleas - but tonight Smokie is calm, not itching and scratching, and MUST be feeling better. Also, unless you are just really attached to your vet, you might check around to see what other vets are in the area. Good luck to you and your baby - Reva - Smokie's mama :aimeeyork |
I had the same problem last month and I was giving up hope! Then I read a wonderful wonderful post on another forum. DAWN DISH SOAP! I thought it was too good to be true but I used it and sure enough it worked! I gave them a good scrubing in it for about 5 min and got up to right above their eyes (careful not to get it in their eyes) then rinsed it out and used frontline. I then ripped the house apart and vacumed everything, pulled cushions off the couches and vacumed it all and washed every single soft surface they could touch, blankets, pillows, clothes that were sitting out toys everything. Since I did that we haven't seen one of this little buggers. Knock on wood! Deffinently try to soap though it made all the difference for me. |
we had a terrible time getting rid of the fleas this summer..I think we finally are flea free! we had a professional exterminator come twice and had the babies on capstar once a week for like 6 weeks and then the flea preventative pill plus flea baths too ...It seems like they are some kind of super flea or something this year...hoping for a good freeze here in texas this winter.. |
I found two fleas on Harley that I believe came from the Groomer. That's all it took for him to start itching all over. I had to end up taking him to the vet and they thought he had a flea allergy. They put him on prednisone (spelling??). He was already on Front line but I also gave him a Dawn dishwashing detergent bath. I washed all of his toys and bedding...also all of my bedding. I bought a spray from the vet called Knockout that I sprayed my carpets and furniture with....vacuumed real well. I have only seen one flea since then and that was when I gave him a bath and the flea was already dead. I hope I have solved my issue. It's alot of work trying to get rid of them but I wanted to nip that problem in the bud before it got out of hand. I wish you luck. |
Giving Capstar and Frontline at the same time is perfectly ok! Capstar kills the fleas that are on the dog at the time. Then Frontline should work for a month. I am assuming you purchased six months worth of Frontline? It is cheaper to buy that way! I would ask the vet if it is ok to apply it again. Then, at the same time, you must get the fleas out of your home! I would not use a spray that is lingering on the floor...sounds dangerous to me with a dog in the house walking in it. Ask your vet for a suggestion about what you can use to kill the fleas in your home. Years ago, I know people would leave the house and set a bomb off. Not so sure how healthy that was, but it did get rid of the fleas. After doing that, you really should not have any more issues if you use a flea preventative religiously. |
thanks for all the replies.:animal-pa:animal-pa So 2 days ago i bought 3 boxes of borax and sprinkled the whole house down (3bdrms and a living room) and let it sit for 3 hours. washed all the bedding, sheets, clothes, toys, curatins (anything made of cloth). i came home and vacuumed like there was no tomorrow. I started with my moms rooms because i figured that would be the least flea infested area. so while i was vacuuming there, i had my mother wash dollar with flea shampoo. after i was done with the room i kept dollar in there till i finished. i vcauumed the beds, the leather seats, under the couches, my pets bed, baseboards, pretty much anywhere i thought the eggs could be hiding. after 12 hours of cleaning. i felt a little better about the whole situation. I know this problem will not go away with one vacuuming session. But when i woke up this morning, Dollar had been bitten worse than ever!!! The fleas seem to be biting him closer to his neck/face. and he is more miserable than ever. ive caught about 10 fleas on dollar since this tragedy has happened. but never once have i seen a flea roaming around in the house. and now i cant seem to find any on dollar either, just bigger, redder, patches of pain are they getting smarter on me? lol am i doin something wrong? should i not worry as much and just keep vacuuming daily? do i have to be as thorough with vacuuming the house everyday? (lots of heavy furniture). Ive read somehwre that if you mix a gallon of water with 5 teaspoons of white organic vinegar and give that to your dog as his water source that fleas will never bite again. has anyone tried this? After hours of research online, I'm hesitant to "bomb' the house because dollar is very curious and i do not trust the chemicals to be safe even after it has dried up. or empty my pockets to an exterminator after reading other peoples stories of how they had 3-4 treatments and still had fleas. I dont think i have an infestation to the point where i see fleas