How do you control fleas?

[bettyeanne]

Originally Posted by Junebug

Do not use the generic cheaper imitation of Advantage on your pets.

A friend of mine who has three cats decided to cut costs by buying the cheaper version of Advantage you find at the drugstore. She said her cats became very lethargic and listless after using it, even the most energic kitty out of the bunch got sick.

So please be kind to your Yorkies and buy the real stuff at the vet!

ABSOLUTELY!!! Our vet says to never use those "over the counter" Advantage products!! Funny you should post this ... we were visiting my Mom in Alabama and although Toto never touched the ground, a couple of neighborhood dogs who aren't loved by their owners hang out there because they are fed and loved by my pet loving son and his wife! [We have a home across the street and are constantly back and forth.] We were planning to leave around 6AM to drive back to Lake Charles so were up around 4AM and discovered to our horror that Toto had somehow gotten some fleas!!! We were mortified .... on the 18th of every single month she gets her Advantage and her heartworm medication without fail!!! We had no choice but to leave at 6 as planned and then called our vet as soon as she got to her office. She said DO NOT bathe her in any flea shampoo [there isn't one on the market that she would recommend] but simply bathe her and apply a full tube of the Advantage [we had been giving 1/2 tube because of her size]. So the minute we got to our home in Lake Charles that's exactly what we did! Saw several dead bodies after two shampoos and conditioner! Hope that's the end of that .... if Toto [who never hardly ever touches the ground] got them .... what must the ones who get to run outside regularly go through? At any rate ... go with the ones from the vet! Better safe than sorry!!!

[Junebug]

Bettyanne, you guys sound like us!! Several times, we found fleas on Otis and completely freaked out! Mike would scream, "I SAW A FLEA!!" with his eyse all big as if it was a ghost he saw!

And little Otis is so cute...I would say, "Otis, let me see if you have a flea," and turn him over on his back with his paws in the air, and I would literally pick them out and drown them in a cup of hot water. We would be at Mike's house, and I keep all of Otis's bathing things and Advantage at my house, so there would be nothing else to do but pick them out! Honestly, I think it's kinda fun, and Otis seems to enjoy it! hehehe..

I have a great tip about bathing dogs. Wet and soap the head of your pet FIRST, not last. This way, the fleas will travel to the body of the pet, and will be less inclined to "hide out" behind the ears or near the eyes. Once they're on the body, soap your pet up really well, and the fleas have no place to go but down the drain.

[max's mom]

Thanks Junebug....I am using Advantage from the vet....it works for about 2- 2 1/2 weeks......then the little boogers are back....we live on a 1/2 acre so it is difficult to spray all of the area......and I have to be careful too...because Max is so so sensitive to lots of stuff......but I do a careful flea hunt in the house and around the near part of the yard... thanks for all the advice......may have to try the tattoo next......

Max's Mom

[bettyeanne]

Originally Posted by Junebug

Bettyanne, you guys sound like us!! Several times, we found fleas on Otis and completely freaked out! Mike would scream, "I SAW A FLEA!!" with his eyse all big as if it was a ghost he saw!

And little Otis is so cute...I would say, "Otis, let me see if you have a flea," and turn him over on his back with his paws in the air, and I would literally pick them out and drown them in a cup of hot water. We would be at Mike's house, and I keep all of Otis's bathing things and Advantage at my house, so there would be nothing else to do but pick them out! Honestly, I think it's kinda fun, and Otis seems to enjoy it! hehehe..

I have a great tip about bathing dogs. Wet and soap the head of your pet FIRST, not last. This way, the fleas will travel to the body of the pet, and will be less inclined to "hide out" behind the ears or near the eyes. Once they're on the body, soap your pet up really well, and the fleas have no place to go but down the drain.

That IS a great tip!! Wish I had read it before I bathed Toto yesterday because after I soaked her, shampooed her twice and conditioned her I found one lurking around behind her ear!! Sent him on to "flea heaven" or where ever those devils go!!! It's traumatic for all of us .... poor Toto thinks she has done something wrong even though we tell her what's going on and that she is a "good girl"!! Thanks for the tip ... I will use that even if it's just her regular bath ... then if there may be some there that we haven't seen, they will drown and be gone!!

[Higgin's Mom]

Now why didn't I think of that "head first" way of bathing Higgins! THANKS!

Higgins goes for his first appointment with a groomer on May 18th. He isn't wild about my brushing him. He has that cottony, fine hair that clumps together so he always looks like he has bedhead all over his little body. Oh well, he's a country dawg.

[bettyeanne]

Originally Posted by Higgin's Mom

Now why didn't I think of that "head first" way of bathing Higgins! THANKS!

Higgins goes for his first appointment with a groomer on May 18th. He isn't wild about my brushing him. He has that cottony, fine hair that clumps together so he always looks like he has bedhead all over his little body. Oh well, he's a country dawg.

We will have to thank Junebug for the "head first" bathing ... I didn't think of it either! I guess I wait until later to wet her head because that's the part of her bath she hates!! Toto just rolls those big brown eyes up at me as if to say "Now why did you have to ruin this great fun?" But from now on I will wet that sad little head first!!

