Pet flea and tick control

[apibeeman]

This year has been very bad for infestations of animals by nasty pests.
I have been very disappointed with the products that are popular these days, the type you put several drops down your dog or cats spine.
They just don't work, and logically why should they. The sales pitch is the fleas and ticks are supposed to make a pilgrimage up the dog or cats back to get to its eye so as to get water.
In reality I am sure the fleas find plenty of moisture in the dog or cats armpit or crutch and has no need to go to its eye.
The only way I have found to control these pests is to groom the pet every day and using flea powder in the places where you find them, in armpits crutches and underside. its important to brush out all the eggs.
Out of interest has anybody else seen these pest performing a pilgrimage to the eye? or is this total sales pitch lies?

I use the injection, perform, for my two cats. I only use it once a year not all the time and I take them to the vet for a check up and vaccination boosters at the same time. The drops on the neck didn't work for me either. Also I thought that fleas only drank the blood of, ate the dander of and bred on the cats- they live in the furniture and carpets and so I guess they drink there too.

I believe the eggs can live in furniture and floorboards for many years but I believe the live flea has to keep warm on a host, or it dies quite quickly.

I had an infested bed when I was 13 years old - everything had to be fumigated and my black tom cat had to be 'fumigated' at the vet (I don't know how this was done) The fleas were jumping on the mattress and the chair and the sofa for more than a week until the fumigation - I witnessed it. Needless to say I had moved out of the room and only went in to fetch books and things. I was told about the living habits of fleas by the pest control men, they showed me the bite marks where they had been feeding off me. It was some time ago and the house did have underfloor heating.

I threw out the mattress, chair, rug and sofa. Took me months to move back in after the fumigation and two steam cleans. I shudder at the memory.

Perform has worked for us though.

Actually I guess the experience is why I am so keen on ensuring it doesn't happen again.

I'm a vet and I've never heard of this theory!

The active ingredient in the prescription products we use diffuses throughout the lipid layer of the skin, and so in-contact parasites are repelled or killed when they reach the skin.

Many over-the-counter products have poor efficacy, largely because they are older, less effective active ingredients to which parasites are resistant.

If you talk to your vet about parasite prevention they will be able to tell you what is best to use on your pets depending on their lifestyle. Pet shop products are genuinely less effective.

Also, why is this in Bloggers?

Cos I'm new to this sort of thing and that's where I put it.
So you think the drops down the spine work then, well even people who I know get it from the vet, still find it does not work.

I have 2 cats and 2 dogs - we've been using Frontline for years and never had any problems

Maybe your animals have not been hit by the infestation we have experienced this year.

I think some spot on treatments work very well. Advantix, Advocate and Advantage are very effective.

If you have an infestation I don't think fipronil is good enough. You need something to kill fleas, something to stop them reproducing and something to treat the environment if you have a bad infestation. Talk to your vet about proper prescription products. Buying Frontline won't be enough. If your friends have been using that alone without treating the environment then it won't work. All of the flea eggs in their homes will keep hatching and the cycle will continue.

This is why I am forever banging on to people to choose parasite prevention with specific advice from a vet - different situations call for different levels of action.

OK thanks, That explains a lot.

Hello

We've moved this to The Litter Tray now.