around the house but it makes me wonder how bad it has to be for dollar to be bitten almost all over his body. i started to think that maybe i have fleas and bed bugs??? UGH. I am freaking out. all in all im losing sleep over this nonsense, and ive been frightened to take dollar out for a walk. ( he LOVES to run on grass). I guess ill just keep vacuuming and hope for the best. i also read that in 10 days i should reapply the borax and vacuum again. Sigh. i cant wait. im thinking i will mix in some table salt to help the process. should i vacuum the kitchen and bathrooms as well? elleandca, i ended up buying a regular hoover. i wish i had logged on and checked this thread before i went and bought a vacuum because this sucker spits the borax out like dogs kick dirt. would you recommend getting a hardwood floor vacuum? |
We just got news from the groomer that she found 3 fleas on Bandit and 1 flea on Nala. While they were there we used the spray on the carpets and left the house for an hour, cleaned their crates and harnesses and leashes and bedding, and vacuumed. They got a flea bath at the groomers on Monday, we used the Frontline today (one day early...we usually use it the first of the month) and the vet gave us Capstar as an extra preventative. Our vet tech thinks its is a possibility they got them at the groomer, which is what I am hoping, because then it will hopefully not be:confused: in our house! My question is can my dogs have fleas and I not even notice? I give them a bath every week after Bandit gets back from daycare or anytime we got to the dog park, and we give them their frontline and interceptor the first of every month religously. |
just got done vacuuming and i noticed 2 whiskers from dollar, they seem to have fallen out from the root. could this be cause of the borax? or the fleas? ive never seen this happen. i just read that mineral oil (baby oil) is good for relieveing the itching and helps keep away the fleas? does anyone know if this is true? |
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But...the trick is to prevent the fleas in the first place and imo the best way to do that is by using a flea preventative like Advantage religiously. Mineral oil is just going to be a mess on your yorkie imo. |
Ok so i have a question. You state that you haven't seen any fleas on dollar or around your house but there are mysterious red bumps, and she's loosing hair. Could it be an allergy maybe? It's odd to not see any fleas at all. Did you try a flea comb to see if there were eggs or anything? |
well this has been going on for about 3 weeks now and i havent seen a flea in about 4 days i think? but the scratching is there and the rashes seem to get worse. i went out and bought some baby oil with lavendar, hopefully it'll relive some of the itching. and put 5 teaspoons of vinegar in a gallon on water to keep away the fleas but it doesnt seem like hes going to drink the water. hes already on frontline and sentinel but he keeps getting bit. and he seems to be nipping at his front paws alot and shaking his head. at this point im trying any and everything. i really feel helpless in this war against the fleas. |
you need to go to the vet and get some anti itch tablets .. it sounds like its gone from *its fleas* to a flea allergy! do it while your dog has hair.. believe me they can rip their hair out in no time ..only takes a few days of being on the anti itch meds and our girl stops with the constant itching/licking herself bald and sore. one bite from a flea is all it takes to send your dog on a endless mission to scratch an itch that is not there <== what my vet told me the sad misery of it is you will probably have this bad reaction every summer as our girl and heaps of other dogs/cats do as mentioned earlier in your thread most flea treatments work by killing the fleas after they have bitten ..one bite is all it takes to start that horrid itch cycle yes invest in a hard floor hoover .. hehe took us years of buying regular good quality hoovers to realize they sit higher while hoovering as they are designed for carpets so spit junk out as they don't sit close enough to the floor when hoovering a hard floor :rolleyes: have comfort in winter and the colder weather will be here in no time.. then the fleas go into hybernation so the problem will ease |
You said he was itching around his face.. are you sure he doesn't have ear mites or an ear infection? One of my girls got an ear infection once and scratched all the hair off her neck. |
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anyone in the Bergen/Hudson NJ area that can recommend a caring vet? i currently go to Rutherford animal hosiptal but im not happy with their services. I know of Oradell animal hospital but im looking for a vet that actually cares about the animal as opposed to trying to find a way to fill their pockets. |
