Natural flea products?

[Wicket]

I have used Frontline Plus as a primary flea product for our dogs but I'm open to using different products. What are some good natural flea products and what makes them better than the un-natural ones?

[***Melissa***]

I used to use Frontline, but decided I wanted something without the chemicals.

I now use a dog shampoo made by Aloe Ferox, and also a flea & tick repellant by Aloe Ferox. It works really well. Not sure if the particular supplier I get it from sells outside of SA, but I think you will find something Aloe-based for dogs almost everywhere.

I think what makes it better is just knowing my dogs are not exposed to harsh chemicals anymore

[***Melissa***]

and also a flea & tick repellant by Aloe Ferox

Just to clarify, the flea & tick repellant I use are made especially for dogs.

[Horace's Mum]

Maybe I'm a bad owner, but I don't use any flea treatments on Horus. He never comes into contact with cats which I believe are the main carriers of fleas, TBH he rarely comes into contact with any other animals, and I am lucky that he has very pink skin and a short white coat which makes it very easy to spot anything early and treat it then. I don't treat for ticks because I find it just as easy to use a tick hook to remove them safely.

I did used to use lavender oil, which is one of the safe oils for dogs and one that Horus used to enjoy when I first had him, but haven't used it for a long time. Hopefully Nettle will come and post - she is much better at this kind of stuff!!

[Nettle]

Here I be

Background - fleas were designed to live on certain animals, just as worm were designed to live In them, so natural products don't do well here. They repel fleas, but not all fleas, and if you are a flea and hungry, you might not be repelled.

Chemicals kill fleas, but at a price. They have to be toxic in order to kill the fleas, and so in susceptible animals (or us) they can cause illness. However, so can flea infestations.

So we walk a tightrope here. I use chemicals minimally, and natural repellents otherwise, plus diatomaceous earth which is natural and safe and helps to stop re-infestation. Note "helps". There will still be fleas that manage to survive.

Flea-combing daily is a good way to keep on top of the little blighters, and Mattie has details of a flea-comb that zaps fleas electronically - harmless to the dog but the end of the flea.

Cats are flea reservoirs as Horace's Mum says, so if you have cats, make sure they are treated too. Most fleas found on dogs are in fact cat fleas, even if you don't have a cat.

[Horace's Mum]

Cheers Nettle!! I don't use frontline routinely because I try to keep anything chemical or artificial away from him if I can. Will have to have a look at the earthy stuff, keep meaning to but never got round to it!

[RhysMom]

Question: Cats carry fleas (I totally agree, my moms cats are disgusting), but she treats them with Frontline or Advantage, depending on which she picks up at the store, so is it OK to take Rhys off his Frontline? I would really rather not use it, but am afraid since we have had flea issues before with the cats. He already has sensitive skin and I'd hate to make it worse if he gets fleas. Plus my area is pretty big on ticks and Lyme's disease (I personally know 1 person, 2 dogs and 1 pony that have gotten it here, and I dont know many people).

[Simba]

Just thought I would weigh in on the natural flea products discussion. When we first rescued Simba he was loaded with fleas and they had obviously bothered him a great deal since he had chewed off the fur on part of one of his paws and his tail as well.

We took care of the flea problem naturally and a year later he still has no fleas on him we are happy to say. Also, we were getting flea bites at the time and not happy about it. None this year, thank goodness.

There are many natural recipes in lots of books on natural pet care that can be found at your local library or on-line.

One thing that can be done if your dog has fleas and you want to avoid the horrible and toxic (to humans too) flea collar route you can prepare a rinse (make sure the skin receives the rinse, obviously) of half lemon juice and half water. This alters the Ph of the dog's skin as I understand it and the fleas are not fond of it. Another rinse you can alternate with is made from fresh rosemary and water as well.

Ark Naturals has a wonderful natural spray and shampoo that you can put on the dog to help with the itching while you work on the problem. Natural remediess are not like a flea dip (oh so toxic) and instantly solve the problem. You will need to stay diligent with this for a while and then eventually you can back off. I recommend vacuuming your house every day while you are working on the problem for your sake and the dog's.

Green Hope Farms has a product (comprised of flower essences) called "Flea Free" and we use that as well by putting a few drops in his water once a day and then a few drops when we think of it throughout the day on his coat. Since this is high flea season we do this preventatively at this point.

Since Simba's has no fleas at this time he is on a natural preventation program that his holistic Vet designed part of which consists of nutritional yeast and fresh garlic for the fleas. There are other elements to his mixture designed for his general health; however, we are talking about fleas here so I will stick to the subject. The best way to prevent flea infestation is a healthy dog. That is what our holistic Vet always says.