hello moms i was wondering what works best to get the fleas off my dogs?i guess it's that season for fleas because my dogs are getting them on them really bad.
I can send you info on what i use.....email [email protected] and i'll send you some stuff you can look at. =)
Jen
Advantage or one of the similar products- nothing works better. Also, don't bathe them first- when you put it on the base of their neck it spreads on it's own using their natural body oils so if they are just bathed it won't work as well. You can also get it that repells mosquito's.
Make sure you VACUUM really good everywhere, keep them off the carpet and do not let them on the couch, if they are inside dogs..
I have 4 big dogs and they just recently got fleas really bad! first we used the spray (I think Hartz brand makes it) that you spray directly onto the dog's fur and rub in, which kills fleas on contact. Then we sprayed all the carpets, couches, etc. with the flea killer spray (same brand, they are both sold in the pet section of Wal-mart or Target). You have to keep pets and kids off the carpets until they dry, then you vacuum to get all the dead fleas and eggs. Then the next day, use Frontline on your dogs. The other brands just don't work, trust me I've tried! You can find Frontline through a lot of online retailers for less expensive than most vets offer (one example is http://www.teskepetandgarden.com/browse.cfm/dog-and-puppy/flea-and-pest-control/spot-on-flea-control/frontline-plus-single-application-dogs-45-88-lbs./4,871.html)
Once you start Frontline, the fleas should all be gone within about 2 days. If you have a lot of vegetation in the backyard, you might want to treat your yard as well. You can get pesticide specifically for killing fleas and ticks to spray on your yard. Again, the dogs can't go outside until it's completely dry. We did all of the above and haven't seen one flea since then. Hope this helps!!
The best thing is to get the flea medicine from the vet, vacuum and empty outside. You can get a night light and put a bowl of soapy water under it and that has actually worked quite well for me since I really try to avoid the poison. Bathing your dog with Dawn dish soap works on klling fleas too.
I give my dog a pill from the vet. That way there is nothing on there fur, like with andvantage. I don't remember the name of it but you have to give it with food because it works in there digestive system. It will kill all the fleas in 24 hours or less and works for the whole month. It is about $20.
To get rid of fleas and eggs that are on the dogs almost instantly you can get a pill at the vet's office called Capstar. I also use Frontline from the vet's office on my 2 shih tzus to protect them from fleas all year long or I have used it just during the spring and summer months (when fleas are worse).
Frontline works great. I've never had a flea problem with any of my dogs.
One of the things that I have found that works the best for dogs and cats is giving them a daily dose of Brewer's Yeast. You can buy it at Walmart or most natural food stores. You give one pill per 10 lbs. My dog and cat love it and think it is a treat. What it does is make their skin taste bad to fleas. Other years I have tried the the drops on the back or the monthly pill. For some reason this seems to work the best and definitely one of the cheapest. I can get it at my Walmart for less than $3.00 for a nice size bottle of it.
Everyone gave you good advise but you must first also get rid of them out of your yard or otherwise all the medicine in the world is not going to get rid of them completely. I have tried all kinds of sprays for the yard that you attach to your hose and have found the ones you get at the vet are the best or of course hire a bug guy to spray your yard. They have to spray it once and then come back I believe in 10 days to do it again. Capstar capsules that you get from the vet kills fleas within 30 minutes but they will come back and that is why you also need to use Frontline or Advantage as well which lasts for 30 days but you have to put it on your dog every month without fail. The soapy water idea was a good one. I have never tried that but will. I have gotten a white hand towel and got it wet, rung it good and then put it on the carpet and you will be amazed at all the fleas that will flock to it. I sprayed the inside of my house with Raid Flea and tick spray and that worked well also. Good Luck to you. Once you get them bad it just takes time and patience to get rid of them.
I just went through the same thing. I bought the pill called comfortis from the vet.It is a beef flavored chewable pill given once a month. It too is given with food. All the vet offices I talked to says it much better than the once a month you put on thier neck. But my little spoiled peekapoo refused to eat it so i had to put it down her throat, (yuk I hate doing that!) My other two dogs ate it like a treat! Its expensive but works. Like $15 a pill, (or you can buy a package) but if you buy the pill for a large dog you can break it or cut it into "doses" and give it to all of them Thats what i did, I bought the package for large dogs $70 from my vet in Pasadena,( i called around most asked $80) & gave the weight of my dogs to them & they told me how to cut the pill down to the appropriate size for each dog.
