Does anyone use Program flea pills?

    • Gold Top Dog

    Does anyone use Program flea pills?

    I'm allergic to spot-on meds. I broke out in a serious rash after using Frontline and one other - either Advantage or Advantix, I don't remember which. We usually don't have a flea problem so dealing with it as needed hasn't been a problem, but this year looks like it's going to be bad. I was thinking about using Program, does anyone have any experience with it?? Alternative ideas? BTW, I'm dealing with two very large, very thick haired dogs.

    • Gold Top Dog

    We used program on the family cat without any problems.  I currently use Sentinel on Kirby which is from the same company that does Program.  With Sentinel the chewable tablet does flea control and heart worm in one shot.  I've never had any problems with the meds though it is important to know that they don't kill fleas but keep them from reproducing.  Thus while it will keep fleas from overrunning your house, it won't kill adult fleas on your dogs.  I know that the in blood flea medications aren't' popular on this board, but I like to avoid topical treatments since I keep praying mantises as pets and handle them on a regular basis along with them crawling about my room in areas that Kirby has gone.  Too much risk to my buggy babies.  That being said in all our years using such products as program I've never had a problem with any of my animals nor suffered from a flea infestation.

    • Gold Top Dog

    There are a couple of downfalls to Program- the main one being the flea has to bite your animal for it to work.  Not good if you have a fllea allergic dog like Mick was.  The other downfall is that, while eventually your home and yard will be flea free, if you take your pets somewhere where there are fleas, or a visiting pet brings them to your house, you'll have fleas again.  Granted, only until those fleas die, but, again, if you have a dog allergic to fleas, it's not good.  I, too had issues with Fronline (migraines), but discovered if I applied it before going to bed, I was OK.  If you reacted only from applying FL, maybe you can wear rubber gloves to apply it?

    • Gold Top Dog

    Sentinel IS the old 'Program' drug PLUS milbemycin (the heartworm preventive) in one pill.  But it's the same drug for the fleas as Program.

    Program is an egg inhibitor -- it doesn't let flea babies form the outer 'hard shell' they need to survive.  So essentially it's birth control for fleas and the only way it really works is if your dog never goes anywhere to 'get' a flea because new fleas will have 'healthy' flea babies. 

    You've tried both Frontline and Advantage?  They're different -- Frontline stays in the oil glands and hair follicles (and lasts longer too) so it would likely be more apt to cause a problem.  Advantage crystalizes over the skin.

    Depends on where you live and what your personal situation is.