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Good vets are difficult to find. I hope you find a great one! If no one on YT has a suggestion, do a search on Petfinder for dogs in your area. Then, write to some of the rescues that you find and ask them about vets...tell them exactly what you are looking for. Rescuers always know good vets...kind of like looking for a good people doctor...ask a nurse! :) Good luck! |
I sympathize with you! I also disagree with the studies that say vacuuming kills fleas and larvae. Vacuuming must be done, however, if there is a bag, it must be taken out and disposed of in the trash soon after, cause those fleas will live and eggs will hatch in the bag ! The study must have used vacuums that work better than the average household vacuum! Yes, I would cut up a flea collar and vacuum it up first thing! We found out the hard way, fleas can make their way right back out of that vacuum bag! Its a shame they only used small amounts of fleas in their study and not a real household situation with real world vacuums! Also I have never heard of using vinegar in the drinking water to kill fleas, but it is supposed to be good to make the urine less smelly, just have never been able to get cats or dogs to drink it after it has been added to the water. I'd bathe the animals daily and vacuum daily until the fleas are gone from inside the house anyway. We did use a chemical on our rugs, it came in a tiny bottle and we mixed it with water into a gallon container with a sprayer. It killed the adults,and kept the eggs from hatching out and kept the larvae from going into the adult stages. I haven't seen it in 15 years and only saw it in a local farm hardware store that is now out of biasness. We only used it once, but never had to repeat it. Wish I could remember the name and the company that made it. It worked a miracle for us! I remember it started with a V, but it was not vinegar ;) I have heard of using orange peels in the pet bed area,supposed to kill fleas, but the oil from the orange can be bad for pet skins, especially cats. Also I wonder if dawn might not dry out pet skin if used daily? Fleas are quite good jumpers,though dog and cat fleas can't reproduce on human blood, they will bite you anyway cause they just know they are hungry! Vacume your bed, under the bed and wash your sheets and pillow covers. Couch, under the cushions,under the couch, anywhere the pets can go, the fleas and larvae will go. Fleas don't stay on the pet, they will bite to eat, go to the nose,eyes and anal area to get water and yes bite around the eyes and anal area too. Then they jump off to lay eggs or what ever until they get hungry again. It has been a long time since I have read this stuff and don't know where to point you to for current information. But it is good to know the enemy so you can fight them! Oh and if you have a yard, it might be good to find somthing you can apply in areas you pet likes to visit or nap in. Read the fine print, most say to keep kids and pets off treated areas for so many hours after applied. good luck |
That's a great idea. I got the number for the Hudson County Animal League and plan on calling early tomorrow. I'm seriously thinking of purchasing a hardwood floor vacuum but i spent almost $900 already in efforts to get rid of the fleas. Dollar was itching pretty bad again so i gave him an oatmeal bath and i found an adult flea but it was about half the size of the ones i've seen previously so im guessing it was a newly hatched flea. i feel like the couple spots i overlooked to vacuum are the spots they live in. :mad: And no Dollar does NOT drink the water with vinegar, maybe a sip before barking at me. i tie up the vacuum bags with 2 plastic bags as soon as im done vacuuming and toss them out my porch into the garbage can. my landlord who lives downstairs has a yard that dollar never goes into but she grows her own vegetables and im wondering if maybe thats the cause of the fleas? ( I live on the 2nd floor but i always have my window open with a window fan, but i dont take out the screen.) But then again she has a 4 year old dog with white hair that stays outside all day and he doesnt seem to scratch at all. I came across a website about flea prevention and it mentioned something about keeping the dog's skin healthy through proper diet makes your pet less prone to be bitten. Does anyone have any knowledge on this? like what to feed him? I'm taking dollar to the vet tomorrow to get some meds for the itching and continue the daily vacuuming. in 7 days i have to sprinkle the whole house with borax again but i really don't think i can go through that again. I just might have to call an exterminator and hope for the best. we'll see. |