Also Solutions Inc. sells Pest control products & they have a powder called Ortho Flea Stopper. You vacuum your carpet good then sprinkle this into the carpet and sweep in into it with a broom, let it sit in carpet about 7 days. the Vet assistant told me about it, she used it & said it is non harmful to children nor pets but works great. I can tell you the comfortis works great too! They also sell good flea killer for your yard. you can look them up under pest control, but they also sell pool supplies you might can look them up that way too.
The best thing we have used for our dogs is the Sentinel pill from the vet. It is expensive, but it has heart worm, other worms and fleas and ticks, so you get alot for your money.
At PetsMart there is a flea shampoo by a company named Zodiac. It works wonders! When I found a stray at work, the poor thing was black with fleas. I had to shampoo him about 4 times, but EVERY flea came off. I use it on my own dogs now when I bathe them. (About once a week) I use the flea shampoo first, then shampoo again with an oatmeal shampoo to reduce irritation. I haven't had to buy flea drops in over a year. (At 36 dollars a month for 2 dogs, that's a savings of over $430.!!)
In the beginning, also TREAT YOUR YARD if your dogs go outside. The hardware stores have this stuff that fits right on the end of your water hose. Just let it dry before you let the pets or kids outside. Check with your neighbors who have pets to see if they're having problems. If it's really bad between a few homes, an exterminator may give you all a deal on a multiple service. (We had to do that a few years ago when someone on our block was feeding a stray cat that was flea infested.)
I know seven dust works from the store.. but there are things that the vet has advantage and there is also a dip. I have also used a flea shampoo and dawn dish liquid.. now dawn has worked really well for me.. I have 5 dogs..
we also use a spray in the yard and some Over and Out.. it helps keep the fleas and ticks also plus fire ants and other bugs..
You need to know a bit about fleas before you can effectively get rid of them. Fleas have a two week life cycle. Fleas in the cocoon stage cannot be harmed by any of the killing agents on the market. So, you might kill the existing adults, but there are millions of eggs in cocoons just waiting to hatch. To get rid of fleas, you need a two step approach. First, get a product with an Insect Growth Regulator component. Zodiac is a popular brand. The IGR itself is safe for humans. Get whatever products you need to cover the inside of your house. IGRs rapidly breakdown in direct UV light, so treating the yard with this doesn't work very well. Next, you need a "killer". Get a product with an active ingredient that ends in -thrin (resmethrin, etc). Those ingredients are relatively safe for humans, but effective at killing fleas. Stay away from anything like diaznon or dursban. Those are incredibly powerful neurotoxins that are harmful to fleas, pets, and humans alike. Use the "killing" agent on all soft, fibrous surfaces and repeat the treatment every 10-14 days. Also get a "killing" agent to spray on the yard and repeat that every 2 weeks. If the dogs are covered in fleas, make sure to give them a good bath. Bathing them in diluted Joy dish soap and letting them stay sudsed up for a couple of minutes will kill the fleas with no harmful chemicals.
You should see a nearly immediate reduction in fleas, and if you continue to treat on the 2 week cycle for a few months, your fleas should be history.
I had good response giving my dog and cat "Brewers Yeast with Garlic". I ordered mine from petmeds.com (1-800-petmeds) but I have seen it at Walmart as well. Just make sure you get the "with Garlic".
The Brewers Yeast helps their coat stay shiny and the garlic works just like you or me eating garlic . . . the bugs don't like the smell/taste that comes from the skin.
A good/regular bath with flea killer shampoo also helps kickstart the process, but as with any insecticide . . . less is better.
Good luck!
salt water. take your dogs for a swim in the ocean or just pour some salt in a tub and let them soak. they will just fall off of them.
Hello Jess,
Well, the vet told me to take my dog a bath w/Dawn dish liquid....to massage and make sure the soap goes all the way to the skin (especially if u have a fluffy dog....I am sure it will work for any other dog....and as for ur yard, get is sprayed professionally or theres some new stuff that came out, u may find it in the lawn section at home depot or walmart....I guess where ever they have the weed and feed....it's packaged the same way but it kills insects and FLEAS.....I'm sorry I don't know the name of it but u can go look...I just saw it announced on TV...well, hope this helps
We had dogs in the house with our young children, and we tried every natural remedy possible for fleas because we did not want our children to ingest flea treatments from petting the dogs and then putting their hands in their mouths. In the meantime, we were getting bit. The end result was a flea infestation. We had to have our house fumigated (and then wipe down everything after to get rid of the residue.) We still had fleas that survived in the cracks, so we finally used Frontline on the dogs. The remaining fleas were attracted to the dogs and died from the Frontline. We ended up keeping the dogs in a separate room from our kids and regularly using Frontline.