Fleas

[Handbaghag]

My dog has permanent short hair on the lower part of his back near his tail. If he gets flea bites it irritates him and he bites himself sore. I have sprayed the whole house with Acclaim, the dog and 3 Cats are regularly treated with advocate which is put on carefully and spread out when spotted on. Dog and cat bedding all been washed etc. Dog has even had advocate fortnightly at one point, have also tried Comfortis and frontline. And yet, when I check him, he always has the odd flea or two on him.. But never looks infested. Could it just be due to hedgehogs in the garden? Haven't seen any flea infested areas in the house, just occasionally find a flea on us. It makes me feel a failure and helpless as I feel I've covered all the guidance given. Any similar stories or suggestions?

Indorex is the best stuff for the house. Advocate works here. What does vet say?

One of our cats does this.

After much kerfuffle the vets agree to give him a steroid injection whenever he gets in that state and that combined with a cone of shame (we have an inflatable comfort collar which come in dog sizes - maybe a tenner?) seems to solve the problem.

The best combination for us was to wash the dog, apply advocate, and flea bomb the house. Can't remember what the flea bomb was called but I think we got it from Vet UK. It was the only thing that got rid of them for good.

The advocate will kill fleas but not stop them jumping on to him in the first place so you'll still find the little bastards. Pick them off & drown them in soapy water. Treat the house with Indorex or similar just to be sure.

Acclaim and Indorexx are both virtually identical so you have used a good quality household product. You should be touching the advocate once you have applied it to the pets so no more spreading out, if you are worried about skin contact the best thing is to clip a tiny bit of hair at the skin site.
Advocate does have a rapid kill time, but you are correct if you have a heavy flea burden in the garden you will see an occasional flea on the pet whilst the product kills them.
We are seeing some pets where a multi modal ( several different products at the same time) is required, but this should only be done under supervision of your vet.

First Google flea life cycle! Understand the different stages and times from egg to hatching. So you can treat effectively.

Bath all your pets (yes even the cats) regularly... either flea shampoo or shampoo & conditioner. Brush regular (but make sure you clean comb and brushes afterwards).
Wash everything you can and that comes in contract with your pets at 60*C - this will kill the eggs. Anything under and they survive....
As others suggested, spray everything from carpets to soft furnishings with a good household spray especially areas where your pets sleep... Don't forget areas like under radiators or any sofa.

It's a bit of extra housekeeping for a few weeks but this should get rid of them!