Help with choosing a flea preventative?

I know a lot of folks on here use Comfortis, but not me.  If T-Bone has flea allergy dermatitis (he's allergic to fleas, in other words) then you don't want an oral drug.  Because it's my understanding that Comfortis works because when the flea bites the dog it ingests the spinosad.

THAT is a deal killer for flea allergy dermatitis, because it's the flea *spit* that causes the allergy so you don't want the flea TO bite the dog at all.

I've been using Advantage over here near Orlando -- just plain old Advantage - and it seems to be working danged  well. 

You may also want to consider diatamaceous earth -- you can sprinkle it outside or in your carpets.  It's essentially a dessicant -- it dries the fleas "to death".  You need to use the ingestible form or human grade DE.  Not something from Home Depot or a nursery.

Things like BioSpot and Revolution ... again, the flea has to bite the dog in order to die.

Now, just the typical Frontline isn't working well.  There *is* a spray on Frontline that's a bit different formula but I've just laid off Frontline and I'll try it again in a couple of years. 

There's another one, Vectra, that's being used and I have a whole package of it that I will NEVER use again.  Amanda used it on her bunch and it caused one of them to have a full blown seizure (Brutus).  The way it works is it causes the flea to have a seizure and die.  But essentially it makes the fleas 'drunk' and it actually excites them hugely  -- the couple of times I tried it, I noticed that the dog went NUTS for hours like it actually stimulates the fleas to run all over them.  I'll never use it again.  (they've found that seizures can be a "side effect" of it -- the dog having seizures I mean).

Callie, thank you thank you thank you. You are always so helpful you're truly a huge blessing to the dog world. We'll try the Advantage!

 I'm not in FL and fleas aren't a big issue in Wa., but I get awesome results with Advantage! For Toots and the cats. Even if I only treat Toots with it, it seems to do the job for the cats as well.  Could be all in my head though!

 We use Advantage here as well. Though I have to say, I'm highly irritated with Bayer right now. The new Advantage II (and Advantix II) is TOTALLY replacing the original products. I called and asked why they had to quit making the original and got the 'new one is safe" and all that jazz. The 'new and improved' now has pyriproxyfen added along with the original imidacloprid. Vectra has the pyriproxyfen in it (Permethrin and Dinotefuran are it's other 2 ingredients). Pyriproxyfen is an insect growth regulator (IGR). I looked for other flea preventatives and Frontline is the only one without the pyriproxyfen, but like you, I have found it doesn't work well.

I bit the bullet and spent the money to put back about 4 years worth of the original Advantage while I could find it. I asked and they said it had a stable shelf life with no expiration date. Wasn't happy about doing it, but I'm trying to protect my girls as best as I can. I just don't trust that they have the health of pets as first consideration, it's more like greed if you ask me. I don't like the idea of adding another chemical to my dogs, not when the original is working fine and one of my girls is borderline reactive to it anyway.

Beejou

How dangerous are things like Comfortis, and is it probably worth the risk considerning his severe reaction to fleas?

I'm not sure why you believe Comfortis is a big risk.  I've been using it for quite a few years on all my dogs and so have many thousands of people.  It does a great job for my dogs with zero side effects for my dogs.  All flea products carry certain risks and side effects and it's a matter of which product a person feels works best on their dogs and how their dogs react or don't react to the product.  BTW, I used Advantage for a few months and two of my dogs had pretty strong reactions at the application site.  This doesn't make me condemn the product but it ruled it out for my dogs.

ETA that with flea bite allergies it is important to try and prevent a flea from biting.  Advantage does claim to be the only product that repels/kills fleas before they bite.  You might ask your vet what is recommended.

T-Bone has found relief :) Advantage 100 is what we chose to go with, even though it was a lot more expensive than the other products we've tried, it works! I put it on about 24 hrs ago and he's definitely feeling more like himself. Way more playful with Royce, and so snuggly. I took the flea comb to him and in his whole coat found four fleas. Two dead, two acting sluggish and weird, unable to jump. He is still somewhat itchy from the rash left over but I have him on Cephlexin that should knock that out. I am way less stressed out knowing he's not miserable.

 

 

If you live in an apartment complex (I think you do, right?) they are probably picking them up from the neighbors, too :( I used to spray mine down with Skin So Soft mix before we went ANYWHERE.

