Fleas won't go away!

The fleas you see on your dog are approximately 1% of the total population in your house. You HAVE to treat the house if you want to control the population. There are non-chemical methods as well, but they're a lot of work. Diatomaceous earth works well (wear a mask when applying it) and vacuuming is also effective (vacuum like you're possessed.) The fleas may have developed immunity to the fipronyl, so I would try something like Advantix (which has permethrin) or another flea product with a different drug.

She's absolutely right -- it isn't so much that the fleas are 'back' -- they never left.  The fleas that crawl thru the fur probably do die, but there are so many that they just jump right back on the dog.  Treating the house is a must.

DO NOT bomb the house.  Seriously,  It will also be a waste of time AND put harmful chemicals all over your house.  It will not work because flea eggs in baseboard cracks and carpet will continue to emerge as adults about every 2 weeks.  In the pupa stage it is next to impossible to kill them.  Diatomaceous earth is effective, but also must be done somewhat frequently.  For carpets and in between the seat cushions of your furniture, use Borax Salts - which is NOT the same as 20 Mule team laundry detergent.  This needs to be ordered online from places like petsage or fleabusters.  This treatment will last nearly a year and will kill the fleas as they emerge.

For your yard, apply beneficial nematodes.  READ the directions. Take the time to read up on how to apply these.  Mild rain, or wetting the yard a bit, etc.  And depending on where you live, you might want to wait till spring.  This is not a "pre-emergent", so it does no good unless the food (larvae, pupa) are in the yard. There are different strains of nematodes.  I don't know which ones will work best for you.  They can be ordered from places such as Gardens alive or Biologic or Hydro gardens (lawn patrol).

Thanks for the replies so far.
 
Is diatomaceous earth and borax salts safe to use around pets?
 

With either one, you want the dog to be out of the area.  It would be advisable for you to wear a mask.  Diatomaceous earth can be used outside, but heavy rains will wash it away.  If used outside, make sure there is no wind.  The point is that you don't want yourself or your dogs to breathe in the very fine dust particles. So, you want your animals to be away from the area when applying, so that they don't breathe it in.   By the way, if you do choose to use Diatomaceous earth, then it MUST BE FOOD GRADE.   Do not get swimming pool grade because that is toxic to dogs.  The swimming food grade is processed diffentely and has some other ingredient added, or it is heat processed differently or something that makes it toxic.  But food grade is acceptable. 
 
 I'm afraid I can't compare the differences for you, because honestly I haven't personally used these items.  I have wood floors, so that helps a lot for indoors.  But a lot of people on here do use the D.E. and it was my vet who recommended the PET grade (not laundry grade) borax salts and the beneficial nematodes for outdoors.
I know it seems like more trouble because you have to locate the special items and then put them down.  But by doing this, it should help tremendously in the long run, and the fewer chemicals your dogs are around, then the healthier they will remain. Even the topical chemicals do put stress on your dogs system, "they" say it doesn't, but my dogs personally say otherwise.  So, in the long run, it's worth the extra effort and trouble anytime you can reduce any chemical loads.
 

I know diatomaceous earth is safe as long as you don't breath it in... it can cause some serious lung disease if you do, so I would assume the same for the pets. Just rub it into the carpet good and deep, then vacuum off the extra.

You can also buy products that include insect growth regulators, I believe methoprene is one, but I can't remember and my class notes are back home. These sorts of products work very well to control the larvae in the home and are safe for pets because they copy a chemical not found in animals. If you combine this with a topical adulticide, you should be able to see results fairly quickly. The pupae in the house will not be affected at all by any chemicals, so keep in mind it may take quite a while to control the entire population.

http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&A=1575

http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=626

Thanks for the helpful replies again!
 
I'm going to look into some of the items mentioned above and I'll let you know what I end up doing.
Have a Merry Christmas!

Have you tried the frontline plus. It has an added ingredient and works to kill the eggs and larvae as well. Here's a link to some info on it.