As you know, Toto always looks like she has "bedhead" all over .... that hair is so fine she looks like she needs brushing two minutes after she is brushed!! I'll bet Higgins will enjoy going to the groomer!! Also let me share this with you that we had no clue the groomer is supposed to do .... I don't know about other dogs but the Yorkie has hair that grows way down in the ear and they are supposed to be kept "plucked" out [Dr. Lucy had gone over this with us and she always checks Toto's ears because they are prone to ear infections if the ears aren't kept properly]. We always mention this when we take her to be groomed. NOONE likes to do it because frankly it hurts! Evidently our groomer hasn't been doing it very well because Dr. Lucy pulled CLUMPS out of Toto's ears and it was very painful and she kinda scolded us! She doesn't like to hurt Toto either! There is a powder that you sprinkle in the ear that keeps it from being so painful ... then there is an ear wash that you wash to powder out with. We will certainly be keeping an eye on it from now on and keeping it plucked ourselves so it doesn't build up! Also ... the groomer is supposed to clean out ... get this [we also never heard of it] ... the "anal gland"! Have you ever heard of that?? Anyway, it's a gland on their butt that's supposed to be "cleaned out" periodically and can get infected and cause problems. We "ain't" doin' that!!! We will take her and have it done ... forgot to ask how often. My son and his wife even knew about this gland ... their groomer does this for their Border Collie when she goes to be groomed. I guess we just "learn something new every day". That was just almost too gross for me to know!!!

[Higgin's Mom]

I know their ear hair is supposed to be plucked, but I'm not willing to lose a finger to do it! I approached that and he SNAPPED at me good! I will leave it to the groomer. Doesn't seem to be very much in there at the moment.

They really don't need their anal glands cleaned unless they are smelly, having trouble pooping, or "scooching" along on their backsides. However, Doc Magill in Crystal River did clean Higgins out when he was little as he was having trouble pooping. Our Bassett used to have anal glad problems and it was NASTY. Our little guys aren't so bad........

I have been getting around the dinner begging by feeding my two little guys their dinner while we eat OUR dinner. Seems to be working. Don hasn't noticed.

[Junebug]

I've heard about that butt bubble too! Fortunately, I've never had to deal with it. I don't think it's too much of a problem with small dogs.

The ear thing....I just trim it down with scissors. The vet has never said anything, and I don't think Otis has ever had an ear infection. When he was small, I used Epi-Otic drops to help keep them dry after a bath, but that's about it!

Toenails are about the only thing I can deal with. He doesn't mind me clipping his nails. He knows he'll get a treat afterward.

[bettyeanne]

Originally Posted by Higgin's Mom

I have been getting around the dinner begging by feeding my two little guys their dinner while we eat OUR dinner. Seems to be working. Don hasn't noticed.

I wouldn't risk losing a finger to pluck the ears either!! I also wouldn't consider "gland expressing"!! I totally agree ... leave that to the experts! Besides ... I want her to see me as safety and all things pleasant ... well, as pleasant as possible ... I have my limitations!! I also feed Toto when we are ready to eat our dinner or just before. I think I have read that you are supposed to feed them after you eat in keeping with the "alpha" thing but it makes me feel quilty if we are eating and she isn't! Besides ... we know who the "Alpha" is and she pretty much rules around here!!

[bettyeanne]

Originally Posted by Junebug

Toenails are about the only thing I can deal with. He doesn't mind me clipping his nails. He knows he'll get a treat afterward.

I'm a big chicken about the nails too. Toto's are jet black and I can't tell where to safely snip them. I'm so afraid I will clip them too short and cause her to bleed! I just have to leave that to the groomer or vet too. We did buy all those "tools" but as yet neither of us have been brave enough to try! We do, however, clip the hair between her paw pads ... otherwise she skids on the tile!!

[Higgin's Mom]

You guys are sooooo lucky. Higgins won't stand for me to do anything but a minimum brushing. I loved grooming my English Setters waaaaaay back when I was showing them. I had all the gear to do it, too. Most importantly, THEY loved it! Higgins thinks brushing and combing are a big game and it's a tussle, no matter how sweet and gentle I am. I pick that brush up when he is in my lap 2 or 3 times a day and just do a little here and a little there. I used to do my setters toenails while they slept! Had the nicest filed nails in the showring! Higgin's nails? Not on your life.....they will belong to the groomer. So far, he has been getting enough outdoor running around that they aren't too long. I would love to clip the hair between his toes, but....forget it. It's a good thing he is so dang cute!

[fasteddie]

We tried clipping Yoda's toenails, but he won't have it! He's a strong little fella, and I think the two of us aren't enough. When he's at the groomers, they said they need TWO people to hold him down while the other works on him.

Only thing he lets us do to him are bathe him and brush him. I think about every 5 days to a week he gets a bath, and we brush him for a few minutes each night before bed. He knows he gets to play (with a towel) after his bath, so I think he's beginning to like his baths.

[Junebug]

I think Otis is gay, honestly. Not that there's anything wrong with that. He likes the primping and grooming. He likes it when I buzz his hair and trim his ears. And he gets all bashful when you say, "Pew, Otis, you stink!"

Plus he doesn't lift his leg when he pees AND he lets me cut his toenails. I have never seen him hump anything.

I don't even know any girl dogs that are THAT feminine!

[Higgin's Mom]

Higgins, on the other hand, is a four pound bag of testosterone! Macho, macho man.....sigh......Humps his blankie and fell in love instantly with my son's little chihuahua, "Princess." Well, some of that testosterone is going to disappear come the end of June......

[fasteddie]

Does Otis like to smell female dogs? Yoda seems to like to smell boy dogs a lot better. My submissive boy just likes to lay on his back when a big male dog comes around... :P