Flea Control

pixiegirl · Aug 9, 2006

So amongst the 35769326 other things Mily is allergic to she is also allergic to fleas. I keep Frontline on her and the cats (during the warmer months only for the cats since they never go outside) but it does nothing to repel fleas or ticks only kill them within so many hours once they jump on. So once it gets warm outside I immediately have B spray the yard with pest stuff that we get from Lowe's; we've tried several different brands. The cats get dosed and like I said they never step foot outside, I only do it as a precautionary measure and Mily gets hers. The first flea bite of the season is the worst; hives all over the body, belly flaming red; it's terrible to see.

I don't have a flea problem by any means. I've never found one on the cats at all. I don't see any evidence (flea dirt) in Mily's bedding. I check her nightly and I find a flea or two. She's white, they're easy to find and easy to kill which means that the Frontline is working on them. I'm positive they're jumping on her when I take her out; duh right! :lmao:

So my question is is there any type of deterant. Any tried and true yard spray? We have deer. When I was younger my mom use to dip our dogs. Is that a repellant or does it just work to kill fleas that are on them. I'm not crazy about the idea of a flea collar as I remember them not being very effective on our dogs when I was a kid. I feel terrible for the poor dog while we've got it pretty much under control occasionally the little bastards still have the opportunity to bite her. For a normal dog it wouldn't be so bad; for the dog that's allergic to herself it's unbearable. :jameo:

Sharon · Aug 9, 2006

I don't have a flea problem, nor does Bear. What I do have is some Dursban granules (a lot actually). We used them once along the fence line outside many years ago to keep the neighbors dogs fleas in their yard. :lol:

I'm not sure what the precautions are, but it's on the bag. If your 2 yr. old sits in the yard and picks grass and puts his hands in his mouth, it's probably not a good idea for any chemical.

Another alternative - Put some Malathion in a hose-end sprayer and spray the yard. It will kill just about any bug that's creeping along and probably tree frogs too. It becomes safe in "so many hours" (check label for strength used). I used it earlier this year for Colorado potato bugs in my veggie garden before they set fruit.

I don't use the Dursban if you want it.

pixiegirl · Aug 9, 2006

Sharon said:
I don't have a flea problem, nor does Bear. What I do have is some Dursban granules (a lot actually). We used them once along the fence line outside many years ago to keep the neighbors dogs fleas in their yard.

I'm not sure what the precautions are, but it's on the bag. If your 2 yr. old sits in the yard and picks grass and puts his hands in his mouth, it's probably not a good idea for any chemical.

Another alternative - Put some Malathion in a hose-end sprayer and spray the yard. It will kill just about any bug that's creeping along and probably tree frogs too. It becomes safe in "so many hours" (check label for strength used). I used it earlier this year for Colorado potato bugs in my veggie garden before they set fruit.

I don't use the Dursban if you want it.

One flea is a problem for a dog with a flea allergy. That's why I spend $56 for Frontline for the damn cats who don't even go outside. I don't want a flea hoping a ride inside on Moo and deciding one of the cats is a better host! :lmao:

I will NEVER have a white dog again! I love her dearly but I swear she's allergic to herself! We decided against fencing in the yard because it's so hilly. How often should we treat it since there are deer and other animals in and out of it daily? I'm sure they'll be dropping more fleas. :jameo:

Elle · Aug 9, 2006

For our monster we use K-9 Advantix along with Sentinel Flavor Tabs. I've only once seen a tick on her (I think it was in April) and never have had a problem with fleas, which I think is pretty good considering we live on a farm and she loves to play in the fields. Have you thought about asking the vet to switch from Frontline?

pixiegirl · Aug 9, 2006

Elle said:
For our monster we use K-9 Advantix along with Sentinel Flavor Tabs. I've only once seen a tick on her (I think it was in April) and never have had a problem with fleas, which I think is pretty good considering we live on a farm and she loves to play in the fields. Have you thought about asking the vet to switch from Frontline?