[linkhttp://frontline.us.merial.com/products/index.asp]http://frontline.us.merial.com/products/index.asp[/link]

My brother in Austin h ad such a heavy infestation of fleas (3 dogs and 3 cats) and NOTHING was working.  he was using front line on the dogs, spraying yard and house every few days, nothing worked.  Then his vet told him about this company that puts those nematodes out, they had that done and no m ore flea problems.

I heard somewhere (don't know if it's true) that it helps to get a flea collar and just put it in the cannister or bag of your vacuum.  Any little critter that you suck up will surely die and so will be unable to make its way back out into your house.
 
Joyce

We are currently using frontline and it works for about 5 days and that's it. The fleas always return. It's getting really irritating. I feel really bad for my dogs. I don't want to bomb the house, so what are my options to win the battle against fleas? What could I do?

 
     Bombing the house would only be a temporary band aid on a larger problem.
     May I suggest you nix the Frontline ... in my own experience, Frontline has consistantly been an innefective product. We had a flea infestation a few years back after taking in a rescue Rottie - I purchased various boxes of Frontline Plus from my Vet to dispense to all the dogs. Not only did it cost me a small fortune, but it didn't even make so much as a dent in the flea population. My then 6 month old pup was given the appropriate dose for her age & weight, but siffered a SEVERE reaction to the product. She yelped when I applied it, and literally seconds later I noticed her tummy and the inside of the rear legs were breaking out in bright red blotches! Besides that, the infestation persisted on that pup and all the others.
     What has worked, irregardless of what any internet myth bashes the product, is Bio Spot. It uses a combination of natural plant extracts (pyrethins) and Nylar. Both are as safe as the main ingredient in Frontline/Advantage/Advantix, etc. I used Bio Spot on the pup that was badly burned by the Frontline, and she did NOT have any reaction to it whatsoever. Plus, it knocked out out 6 month flea problem  PERMANENTLY!
     JMHO, but if I were in your shoes, I'd try going with the Bio Spot or at least another flea product.
     Also, you're going to need to begin taking your house apart top to bottom. Its imperative you vaccume upholstery, curtains, bedding and rugs daily. Purchase a flea collar and shove it into the vaccume bag to kill as many fleas/eggs as possible & change the bags often. Launder sheets and dog bedding frequently. Weekly or less if necessary. Wash all your floors at least once or twice a week with Murphy's Oil. The main ingredient is a plant oil which I've found to be unbeatable as a bug repellant. You can also bathe your dogs in Murphy's Oil to deter fleas (and it gives their coat a fabulous shine, too).
     You can purchase a powder called Sevin Dust (7%) which is sprinkled int eh yard and will control and fleas or their eggs which are in the environment.
    In spring/summer, you need to hose down your yard daily. The water will drown fleas/ticks and otehr parasites.
     Also, consider changing your dog's diet. Sometimes, fleas are attracted to dogs with less than healthy coats. Any minor lack of or abundance of oils in the coat is a flea welcome sign. Changing diet in my case prevented the infestation from returning the following year, without the use of topical products. I also use Brewer's Yeast in the summer, and you can't convince me it doesn't work [sm=wink2.gif] The dogs eating the BYS will frequently have mosquitoes hovering around them, very close, but they never bite the animal.
     Good Luck ...

ORIGINAL: fuzzy_dogs_mom

I heard somewhere (don't know if it's true) that it helps to get a flea collar and just put it in the cannister or bag of your vacuum.  Any little critter that you suck up will surely die and so will be unable to make its way back out into your house.
 
Joyce

While this sounds like a good idea in theory, what it ends up doing is heating up the flea collar and releasing toxins into the air while you vacuum. Flea collars are not meant to be heated!!!

If you're using hepa filtration in your vacuum, the little buggers shouldn't be able to escape anyway...

I think we may try out the biospot. Do you know where I can purchase it?
 
 

The vet where I worked sold it over the counter, I've also seen it at the local farm and fleet stores.