# Fleas



## semperscott (Nov 7, 2010)

Anybody have a good home remedy to get rid of fleas on a puppy? I really do not like or want to use chemicals.


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## UncleJoe (Jan 11, 2009)

http://www.preparedsociety.com/forum/f14/anyone-else-use-de-3118/

Dust the puppy's fur with it and work it into the coat. Avoid getting it near the eyes and nose; it can be irritating


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## brucehylton (Nov 6, 2010)

Feed them garlic.


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## Elinor0987 (May 28, 2010)

Years ago I picked up a stray cat and kept him as a pet. I didn't think that he had been kept by anyone for a while because he was thin, dirty, and malnourished when I found him. I didn't know at the time that he also had fleas and it didn't occur to me to even check for them. 

When I found out, I went to the store and bought this device that got rid of all of the fleas. I forgot what the name of it was and since haven't seen them in any of the stores. It was a small green light that you plug into the wall at night with a tray in front of it. The tray had paper with glue on it (very similar to the sticky paper that you catch mice with). The green light attracted the fleas and trapped them once they landed on the sticky paper. If you can't find anything like that in the stores, you can make it yourself inexpensively with a frame, bulb, and the mouse trap paper. 

There's just a few things to consider:
1. It has to be in a room where you notice the most fleas.
2. It has to have a frame or cage around it so that fleas can get in, but children and pets can't.
3. It has to be in a room with no or minimal lights on at night (at least long enough to clear the infestation).
4. The light must be green. For some reason fleas seem to be attracted to green colored lights over other colors. With all of the Christmas stuff out there you'd probably find them easily this time of the year. If you can't find one, try getting a nightlight with a shade that is green.
5. Be sure to check the paper every morning and replace it when needed.


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## semperscott (Nov 7, 2010)

Thanks for all the good info!


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## *Andi (Nov 8, 2009)

I have used the flea trap that Elinor0987 spoke of ... only different is I use a pie pan with a little soapy water not mouse trap paper ... (I'm thinking mouse trap paper would less of a mess. ) Thanks for posting.

A cedar or herb pillow can work wonders also to keep your pet free of fleas once you get them cleaned up.


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## Clarice (Aug 19, 2010)

Fleas are a real problem here in the south. I wash my dog and cat weekly with dawn dish liquid. Make sure to wash the bedding also. Wet the pet and apply the dish liquid, wait aprox. 5 min. the fleas will rise to the top and I use tweezers to remove any that I can that won't rinse off. Also a mild solution of bleach water in a pump up sprayer used around the yard where the animals play or sleep will help.


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## backlash (Nov 11, 2008)

Get a flea comb and you can comb the fleas off.
Any pet section will have them.
My wife has a jar with soapy water and she combs once and dips it into the water then repeats till she doesn't get fleas.
She does it about every week.
Cost about $3.00 and takes about 5 minutes.


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## popandnan (Dec 22, 2010)

*dogs and fleas*

Joy ( and Dawn) dishwashing liquid does a good job. If your dog has alot of fleas you may have to bathe it a couple times a week to get them under control. All the replies to your post were good solid solutions. Good luck


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## JayJay (Nov 23, 2010)

Diatomaceous Earth(food grade/powder form)...online easily ordered...cheap and lasts a loooooong time..and good for putting in 5 gallon buckets to kill critters.


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## The_Blob (Dec 24, 2008)

I think the covered fleas pretty good, but if yer pup is getting fleas you might also want to check for ear mites, mineral oil in the ears is great treatment for ear mites


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## sailaway (Mar 12, 2009)

brucehylton said:


> Feed them garlic.


Grandma always put garlic powder in the dogs food, they never had fleas.


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## The_Blob (Dec 24, 2008)

sailaway said:


> Grandma always put garlic powder in the dogs food, they never had fleas.


wow, I do the same thing when I boil the chicken leg quarters for my dogs (yes, they eat better than I do, some days  )


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## Willow (Nov 27, 2010)

Lots of great replies.

I have used garlic to repel fleas but it doesn't kill them. You want to kill the fleas and then start the garlic. If you don't kill those on the dogs then the fleas will just leave the dog. If they do that outside...great. But if they decide they don't like the taste of garlic while in the house then you will have a much bigger problem.

I've never used the light so can't comment on that.

I have used the 'diatomacious earth' on my chickens for external parasites and it works. Never used it on a dog or cat. ....so can't comment.