I'll have to look into the advantix. The website says it starts to work within 5 minutes. The Frontline is similar I believe though. :ohwell:

It's not a terrible problem like I said. She's a white dog and they're easy to spot on her and when I do see them they're dead or dying. It's just the occasional bastard that must get her when it first gets on.

Chasey_Lane · Aug 9, 2006

Pixie has bugs on her mug.

Sharon · Aug 9, 2006

pixiegirl said:
One flea is a problem for a dog with a flea allergy.

I underststand that it's terrible. For most of the products you're already using, a live flea will most likely bite the dog before the chems go to work on it.

How often should we treat it since there are deer and other animals in and out of it daily? I'm sure they'll be dropping more fleas.

That depends on how bad they are. Have you gone out and stood where your dogs "play" and seen anything jump on you? Try it for about 5 minutes. That should give you some idea of whether or not you have a bad infestation.

My yard is unfenced also, with lots of wandering animals, domestic & wild. Yet, at this time of year bugs don't seem to be a problem and I'm surrounded by woods. I haven't spot treated Bear since June 1st. Normally, I start in the late Winter/early Spring at the first sighting of a tick. At this time I also treat the carpet in case one of us drags something in.

SouthernMdRocks · Aug 9, 2006

pixiegirl said:
So amongst the 35769326 other things Mily is allergic to she is also allergic to fleas. I keep Frontline on her and the cats (during the warmer months only for the cats since they never go outside) but it does nothing to repel fleas or ticks only kill them within so many hours once they jump on. So once it gets warm outside I immediately have B spray the yard with pest stuff that we get from Lowe's; we've tried several different brands. The cats get dosed and like I said they never step foot outside, I only do it as a precautionary measure and Mily gets hers. The first flea bite of the season is the worst; hives all over the body, belly flaming red; it's terrible to see.

I don't have a flea problem by any means. I've never found one on the cats at all. I don't see any evidence (flea dirt) in Mily's bedding. I check her nightly and I find a flea or two. She's white, they're easy to find and easy to kill which means that the Frontline is working on them. I'm positive they're jumping on her when I take her out; duh right! So my question is is there any type of deterant. Any tried and true yard spray? We have deer. When I was younger my mom use to dip our dogs. Is that a repellant or does it just work to kill fleas that are on them. I'm not crazy about the idea of a flea collar as I remember them not being very effective on our dogs when I was a kid. I feel terrible for the poor dog while we've got it pretty much under control occasionally the little bastards still have the opportunity to bite her. For a normal dog it wouldn't be so bad; for the dog that's allergic to herself it's unbearable.

I heard that washing them with Ivory dish soap and rinsing with cold water mixed with SSS keeps the fleas off. I haven't tried it yet but plan to.

pixiegirl · Aug 9, 2006

Sharon said:
I underststand that it's terrible. For most of the products you're already using, a live flea will most likely bite the dog before the chems go to work on it.

That depends on how bad they are. Have you gone out and stood where your dogs "play" and seen anything jump on you? Try it for about 5 minutes. That should give you some idea of whether or not you have a bad infestation.

My yard is unfenced also, with lots of wandering animals, domestic & wild. Yet, at this time of year bugs don't seem to be a problem and I'm surrounded by woods. I haven't spot treated Bear since June 1st. Normally, I start in the late Winter/early Spring at the first sighting of a tick. At this time I also treat the carpet in case one of us drags something in.

B's out there often and complained of bites around the ankles. But he's out there for long periods at a time. I don't take the kids out in our yard because it's nasty. We have a lot to do in the back, landscaping wise, the grass is still thin in spots, B ripped out the one bed so we can eventually have a concrete slab poured. I'm going to get some of the stuff you mentioned in the previous posts and try that. We also have some straw left in the yard. I had B try to get most of it up. Could that have been adding to the problem? It was down because we had no grass and laid a bunch of seed.

pixiegirl · Aug 9, 2006

Sharon said:
I underststand that it's terrible. For most of the products you're already using, a live flea will most likely bite the dog before the chems go to work on it.