It sounds like you are doing all of the right things, it does take a while and seem discouraging because the fleas are hard to get rid of, they eat,poop and reproduce, it is their existance! I am not an expert, but have had more than a couple of bad experiences with fleas in the past. The last time occurred after I got married and had my own house, and indoor Persian cats, and 2 little girls, so I read extensively on the current info that was available at the time and used the chemicals that were available. I did not use a bomb, just sprayed chemicals on the carpet that worked really good!!! Any yard can be a source of fleas, and just because you don't see a dog scratching, doesn't mean that they don't scratch. Fleas will jump on, eat their meal, get some moisture,(water) from the eyes,nose,anal area and poop where ever they are and jump off again, go lay eggs,poop some more,etc. then jump right back on again for another meal. This will continue until they die. If the landlord's dog also comes inside, it can bring in fleas. If you pet the dog or go for a walk, the fleas can jump on your clothes and come in the house with you and jump on your dog. Could be someone in doggy day care brought some in, but didn't know it either! From personal experience, fleas will bite human ankles with enthusiasm!!! I have also been bitten on the eyeball by a flea, or it jumped on my eyeball, it was a painful experience either way!!! I am not saying that the fleas came from the landlord's dog or yard, as any passing dog or cat can bring in a flea, or someone visiting who has been exposed to a flea source and not been bitten, but just not aware they are carrying one on their clothes. It doesn't take a lot of fleas, it only takes one. That one flea can make lots more and it just takes a while for the eggs to hatch and the larva to reach adult hood, then "boom" you have an infestation! Fleas will bite any warm blooded animal. Cat fleas will bit dogs and people or what ever is available, same with dog fleas,and rat fleas and other fleas. Doesn't matter if the skin is healthy or not. If a flea is hungry, and on an exceptable food source, it will bite. Having said that, dog and cat fleas can reproduce from each others food source, human fleas for instance, cannot reproduce from eating blood from dogs or cats. I would say that healthy skin would be more resilient to pests, perhaps not have an allergic reaction or as bad of one, though I'd think that might be genetic. Perhaps not all dogs are allergic to fleas, but it might just depend on how exposed they are to the biting and flea feces. I guess a vet would be more able to tell you about that. I would investigate nutrition for dogs and how it affects the skin and pest prevention on same,fleas, mites,ringworm,etc. Fleas are aggravating and frustrating, but keep up what you are doing, you will conquer them! Oh, I forget how high a flea can jump, probably not up to the second floor though. |
Gave dollar a bath in dawn but i didnt see any fleas. i applied some hydrocortisone on the irritated areas and he went to sleep. woke up this morning to find a few bite marks on the underside of his belly near his tesitcles, and by his tail. he wouldnt stop scratching himself. Im guessing Frontline and Sentinel DOES NOT LAST a month. the borax seemed to have no effect or i must be missing a spot somewhere in the house. will shaving his hair make them a bit more manageable? also i seem to be the only member in the house thats also being bitten and its not my ankles, its my stomach, chest, and arms. could it be bed bugs? is there a difference in bite marks? god i hope not. has anyone tried flea traps or plug in repellents? im desperate at this point. |
all the baths you have given dollar has probably washed away all the frontline if the white dog had bad fleas its fur would not be white but a manky brown white just curious do your floorboards have holes in them? the fleas could be living under the boards and hoping out through the cracks/holes :rolleyes: if fleas are biting you then there are still fleas about .. tell that to your new vet and beg for a solution to sort the problem psst move house.. start a fresh in a flea free home :rolleyes: |
Again, I am not an expert, just giving my personal experience with flea battles. Yes, fleas won't just bite you on your ankle, but if they are in your carpet, that is how they mostly get on you, they will hop to your foot or ankle,(from the floor/carpet) and crawl thru your sock to your skin. Not saying that the ankle is the only place they will bite. It is just more common when the carpet is infested. Have you treated your closet floor? Vacuum there often as well. Yes, you can vacume your mattress, it cleans it of tiny dead skin particles that have fallen off of our bodies and any tiny little bugs,mites, bugs,Flea larve,and other living things,(that eat the dead skin particles) that folks can be allergic too whether they are visable or not. At the time we had a bad case of fleas, my cats,(2 Persians) would jump to the top of the washer in our laundry room and sleep there, cooler on them I suspect. When I did laundry, I found that there was a red stain on the rubber skirt that lined the inside lid of my washer. Those fleas would jump off of my cats and down