Author Topic: Flea Treatment  (Read 1457 times)

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Offline Guelder Rose

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Flea Treatment
« on: September 11, 2017, 05:48:13 PM »
I have always used Advocate for Grace although this has been sporadically as I don't like to apply chemicals 12 x per year.  Thus far I've never had a problem, but this year I seem to be inundated with fleas!

After applying Advocate I,m still catching live fleas on Grace on a daily basis - this is during the whole 30 day period that Advocate is supposed to be effective?

As it is said that one flea on your dog = several in the house, I set a flea trap in every room at my house but did not catch a single flea - nevertheless, I used Indorex spray on all the rugs and all her bedding and also washed all her plush toys and bed covers.

Still, I was finding live fleas on her! 

I purchased Neem products from the myitchydog website - shampoo, spray and treats and still I would find live fleas on her.

One point to note is that I do not find flea dirts - so wherever the fleas have come from they are not on Grace for any extended period of time.

For the past ten days I have been on holiday - and I'm still finding live fleas on her - in the last two days I have caught over 10 live fleas on her!  I am going to apply Advocate again tonight as it is due, but it doesn't seem to help and I'm really at a loss to what is going on? 

Obviously, my home is not the issue as I'm now living in a different house.  Her regular walks have now been replaced by completely different walks.  I feel that the Neem products have not made any difference whatsoever and Advocate isn't doing its job or my understanding is that any fleas I catch should already be dead.

Could it be that I'm catching the fleas before Advocate has a chance to work?  I use a flea comb first thing, after each walk and last thing at night.  The garden where I'm staying has a lot of plants and shrubs, so that equals lots of dark, moist areas - and I have been walking around a lot of country lanes where livestock are - but this is not the case when I'm at home.  If I could pin point where the fleas are coming from I might be able to avoid them, but I'm completely stumped.

Any ideas please as this is really not nice and Grace has had allergy/skin issues for the last 12 months so this doesn't help!  My vet put her on Apoquel a few weeks ago and I took her off it - as she wasn't itching enough to warrant taking a drug that could cause other health issues and I was also concerned that the itching/hot spots could be as a result of a flea issue rather than an allergy to food or plants, etc.







Offline Jaysmumagain

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Re: Flea Treatment
« Reply #1 on: September 11, 2017, 07:31:17 PM »
I use advantix which has  Imidacloprid and permethrin in and is applied like Advantage and Frontline, I have used for second year and Ollie is fine, it is also for ticks and sandflies which Advantage isnt.  There is also a Seresto collar which is mentioned by folks on here as being good and last quite a few months...they are pricey but I guess this is due to the length of time they last.

There is also a tablet called Bravecto - I would google all these and see what you think.

I hope someone comes long with some ideas.
Cocker kisses and cuddles just make my day!


You are always with me darlings Jaypup and my precious Oliver you are so missed

Offline Guelder Rose

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Re: Flea Treatment
« Reply #2 on: September 11, 2017, 10:06:55 PM »
I use advantix which has  Imidacloprid and permethrin in and is applied like Advantage and Frontline, I have used for second year and Ollie is fine, it is also for ticks and sandflies which Advantage isnt.  There is also a Seresto collar which is mentioned by folks on here as being good and last quite a few months...they are pricey but I guess this is due to the length of time they last.

There is also a tablet called Bravecto - I would google all these and see what you think.

I hope someone comes long with some ideas.
e

Thank you for the reply - I will look at the products you mention except for Bravecto as I really don't like the idea of feeding Grace a product that remains in her system for three months - also I think the flea needs to bite before being killed.  I've applied Advocate this evening but I really don't understand why that doesn't seem to work :(

Offline elaine.e

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Re: Flea Treatment
« Reply #3 on: September 12, 2017, 08:32:21 AM »
Did you treat the whole house with Indorex? Places such as cracks between floorboards or under skirting boards are prime places for fleas to lay eggs, so it's best to treat the entire house thoroughly, not just rugs and dog bedding etc.

If Grace travels in your car it would be a good idea to treat that as well.

Offline Guelder Rose

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Re: Flea Treatment
« Reply #4 on: September 12, 2017, 08:57:17 AM »
Did you treat the whole house with Indorex? Places such as cracks between floorboards or under skirting boards are prime places for fleas to lay eggs, so it's best to treat the entire house thoroughly, not just rugs and dog bedding etc.

If Grace travels in your car it would be a good idea to treat that as well.

I wasn't able to treat the whole house at the time - but I had it in mind that if the flea issue resolved while we are away I would do that.  As the flea issue is just as bad now we are 300 miles away from home - and we have not been near my car for two weeks - it's definitely a case of her picking them up when out and about.  So it seems I need to find a way of making her less attractive to fleas - sadly the neem products didn't help and I've yet to see if the application of Advocate helps.

I'm not sure how long it takes for Advocate to kill a flea - as I use a flea comb on her four times a day I'm catching the fleas quite soon after they get on her? 

Offline Jaysmumagain

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Re: Flea Treatment
« Reply #5 on: September 12, 2017, 11:41:13 AM »
I feel exactly the same about the thought of a tablet.....hence Advantix........but you can only get from a vet.

The other thing I read somewhere was when you shampoo them with a good flea shampoo rinse them and then use cider vinegar in water for final rinse, it's like a double whammy.

If you google apple cider vinegar and fleas.

The only other thing is are you managing to get the flea treatment right on her skin............it is very difficult on Ollie to part his fur and find a white skin surface.

