What method of flea control/prevention do you use?

[Roxyluvsme13]

I'm just wondering what everyone uses. I've been thinking about trying out food grade diatomaceous earth, or trying another brand of flea medicine.

We've been using Frontline, but it's expensive, and now the cheap brand called "PetArmor" is apparently going to be discontinued and has been causing a lot of pets some issues.

So, what do you use?

[Freedom]

Dogs get Frontline Plus, and garlic in their meal.

Cats are on Revolution.

Been 15 years for the cats, 5 for the dogs, no issues.

[pomtzu]

I've used Advantage or Advantix on the Fuzzbuttz for the past several years. However, this year I used nothing and neither one of them had a single flea. Go figure. But I'm not complaining, since it is rather expensive - even buying it on line from Australia.

Years ago when I had my 3 Lhasas, I only used garlic powder in their food, and that worked for them.

[Grace]

I use Revolution on the cats - not just for the flea protection though. It works against heartworm, and a bunch of other parasites. Four of our cats go outside and the Revolution protects them. As for the indoor cats - our Vet pointed out to me that in North Carolina a study showed that 25% of indoor cats were infected with heartworm. Mosquitoes can get inside and bite.

[wolf_Q]

Nothing, there's not a problem with fleas in Utah. I'm a groomer and I've seen maybe 10-15 dogs with fleas in over 9 years of grooming....the vast majority being dogs that came from out of state or were around an animal from out of state. That's one reason I don't think I could live anywhere else (and definitely not be a groomer anywhere else I couldn't handle all the fleas and ticks ew).

[mrspunkysmom]

Frontline or advantix and only when needed. The only time my cats get fleas are at the vets.

[IRescue452]

I chose other. I use no chemicals unless they have more than a few fleas in a short timespan and then I will use frontline. I've used it once on one dog this year.

I do however use a flea comb to check their coats after an outing. Fleas are common where I live I think because I'm across the field from a local dog park. I may find as little as one adult flea on one of the dogs and comb through their whole bodies and find no others. I prefer to catch them early before they can reproduce and before I even find any flea poop on them. I haven't had a full infestation with these dogs ever.

[sallyandsnowx]

When we first adopted Snow, she had a huge flea problem (multiple flea baths, even the house had to get exterminated.. :eek:) Ever since then we've used Advantage for her and it works great! Not a single flea, thank god. :)

[Kater]

Colorado does not have many fleas or ticks. I have Kirk on Sentinel right now, but when I'm back in Hawaii that will surely change. He will need to be on an adulticide of some kind, most likely topical.

[chocolatepuppy]

Frontline Plus for the dogs. I only use it every other month in the summer.

[Taz_Zoee]

Frontline Plus for the dogs. I only use it every other month in the summer.

Same here. I usually only apply it before they go to my brothers house when we are out of town. They have ticks out there too.

[krazyaboutkatz]

Even though all of my cats are indoor only, I've been using Advantage on them every month for many years. When I didn't, they would get fleas. I live in a condo and there are other animals close by. If they have fleas then my cats will get them too. I have to use it year round because the weather is very mild here in CA. I also buy the largest dog advantage and then I measure it for my cats. This saves me a lot of money and it's been preapproved by my vet. In fact one of my former vets was the one who recommended doing this to help save me money.

[Roxyluvsme13]

I think we might try out Advantage for the cats now as it is slightly cheaper than Frontline and there isn't a high chance of them getting ticks since they are indoor only...

Might try out the Advantage on the dogs too, but I'm not sure if I want to risk the possibility of not killing ticks, though I don't think they are going to be a problem unless I take them in the woods or something, which I doubt I will do.

I'm also very jealous of all of you that don't have major flea problems where you live :(. They are awful here, even in the winter time.

[AvaJoy]

. . . I also buy the largest dog advantage and then I measure it for my cats. This saves me a lot of money and it's been preapproved by my vet. In fact one of my former vets was the one who recommended doing this to help save me money.

I'm surprised that a vet would recommend such a practice, as I have always heard that using DOG flea/tick meds on a CAT would cause severe illness and could prove fatal.

For years I have used Frontline Plus exclusively on my cats but only during the mild months. Once the weather turns frigid I discontinue until springtime. It costs a small fortune to do so many cats, but is worth it as I have never had a flea or tick infestation.

[mrspunkysmom]

Originally Posted by krazyaboutkatz (http://petoftheday.com/talk/showthread.php?p=2395835#post2395835)
. . . I also buy the largest dog advantage and then I measure it for my cats. This saves me a lot of money and it's been preapproved by my vet. In fact one of my former vets was the one who recommended doing this to help save me money.




I'm surprised that a vet would recommend such a practice, as I have always heard that using DOG flea/tick meds on a CAT would cause severe illness and could prove fatal.

