FLEAS

[Guest Chelsea]

What is the best way to get rid of fleas after they are in the house and yard? Are Cairns really prone to flea problems, because I cannot seem to get rid of them. Every summer poor little Oliver is scratching and biting himself. I have been using drops from the pet store, and also flea shampoo that really works get for a couple days. I will be getting some Advantage soon, that works better, but not perfect. I need suggestions on what is best to use to get rid of the source of the problem.

Thanks so much!

[Toto times 2]

Hi Chelsea:

We use Advantage. One of my boys is very allergic and the flea solutions that just prevent fleas from breeding just does not work for us. With Advantage we just put a few drops under the fur at the back of the neck and that kills any fleas on the dogs within 24 hours for a month. You just re-apply during flea season depending on where you live it could be 6 - 12 months. We only need it between June and October.

[abe's dad]

As for the Advantage (or similar preventive) that is a definite need. We go one step futher and i treat the yard with insecticide granules I usually only have to use it in the spring and we keep Abe off of the lawn for a couple of days after I treat it and we don't have a problem . Most of the stuff lawn treatments are available through a local home and garden center and are easy to use ,I use a drop speader and this past spring I mixed in a little fertilizer. That and all the rain we have been having keeps the mower working double time. If you have them in the House I would suggest trying some of the fogger type insecticides while you take a week or so away from the house, just be sure to read the lable and get one that will kill the eggs as well. Those little buggers can be tough to get rid of.

[CathyAnn]

A few years back, I found fleas on my Cairn and the two cats. What a mess!! We had to treat the animals AND the house. If you treat only the animals, they are still in the house/carpet reproducing.

Anyway...ended up getting a flea bomb(s) from my vet's office. Had to set it off and be out of the house for several hours (if I remember right?). I did it twice to break the flea/egg cycle per our vet's recommendation. I also treated the yard mid-summer as that was when it got bad in our area.

After that, we started using Frontline and knock on wood....no problems with two Cairns and a cat (indoor only).

I would give your vet's office a call and see what they might suggest.

Good luck.

Cathy

P.S. A friend of mine had them so bad one time that they were jumping up from the carpet and biting their ankles!!!

[christine]

I've had this problem in the past. You will have to "fog" your house. You can buy flea foggers. The number will depend upon the size of your house. We first bathed and removed all fleas from the dog, set the foggers and left the house (which is required). You will have to wipe counters and such down, but it is well worth it.

Also, you will have to treat your yard. Take to someone at a home improvement place, because I forget exactly what we used. However, you have to continue to treat throughout the season. If you treat just once, it will only kill adult fleas, you have to continue the cycle to kill any up and comings. We did this and never had a problem afterwards.

You will need to treat your yard every season unless you want to take a wait and see approach. We treated every season because the expense was not very much.

Hope this helps!

[Guest ghughes]

You can call a local exterminator to spray your yard and house. Frontline seems to work well on our dog. He had fleas when we purchased him from the breeder and after using Frontline for the first time he's been flea free! Good luck!