Flea Problem

Sugar_Coated_Owl

Hello, we have 3 dogs that have been treated with Frontline for the last 2 or 3 months and yet they still have fleas! Is there anything better than Frontline that they could be treated with or what would you advise?

Sally_A

If they are dogs that like to get wet, it makes all dab on type treatments less effective.

I found spot on was doing diddly squat, so had to go for the double action Spot On in the gold packet, it's also double the price, but well worth it, as it worked.

It might sound a bit mad, but I reckon by varying the treatment, you don't get the well'ard gangsta fleas that quickly build up an immunity to a certain brand.

Also found that Johnsons pink coloured flea shampoo was quite effective, but bathe them before you treat them.

FireWyrm

My guess is you are getting re-infections all the time as new ones hatch. I think you're going to have to do a blitz on this from top to bottom. First, spray the house and all soft furnishings. Wash the dogs bedding on high and spray when dry. Once you've done that, bath each dog and retreat with frontline. With a bit of luck, it'll take you a day to get this done. Don't forget to spray anywhere the dogs have been such as behind TVs etc. When yu out the frontline on, put it on the back of the neck and make sure it's down to the skin and not getting caught in the guard-hairs.

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

Well, most people I know have swapped to Advocate instead as fleas appear to be becoming immune to Frontline. It's available online through places like medicanimal (go through Quidco and check for discount codes such as yourcat15 which offers a 15% discount and you get another discount for being a new customer).

Good to hear from you again, though.

toejumper

I had a flee problem about 4 months ago i used effipro for the dog and indorex on the carpets which cleared the problem within 2 weeks and haven't seen any flees since. i buy all my pet stuff from vetuk as its much cheaper than going to the vets, hope this helps.

http://www.vetuk.co.uk/flea-treatments-effipro-spot-on-c-3_505/effipro-small-dog-spot-on-4-pipettes-p-3797
http://www.vetuk.co.uk/flea-treatments-household-flea-sprays-c-3_419/indorex-household-flea-spray-500ml-can-p-677

BitterAndTwisted

Yep, instead of just changing the treatment on the doggies I would go ahead with treating the home first. It's bloody hard to get to grips with a flea infestation relying only on dosing the animals whatever you use. The carpeting and furnishings is where the eggs are shed and where the adults are hatching from. Indorex, Acclaim or Skoosh should get them sitting up and taking notice.

pinkcandyflossprincess

i had fleas last summer in our house, tried everything then used indorex never seen once since..:T

merlot123

pinkcandyflossprincess wrote: »

i had fleas last summer in our house, tried everything then used indorex never seen once since..:T

Me too.

I had used frontline for years, then noticed fleas on the rug in the lounge, difficult to see fleas on my longhaired cats and they weren't scratching much either.

Bought Advocate and indorex, took a few hours to treat the house, but seen none since. I hoovered the whole house, including soft furnishings and then sprayed indorex, so worth the effort and money to get rid of the things.

Frontline just isn't effective anymore in my opinion.

merlot123

Sugar_Coated_Owl

Thanks everyone for your help and advice. I will treat both dogs and the house and see how that goes.

I agree Frontline doesn't seem to work as well as it used to.

rita-rabbit

Advantage

wondering how long it takes to kill the blighters - as smaller fatcat gets boils sometimes around her top lip/chin & treating with human grade anti-histamines is not something I want to do long term - saying that noticing the black marks on her chin is a good indication that I `have' to put the spot on on but once it is on there is quite a long time before the scratching stops. Am using Advantage - do I have to change again to something stronger?

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

Mine usually scratch more for the next day as they have the illegal immigrants dying on them.


Perhaps your cat actually has a flea bite allergy? (One of mine does) If so, she might need additional vet help (a steroid, for example) if you leave it a little too late for reapplication.



What I did recently, before I switched, because the Frontline hadn't worked, was use the flea tablets twice for them to get some relief whilst waiting for it to be safe to apply Advantage. Now that made them scratch and twitch like I'd wired them up to the mains supply, as the fleas died so quickly.


I'd also be extra extra careful with cleaning, as the odds are she's being got by new fleas hatching during the month.



Other than that, it's off to the vet anyway, as there's another one that is prescription only. Hopefully by the time Advantage stops working and that goes OTC, there will be new ones available.