I use Dawn often and swear by it's flea killing power. But the reason Dawn works is it strips the flea of their ability to repel water and they drown. Unfortunately, Dawn does a great job of stripping the natural oils out of the dog's coat and skin so you have to be careful of dry skin. If you are feeding a food with a high fat content and don't bath often you should be fine. High fat meaning 15% or higher. You could also add a bit of bacon grease to the diet if dry skin becomes a problem but you have to be careful with any added oil because it will cause diarrhea if given too much.

So back to the puppy. I know you don't want to use chemicals and I don't blame you but the fleas may be far worse long term than the chemicals. Puppies with heavy flea infestations are often anemic because fleas suck blood to feed. The more fleas, the higher the risk of serious health risks because of anemia. 

Also, if the pup has lived in your house for any length of time, the general rule of thumb is there are ten times as many fleas in the environment than there are on the dog. So killing the fleas on the dog with Dawn is going to fix the problem for a short time but the fleas will keep coming back because the environment (house) is contaminated.

And last, fleas are an intermediate host for the tape worm...which means the tape worm larva need to live inside a flea for a short time in order to become an adult It is pretty much a given that any animals with fleas will also aquire tape worm. The longer the fleas are on the dog and causing the dog to chew, the bigger the internal parasite problem can become. As the dog chews to get the fleas he/she swallows the fleas that are causing the itching.

So to start you want a quick kill for the fleas on the dog AND then get rid of the fleas in the environment at the same time. If the puppy is new to the home that may be just using a bug spray and daily vaccuming. If the pup has been in the home a while then you probably should use a flea bomb for the house which you can get at a vet's office. Killing a lot of fleas quickly can be accomplished by a product called Capstar. It kills all the fleas on an animal within hours.

Once you get rid of all the fleas on the dog and the environment you can start using garlic as a repellant so the pup doesn't pick any more up while outside.

I now use a combination of chems and 'natural'. Dawn and garlic are part of my flea prevention plan. But I also use Frontline and Advantage simply because of the risk of internal parasites if the natural treatments miss a few fleas. We also now seem to have a terrible tick problem in the area and Frontline is the treatment of choice. I would resport to just combing through their coats but Lyme Disease is so prevelant that I don't dare avoid the strong treatments. 

Good luck

Willow


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## BadgeBunny (Nov 2, 2010)

I'd be careful with the garlic. It is toxic to cats and dogs. Otherwise, like others here, borax has worked well for me. I know lots of people use garlic without problems, but just in case you see your dog or cat feeling ill you will at least know the symptoms of haemolytic anemia, which is no fun to treat (usually by blood transfusions) and can be fatal.

Human Foods that are Poisonous to Pets

From the article:

Onion and garlic poisoning 
Onions and garlic are other dangerous food ingredients that cause sickness in dogs, cats and also livestock. Onions and garlic contain the toxic ingredient thiosulphate. Onions are more of a danger.

Pets affected by onion toxicity will develop haemolytic anaemia, where the pet's red blood cells burst while circulating in its body.

At first, pets affected by onion poisoning show gastroenteritis with vomiting and diarrhoea. They will show no interest in food and will be dull and weak. The red pigment from the burst blood cells appears in an affected animal's urine and it becomes breathless. The breathlessness occurs because the red blood cells that carry oxygen through the body are reduced in number.

The poisoning occurs a few days after the pet has eaten the onion. All forms of onion can be a problem including dehydrated onions, raw onions, cooked onions and table scraps containing cooked onions and/or garlic. Left over pizza, Chinese dishes and commercial baby food containing onion, sometimes fed as a supplement to young pets, can cause illness.

Onion poisoning can occur with a single ingestion of large quantities or with repeated meals containing small amounts of onion. A single meal of 600 to 800 grams of raw onion can be dangerous whereas a ten-kilogram dog, fed 150 grams of onion for several days, is also likely to develop anaemia. The condition improves once the dog is prevented from eating any further onion

While garlic also contains the toxic ingredient thiosulphate, it seems that garlic is less toxic and large amounts would need to be eaten to cause illness.


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## cranky1 (Oct 9, 2008)

no dogs north of 60 have fleas. that is where we live (YUKON). i guess it is cold enough for long enough in a year that they just dont survive, we also don`t have rats,or snakes, or spiders, scorpions, gaters, or any of those other things that i read about, i guess that is why i have been her for 39 years. i hate snakes and i haven`t seen one for 40 years. nine months of winter and 3 month of poor sleddin keeps all those nasty critters down south where they belong. i do feel bad for you though. damn, its - 49 and the truck wont start, the water is frooze up, the dogs won`t go out out to pee, and the ice fog is so bad you can`t see across the street. just another day in paridise. can;t leave though. im a sourdough now. sour on the country, and not enough dough to leave. just kidding. cheers jim


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