into the space that is left around the lid of the washer and the poop they left would get wet and stain it. So fleas can go just about anywhere in your house, you have to clean every nook and cranny those tiny little things can get into. If I remember correctly, Borax works on fleas by dehydrating them, I don't know how long it takes to do that, but it probably takes longer than over night or a week. So how long to leave it down and how often to vacume it up? I have no idea. It would help you to take a look at the info available on the web, look up life cycles of the flea,how long it takes the eggs to hatch, and the various forms of flea treatments,(the Borax maker may have suggestions and solutions as well!) of what is available to use on carpets and hardwood floors, what is toxic to pets and children and what is not. The more you know, the better informed decision you can make about what you want to use and not and if you decide to go with a professional exterminator, if they are telling you the truth or running up your bill for their profit. Oh and find out who publishes the websites you visit as some of them are put out by the companies that make the products mentioned in some of them. Self promotion there but some good info as well. You will have better luck if you become self educated about fleas and you can sort thru things better. I am sorry I have forgotten so much and wish the stuff I used was still available. It was rather toxic, might be why it is not availablel anymore or if it is I havn't seen it. But I havn't really had to look for it since then either. I imagine there is new flea killers out there and new info too so the info I am giving you was good for 15 years ago ;) but you need new info! I hope the fleas all die soon and stop biting everyone in your home! Abby and me. |
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Abby, you've been very helpful and i thank you. i've been vacuuming everyday and yes i have been looking at all sorts of websites to keep myself in the know about these damn fleas. I've been thru almost every page on the web that has to do with fleas, some even more than once. I have not vacuumed the closet because dollar never goes in there and the fact that i have TONS of clothes that are very expensive and arent meant to be washed in hot water or tumble dried. also i have a small little space with folding doors where we keep the washer and dryer, i thought about giving the area a quick vacuum because it seems like a very cool and dark place but the machines must weigh a ton. i'll try my best to get underneath and hopefully suck them out. The dog downstairs has white and brown hair and i hardly come in contact with it so i wouldnt really know. my friend had a flea problem and he's telling me to shave dollars hair off, would that help even in the slightest? Ive been reading alot about keeping up your dogs health to make the skin more resistant to flea bites. Can anyone recommend a nutrient supplement? |
Okay, here is one website that has 4 articles to read. And yes, they are probably like the ones you have already read. But just in case it has some extra information that the others did not, well hope it helps. FLEAS It is from NC Agriculture extension serivice. It won't advertise specific brand names but it does mention IGR's, (insect growth regulator). This is what I used to spray on the carpet. I can't remember the name of it, but I have never had to use it again. It came in a tiny bottle and I mixed it with water and put it into a big gallon bottle with a spray nozzle and hose. (When I get rid of this old carpet, I will expect I will have to find a new IGR for hardwood floors!!!) I would vacume everywhere you can reach, every nook and cranny, all closets included! It doesn't matter if the dog has been in there or not, fleas can travel on you, your kids, and the adults can jump around pretty well!!! Where you have heavy furniture or spaces too tiny or narrow to get a vacume tool into or under, I would spread the Borax and or dog or cat flea collars either cut them up into smaller pieces and push them under the washer dryers/furniture/tiny spaces or leave them whole. I would just leave them there for the amount of time mentioned on the life span of the flea collar or at least 24 hours or more for the Borax. One of the articles above also mentions that drying out and heat will kill fleas in certain stages. Rediculous to raise your house temp to 103 F. In my first flea experience before I got married, I brought my cat into my newly rented appartment for an hour, took her back to my parents and went off for a week. I came back to the apartment,(that I had not been to in a week, that my cat had only been in for only an hour) and I was attacked by a hoard of fleas! My parents did not have a problem when my cat was in their home and I never had flea problem at my previous apartment. Could have been fleas from a pet from a previous resident, never figured