Yes, I do, but hopefully not much longer!  I hate seeing *** owners havent cleaned up in the grassy areas here, esp. when they have little tapeworm segments in them I have to think if they have tapes then they aren't on a monthly like interceptor, so they probably all have heartworms too. Really sad

 

I hear a lot of people use Skin So Soft but back in my aquarium days NOTHING would wipe out a tank faster than someone reaching in to scrub it than someone who had skin so soft on their hands. I have this fear of it, but since I am not keeping tanks anymore I'll pick some up.

 

ETA: LOL okay so the technical term for poop has been censored.

I have a dog with flea allergy (Casey) and he takes comfortis monthly.... with no problem. All 3 of my dogs are on it. This year is BAD for fleas...but comfortis has done wonders at keeping the problem at bay. My cats are on advantage (although, I did try the new product Assurity this month, just to see, and am pleased with that one as well - minus the sticky spot for a few days....)

I DID have a talk with Merial today (Makers of frontline)... they say that it can take up to three months of consistent Frontline use before you will see a marked improvement. Flea cycle/eggs/etc. which, in a way, makes sense...I guess *shrugs*

Royce, btw, is NOT too young for flea prevention either.... Comfortis is marked for over 14 weeks, and advantage is 6 or 7 weeks, I believe. Comfortis is my biggest seller at work...no complaints by my many, many users either.

ETA - Interceptor does NOT treat tapes.... the only thing that will take care of tapes is a specific dewormer like drontal, droncit or cestex.

Beejou

I have to think if they have tapes then they aren't on a monthly like interceptor, so they probably all have heartworms too. Really sad

ERica is absolutely right -- tapeworms don't feed on blood.  They don't respond to Interceptor (milbemycin) nor Ivermectin products.  You gotta use a specific product for tapes that treats tapes.  Tapes are spread via fleas -- the flea eats the tapeworm eggs and spreads it when the dog bites at the flea.

 

For some reason I was under the impression that Interceptor did tapes! Now I am worried T-Bone has tapes though I've never seen it in his stool Royce had a bout with it when I first got him and once more after that, which were both treated with a tapeworm specific oral med. Should I deworm T-Bone now just in case??

 

Royce is also on Advantage 100, the 21-55 LB dose (He's such a big boy already!) It says safe for 7 weeks and up, so he's in the clear.

 

Also when can Royce get a blood test and start on HW preventative? Thanks guys.

 

On a side note, Comfortis does sound really nice and since it's safer than I thought, I might like to try it. How much does it cost roughly? I know it is via vet only.

calliecritturs

Tapes are spread via fleas -- the flea eats the tapeworm eggs and spreads it when the dog bites at the flea.

True, but folks shouldn't forget that flea tapeworms (Dipylidium caninum) are not the only kind of canine tapeworms - just the most common.  Other species of tapeworms that infect dogs are carried by rabbits, hares, rodents, pigs, sheep, goats, cattle, deer, and reindeer. 

Most of those animals you can normally keep out of your yard, but rodents, rabbits, and hares may be hard to eliminate completely.  Dogs, of course, often see those three as a tasty treat. 

Some meds (pesticides actually) will kill one species of tapeworms, but not others.  See the chart at the bottom of this web page:

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=2+2090&aid=769

Beejou

Also when can Royce get a blood test and start on HW preventative?

How old is Royce?  It is pointless to test a pup under 6-7 months old.  That is how long it takes for a female heartworm to mature.  Only the initial baby stage (microfilaria) and an antigen - both produced by mature females - can be detected. 

There is no test that can show the presence of young female heartworms.  Male heartworms can not be detected at all.  However, it is statistically improbable that a dog will have a significant number of male heartworms without also having female heartworms.

Interceptor (one chemical) is safe for "puppies over 4 weeks of age weighing more than 2 pounds".  The same chemical also kills roundworms, whipworms, and hookworms.

Note:  You should test for the antigen 6-7 months after starting Royce on a heartworm "preventative".  After about 45-days-old a "preventative" can not kill a young heartworm.  You have to wait for the female heartworms to mature and Royce could already be harboring some young heartworms.

Thanks Janet :) Royce is about 13 weeks now. So if  I understand correctly I should go ahead and start him on Interceptor without a HW test?