For years I have used Frontline Plus exclusively on my cats but only during the mild months. Once the weather turns frigid I discontinue until springtime. It costs a small fortune to do so many cats, but is worth it as I have never had a flea or tick infestation.

I've had a vet do the same thing also. The large dog flea medicine is in the same percentage as the cat flea medicine. The dog just gets up to 5 times more. I can't remember right now. So I used a syringe sans needle with some left over. I had two cats at the time so I am thinking I might have had one dose left over. The stuff does not evaporate either. It saved me a lot of money when I was out of work.

[Roxyluvsme13]

Has anybody tried anything with citrus? I read online about boiling orange peels and then spraying that or dousing it on them... I tried it today because for some reason, the fleas seem to even live here during the winter time, and I didn't have $150+ to go out and buy flea medicines for all 4 so I thought I'd try something natural until I had money...

Anyway, it seems to be working. I had to dilute the mixture for the cats as they can be sensitive to citrus, but they haven't scratched since I put this on them!

[snakemama]

If you like Frontline but find it too expensive, check out Sentry's Fiproguard. It has the same main active ingredient as Frontline and it's a LOT less expensive.

[Catty1]

In Canada here there is a product at the vets called Profender. It's a gel that is put on the back of the neck. It gets fleas and worms and anything else in that category.

[Roxyluvsme13]

Frontline Plus was what I used for a long time, but it doesn't work here now. So I use Revolution or Advantage. Have to use something because fleas are awful in the southeast :(.

[pomtzu]

This is an old thread, but thought I would add to it anyway.

Since this is the first full flea and tick season that I have had Wolfy, I was at odds on what to use. When we were in NC for the end part of the season last year - Oct-Nov-Dec - the fleas were vicious and even Advantix II didn't work. When we came back to DE in Jan, I didn't need anything because of the brutally cold winter that we had, but I needed to decide what to use when Spring rolled around. I really wanted to get away from the topicals, and read up on the Seresto collar and decided to try that since it got good positive reviews. So far - so good - no sign of fleas or ticks - and I don't have to remember to apply anything to his skin every month. The collar is good for up to 8 months - just put it on and forget it.

[Taz_Zoee]

When I originally replied to this thread I was using Frontline drops. Now I'm using NexGard which is a pill. It works GREAT! It prevents fleas and ticks.
We had an outbreak of fleas here and this was the only thing that seemed to work. I even got the cats on Comfortis. I think the oral meds work better than topical. At least for me.
And I need tick protection for when the dogs go out to my moms/brothers houses.

[AvaJoy]

I have 10 cats and have always used Frontline Plus for fleas and ticks. Works beautifully and have never seen a flea or tick . . . 4 of my cats are outdoors and it is the charm although quite expensive when there are 10 to do every month . . . ugh!

[pomtzu]

So far, the Seresto collar is doing what it is supposed to do. I put it on Wolfy in April, and NO fleas or ticks to be found on him. :cool: I like this method so much better than the once per month topicals, and I'm glad I decided to give it a try. This collar will carry him thru December, and I probably won't go with a new one till next Spring again, unless the winter is unusually warmer than normal. I would recommend this method of pest control/prevention, 100%. :)

[mrspunkysmom]

Advantage. I also use Raid for carpets sometimes, and other times I use a home remedy of soap, cedar essential oil as a carpet spray.

[Jessika]

Trifexis, which includes flea control (Trifexis = Interceptor + Comfortis)

If I need a topical, I use Vectra 3D.

We are seeing horrible flea resistance with frontline and fipronil-based products, so I strongly recommend considering other orals/topicals when I can.

[pomtzu]

The 8 month effectiveness of the Seresto collar is pretty darn accurate. This is the 8th month that I have had it on Wolfy, and I noticed him fiercely scratching starting several days ago. Last night I found a flea on him. :( I was hoping he could get thru the colder months without flea protection, but that's not going to happen. I sent for another collar, and in the meantime while I wait for it to get here, I found that I had one dose of Advantix II left, so I put that on him last night. No scratching today, so far. :) Now I have to strip the bed and also spray areas that he likes to occupy too.

[Lady's Human]

Another vote for the Seresto collar. We've used them on Angel, and have yet to find a single critter one her.

[pomtzu]

Another vote for the Seresto collar. We've used them on Angel, and have yet to find a single critter one her.

Don't know where you get your Seresto collars, but I have found that www.chewy.com is the cheapest of ANYWHERE! The delivery is super speedy too - I had my order in 2 days - ships from PA. All their prices on everything are great, especially if you normally buy at the pet supply stores. The collar for Wolfy was $42.99, (as compared to Concord Pet where I sometimes go for his food), where it's $79! My vet is high on her price too. I get his vitamins and any supplements and nylabones and often his food too, from CHEWY.