it out. My boyfriend and I went and got some flea bombs and let them go for over night. I went back to my parents to stay until the next day. When I went back in, the fleas were dead, but I had to vacume not only the carpet, but the tables and counters and chairs,couches, my bed, dressar were covered with dead fleas where they had tried to jump and get away but were killed by the fog from the bomb. That was before IGA's were invented. If you cut the hair on your dog, you will be able to see the fleas/flea dirt better, and use a flea comb and catch the fleas faster than if his hair is long. I had Persians, (still have one of them) and never had to shave them. Their hair is not as long as a Yorky's but it is very thick as the coat is made up of several different kinds of hair. Fleas can hide in a Persian's coat, you never see them until they are infested. Use a flea comb, don't let the fleas get away that you catch, have a small container of extreamly soapy water so close that you can dump that flea in there, it will help trap them so they can't jump out while you keep combing and searching. Oh, before we used the IGA, we also had some good use of a small aluminum pan of water with a light blub over it,(like a utility light, has a long cord and a plastic cage around it,the light will get pretty hot) The idea is the fleas in the area will get hot and jump into the water,not be able to jump back out and drown. It only works in a small area, can't do that all over the house. Those lights get pretty hot, could cause a fire under unsupervised situations. Kids have to be kept away too. This hot light/water solution will only work in the area that the light is in, it will not draw fleas from other areas of the home. It may not be practical but just suggesting it, in case you do have a situation where it can be safely used under supervision. Not sure if they will have something with IGA's(available at this time of year?) in them for the home at Lowe's Home Improvement or the other Home improvement store or farm/aggriculture stores that might be in your area. If you do find one, it is not something little kids should be crawling around in, nor pets, until it has had a chance to dry really good and then I would still not let the kids skin be touching the floors or carpets/rug while the chemical is in them. This is all I can suggest,so I'll be quiet now and let you find your way through this situation. Wishing you the quickist, cheapest ,and best working solution which ever way you decided to go |
Smokie is doing great since we had him to the vet. The Comfortis tabs have kept him flea free, and the meds the vet gave him for his allergies to the fleas have completely cleared him up. I mixed equal amount of baking soda and salt, and spread that on the carpet - took a brush looking thing and rubbed it into the carpet. Then a couple hours later we vacumned. Of course we did the comforter, Smokie's bed, toys , etc. And we removed the vacumn bag, put it in the indoor garbage bag and carried it all to the outside container all tied up. My husband double treated the yard. Our vet said the fleas can come from a wild animal coming thru such as a raccoon, or we had a skunk come through right before Smokie's flea outbreak. The vet said that very well could have been the cause of it. I also read that rubbing alcohol will kill fleas, so here's my question. Everything I read was like oh don't put it on the animal because it will burn, although some were doing it anyway. Well duh. But what about in a spray bottle plus in the carpet shampooer. My daughter has worked at a groomer's before she became pregnant, and that is where she learned about the dawn and the rubbing alcohol. I still use the baking soda and salt on the carpet. We haven't been having any further problems. So far. Good luck to all of you. Reva ~ Smokie's mama :aimeeyork ps - I meant the rubbing alcohol to spray on carpet and furniture, not pets. Just to clear that up. |
Here's my input....my daughter fought fleas terribly this summer and here's what the vet told her. It took approx 6 weeks to get into this mess with fleas and it would take about 6 weeks to get out of it. They told her to "bomb" her apartment and to "leave" it for as long as they could. Than to vacume, take the bag out right away and to vacume EVERYTHING. Continue to vacume everyday. To put Frontline, or any of them on her furbaby. Than to NOT give them a bath! They say that they are water proof, which they are BUT they are not shampoo proof. That everytime she was giving her a bath that she was washing more of the product out. So to wait as long as possible to give baths. The fleas are gone now, but it did take about 5 weeks and several bombings later. (they bombed like every week for a while) My daughter and BF were both getting flea bites, and she was at her wits end but they finally got ahold of it! Thank goodness! Good luck. |
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