Natural treatment of fleas

redlady_1

I have a dog and two cats and live in the country. We have very long grass around us as well as sheep. I currently use Advocate on the cats and Advantix on the dog but am not happy with how ill they seem to make the animals, if only for a short time. Not to mention the amount in one little tube seems to run down the animals coat.

I use RIP on the house annually (just to make sure) but wonder whether anyone has any recommendations for natural/herbal alternatives and how to prevent fleas. Ticks aren't a problem as I have a very useful gadet for their removal

PersianCatLady

Not to mention the amount in one little tube seems to run down the animals coat.
Just to check - you are separating the animals fur so that the liquid goes onto the skin as opposed to the fur aren't you?

thereisnot

I wouldn't rely on herbal remedies, they are not effective.


If the flea control you are currently using does not agree with your pets maybe try another product?

suki1964

Do your pets actually have fleas?

You say you aren't worried about ticks as you manually remove them so I'm kinda guessing you aren't squeamish

I'm old school. I don't treat for what isn't there

Why subject a pet to toxicity ' just in case'?

I live in the country. I've always had dogs ( 25 years) had fleas twice. Both times treated the dogs and house,job done

I'm getting a cat tomorrow and he will be treated the same, treat when needed , not just in case

Mojisola

redlady_1 wrote: »

I have a dog and two cats and live in the country. We have very long grass around us as well as sheep. I currently use Advocate on the cats and Advantix on the dog but am not happy with how ill they seem to make the animals, if only for a short time.

PersianCatLady wrote: »

Not to mention the amount in one little tube seems to run down the animals coat.

Just to check - you are separating the animals fur so that the liquid goes onto the skin as opposed to the fur aren't you?

Also, are you putting the flea killer in a place that the animal can't groom - the treatments shouldn't be ingested.

If the treatment is being used correctly and it's making your pets ill, I would talk to the vet about alternatives.

sheramber

You can use a flea comb regularly to remove any fleas from the animals. Clean the comb dropping any fleas into a bowl of hot soapy water

hunters

suki1964 wrote: »

Do your pets actually have fleas?

You say you aren't worried about ticks as you manually remove them so I'm kinda guessing you aren't squeamish

I'm old school. I don't treat for what isn't there

Why subject a pet to toxicity ' just in case'?

I live in the country. I've always had dogs ( 25 years) had fleas twice. Both times treated the dogs and house,job done

I'm getting a cat tomorrow and he will be treated the same, treat when needed , not just in case

We're the same from the days of having a light ginger cat where you could see the fleas on his ears, from rabbits in the field behind us. Only treated when we saw them as long as you don't mind the odd flea bite yourself

Now have a young black cat who the vet thinks is actually allergic to flea bite and licks herself stupid so have to treat more often. Tried a steroid injection at first which admittedly stopped the constant grooming but she just slept and wasn't our fun kitten so I said not again.

Helen2k8

You could try diatomeceous earth (check spelling! Also known as "diatom"). It's a fine powder, used a lot in poultry housing. It scratches and dries out the bodies of small biting things (mites, fleas) and kills them. Application is messy though! It is a natural product, a type of algae.