Cocker kisses and cuddles just make my day!


You are always with me darlings Jaypup and my precious Oliver you are so missed

Offline Poppsie

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Re: Flea Treatment
« Reply #6 on: September 12, 2017, 12:15:08 PM »
I use stronghold on my two and they get the odd flea albeit half dead when I find it  ph34r
Maybe it's time to use something else  :huh: sometimes the little boogers get used to stuff and then it stops working?  Frontline is the same it isn't as good as it used to be!  Hope you get the problem sorted soon  :luv: x x x

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Offline Guelder Rose

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Re: Flea Treatment
« Reply #7 on: September 12, 2017, 03:01:24 PM »
I feel exactly the same about the thought of a tablet.....hence Advantix........but you can only get from a vet.

The other thing I read somewhere was when you shampoo them with a good flea shampoo rinse them and then use cider vinegar in water for final rinse, it's like a double whammy.

If you google apple cider vinegar and fleas.

The only other thing is are you managing to get the flea treatment right on her skin............it is very difficult on Ollie to part his fur and find a white skin surface.

Yes, pretty sure the product gets on her skin - it was applied last night and yet this morning I found another five fleas on her - she had only been out in the yard for a wee!!!  I don't know whether I'm catching them before Advocate has a chance to work, or whether Advocate just isn't working anymore?  To be honest, if I wasn't using the flea comb I wouldn't really know she had them.  I've just been looking at a product called Biospotix that's supposed to be really good and think I will order the spot on, spray and home spray - it's all natural which is preferable to the chemicals and is supposed to kill the fleas rather than just repel them.  I've been giving Grace about a half to one teaspoon of apple cider vinegar with mother every day for a while now - she has it in a small dish with water and really likes it, haven't yet tried rinsing her with it though.  I feel really bad for her as this has been an ongoing battle for a while now :(


Offline lescef

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Re: Flea Treatment
« Reply #8 on: September 12, 2017, 04:53:42 PM »
I'm sure I read somewhere that Advocate wasn't as effective anymore.
Isn't garlic supposed to work? (I can't remember,  I read so many things using alternative treatment)
I give mine half a clove a day but I think they could have a whole one. I read it's every day for three weeks then twice a week.
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Offline Guelder Rose

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Re: Flea Treatment
« Reply #9 on: September 12, 2017, 05:59:10 PM »
I'm sure I read somewhere that Advocate wasn't as effective anymore.
Isn't garlic supposed to work? (I can't remember,  I read so many things using alternative treatment)
I give mine half a clove a day but I think they could have a whole one. I read it's every day for three weeks then twice a week.

Yes, you're right, garlic is also supposed to be good - I haven't used that yet but will add that once we are home again.  Thank you for the reminder!

I didn't know about Advocate being reported as being less effective now - for Grace it is zero effective!  I really don't want to use another chemical based flea product in case she has a bad reaction - I've used Advocate on her before so I don't worry about that like I would  a new product.  I've read way too many bad reports about Bravecto to use that! 

Offline its.sme

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Re: Flea Treatment
« Reply #10 on: September 12, 2017, 06:40:36 PM »
I've used Garlic tablets for Bea, I don't like chemicals and have used these for a anti inflammatory but they also help with flees and ticks.

Worth a try but it will take a while to get into the system,

http://www.dorwest.com/Products/GF/garlic-and-fenugreek-tablets-for-dogs-and-cats?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIyrvirJeg1gIVzLftCh3_eADjEAAYASAAEgLiFvD_BwE

Offline Archie bean

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Re: Flea Treatment
« Reply #11 on: September 12, 2017, 09:25:02 PM »
Poor Grace. It sounds as if you are not breaking the cycle. The fleas on her are only a tiny part of the problem. Eggs drop off and lurk in the carpets/floorboards/skirting etc. and quickly develop, jumping back in to the animal as adult fleas. You may have bought them with you and so they are now happily living where you are now. It certainly sounds like the advocate is no longer working - many flea treatments over the years that I've had dogs have been taken off the market as fleas have developed resistance to them.

I usually use Billy No Mates which is herbal and works well but can't cope with a major infestation. Last summer Archie visited a home with 10 cats and became infested. I went all out to stop the problem - no half measures!! It was difficult but I did manage to get him flea free in the end. I used "4 fleas" which can be bought over the counter. It kills all adult fleas within 15 mins and is safe to use in conjunction with other treatments. I sprayed the ENTIRE house with Indorex. It lasts for a year so although expensive it is worth it. Elaine e. is right, you need to get into every corner of the house, car, dog beds and your bed and furniture - even if dogs are not allowed on them - fleas can jump! Wash all bedding. I took advice from the vet and they also suggested Bravecto. I had heard bad reports of dogs having reactions to it and, like you I wasn't happy with it being in he system for three months. However, there is another product that only lasts one month but is as effective. It is called Semparica. I used that for three months to be sure Archie was totally flea free before I stopped using it. Once you have a problem like the one you are describing I really feel that it isn't worth using natural things that take a long time to have any effect. You need to knock it on the head fast. Archie also has a bad reaction to the fleas and his skin issues lasted for quite a while after he was clear of them.
I hope you get the little blighters out of your life soon.

http://www.johnsons-vet.com/catsdogs_4fleas.php

https://www.animeddirect.co.uk/prescriptions/simparica-chewable-tablets-for-dogs-pack-of-3-20mg.html?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIw9GYi72g1gIVYb7tCh0Q0grTEAAYASAAEgKkkfD_BwE