That depends on how bad they are. Have you gone out and stood where your dogs "play" and seen anything jump on you? Try it for about 5 minutes. That should give you some idea of whether or not you have a bad infestation.

My yard is unfenced also, with lots of wandering animals, domestic & wild. Yet, at this time of year bugs don't seem to be a problem and I'm surrounded by woods. I haven't spot treated Bear since June 1st. Normally, I start in the late Winter/early Spring at the first sighting of a tick. At this time I also treat the carpet in case one of us drags something in.

Oh and she doesn't "play" outside. She's allergic to grass too. We play inside. :lmao:

I'm telling you don't ever get a white dog!

Sharon · Aug 9, 2006

pixiegirl said:
B's out there often and complained of bites around the ankles.

Does he actually see the fleas? Chiggers are a problem around here also.

Oh and she doesn't "play" outside. She's allergic to grass too. We play inside.

Poor baby.

I'm telling you don't ever get a white dog!

All my dogs have been black. If I ever get a Dane, he's going to be black too.

pixiegirl · Aug 9, 2006

Sharon said:
Does he actually see the fleas? Chiggers are a problem around here also.

Poor baby.

All my dogs have been black. If I ever get a Dane, he's going to be black too.

He's never seen anything. Just complains that his ankles are itchy when he comes in. :shrug:

I didn't think she'd be a problem being that she's got so much black on her and her nose is black. Wrong! Being that I have no clue about her parents I'd be willing to bet one of them was pure white and pure bred something. Two things that increase the odds of allergies. :jameo:

At least she's not deaf; hard headed but not deaf. :lmao:

Sharon · Aug 9, 2006

pixiegirl said:
At least she's not deaf; hard headed but not deaf.

I can't believe she's really a pit bull the way she was snuggling up to me and 2A last time we saw her. What a baby... she was like jello around us. :roflmao:

mrweb · Aug 9, 2006

Try this:

Put about half a pouch of chewing tobacco on a stocking and brew in a gallon of boiling water (like making tea)

mix with a cup or two of ammonia and a couple of good squirts of lemon dishwashing soap. (I don't know why lemon but that's what I saw on a nature gardening show with a guy named James Baker)

Put in one of those garden sprayers that attaches to your hose, preferably one that broadcasts some distance, like an Ortho sprayer with a long nozzle and wet down your entire yard. I use this and it works like a charm to keep chiggers, ticks and misquotes at bay. I spray once a month in the summer. Non-toxic to the pets except don't spray it on tomatoes. I found out the hard way that it kills the fruit.

JabbaJawz · Aug 9, 2006

Sharon said:
I can't believe she's really a pit bull the way she was snuggling up to me and 2A last time we saw her. What a baby... she was like jello around us.

She is vicious, I tell you!! Absolutely vicious!!!!!!!!

pixiegirl · Aug 9, 2006

JabbaJawz said:
She is vicious, I tell you!! Absolutely vicious!!!!!!!!

If I ever kick it she's all yours. I can see it now, you, D and Moo and nuggled up in bed! :lmao:

crabcake · Aug 10, 2006

Get you some guinea hens

Domestic Guinea Fowl are one of God's best pest control systems. An adult guineas' diet are mostly insects and they are constantly on the search for food. This makes them the ideal solution to the small farmer and gardener's pest problems.

Jameo · Aug 10, 2006

I just put 2 and 2 together :dork:

I haven't put any Advantix on my mutts in a few months. Haven't seen one flea either. We have been sparying malathion around the yards (Mine and my neighbors for mosquitoes) :yay:

Pete · Aug 10, 2006

Malathion rocks. We used it on the farm and when I lived in Tampa as a kid they used to crop dust the city with malathion from big airplanes. :lol:

crabcake · Aug 10, 2006

What is this malathion you speak of? Where do you get it? Application? Cost? Safety?

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