Fleas

[crickette]

hi

I seem to be on a lot of topics lately!   
The one concerning me greatly at present is the continuing battle with (just a few) fleas. 
We applied Frontline about 2 weeks ago & gradually Cricket seemed to be rid of them (her coat that is)....Now unbelieveably I looked at her tummy & soon one flea made an appearance.   I can't understand this.  She is bathed regularly & we have no cats....only an older terrier who seldom has fleas.
Do poodles, because of their warm curly coat, tend to harbour fleas more readily than other dogs?
Have any others found remedies that work well?
I am very concerned because I don't know how to be rid of the problem.  She has a different bed after the treatment.
Help please   

[Fluffy]

The Frontline should be effective for 4 weeks.  Bear in mind that the Frontline doesn't instantly kill a flea once it has jumped on the dogs - it takes time to work.  If you can physically catch the flea it was probably not feeling well!  Poodles are not any more prone to fleas than any other dog.  My dogs very rarely have fleas but we have had them after meeting flea infested dogs at the park, being at the vets, visitors with fleas.  Cats that come into your yard may also bring them.  Fleas do not disappear by themselves so if you do not treat them they get worse.  They can also take up residence in your yard and that is a nightmare.  If I find a flea on one of my dogs they all get a Capstar tablet (available from supermarkets, vets etc) any further sightings and I apply a Frontline.  You need to treat all dogs and cats in the household because they will also have fleas even if you can't see them.

[partipoo1]

I have some friends that have 5 dogs and two cats in the house.  Unfortunately, they are not doing all they should and actually could so they have fleas.  We had been taking our Cricket (toy rat terrier) and Domino the wonder poodle, over and everytime, fleas or worse a tick.  So, we are not taking our pets anymore to visit.  It's just not worth it.  Also, I use Revolution on my animals and it works wonderfully.

[zefi]

I had a huge battle with fleas when I lived in Melbourne. My house there had been owned by a dog owner who obviously didnt take enough care and the lady next door had a cat who was infested with them. She wouldnt treat the cat 'cause he was old'.

I flea bombed the house twice and sprayed the yards with asuntol (horse/dog flea rinse). And I frontlined once a month. That got the problem under control.

[Fluffy]

Hi Crickette, also thought it might be worth mentioning that if you are using a "top spot' such as Frontline and you bath your dog once per week you may be reducing the effectiveness of the product (even though it says it is waterproof) eg if you had a dog that went swimming everyday "top spots" would not work.

[crickette]

thanks for all that.  She doesn't seem to be scatching 'suddenly' at a crawling flea, nor does she seem to be irritated by a bite, so perhaps the situation is now under control.  I will investigate possibilities of a flea pill.
She is due to be groomed, so I will have her coat shorter (still a puppy) & keep an eye on 'things'.  To me fleas seem to associate with filth 

[Fluffy]

Fleas have nothing at all to do with the cleanliness of your dogs hair.  So don't feel that it is a reflection on your bathing or grooming routine.  One of my dogs is allergic to fleas and scratches madly if there is 1 on her the other 2 don't scratch at all.  Do you know what flea dirt looks like?  Small black/brown sand grain size stuff - if you see this in your poodles coat it has fleas.  Also worth noting that fleas carry one of the intestinal worms that dogs get so don't leave a flea problem untreated. 

Would love to see some photos of your baby.

[Roland]

THANKS!!!!
This is exactly what I was looking for when I first went looking for a poodle room. OK I don't feel any closer to an answer but at least I know I am not alone.  We tried Frontline, K9 Advantax, collars (worked best) Oden even went to the groomer for a dip, still had fleas!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We sprayed bombed added garlic to his food. No fleas on the greyhound, just Oden. They go to a dog park daily and it's a big sand pit, plus the neiborhood is overrun with cats. I don't know what to do. They must be dieing after getting on him, other wise I'd be an itchy bit up person, and he doesn't seem to take notice of them often, but it's embarrising, and there is no way this can be good for him. The cold weather can not come soon enough. If anyone else has anymore idears.......love to hear them.
Thanks though, I will look into that pill thing, is it safe? I feel weird about doing that, but I guess it can't be worst that anything else.
Roland

[zefi]

Thankfully for me there arent many fleas in Tasmania, even in summer. I HATE fleas. HATE THEM. I know of people who've used the pills (cant remember the name) and swear by them but all I've ever used is Frontline and Frontline Plus. I tied Advantage once and ended up with two burns/bald spots - one on Pagan and one on Billy at the spot of application. I went to the vet and they all said 'its never happened before' and the people called me from the company that makes it claiming it'd never happened before... but when I asked around there were plenty of others who'd had the same problem.

I would try the various things but also flea bomb the house or have it professionally sprayed once a year to break the cycle. How awful....

[Roland]

Got some more advise on this. I was told that when I spray the house, to consentrate on the corners and base boards, that is where they like to hide when they are not on pets. Also I got Natur Vet Herbal Flea Powder for Pets & Bedding. It can be used as often as desired, and is safe to use with spot treatments such as Frontline or Advantage.  I put in on before and after the dog park, and no fleas
Thanks for the warning about the burns, I will make sure to keep a close watch for these.
Roland

[Luke]

Zefi,
 the flea pill is Capstar here in the USA.
 Wonderful stuff and it should be in everyone's cupboard.
 it is completely safe for dogs and humans. I questioned the Drug rep at the Vet's office because It worked so well I thought it might be too dtrong for the dogs. So the Drug rep ATE a large adult pill in front of me..he saids he does it a couple of times a day...he understands the chemistry better than i do and knows that insects use different chemicals in their nervous systems than mammals and that the Capstar disrupts those nerve impulses at the chemical transfer sites...thus insects die...mammals don't.
 However the pill only kills biting/adult fleas..so frontline plus is to be used in tandem with it and it is to be used only when adult fleas will be encountered (before visiting locations where dogs gather) or when fleas are seen...and it lasts for less than 24hrs. but every day doages have no affect on dogs...or drug reps.
 BTW the drug rep said the fleas have disappeared from him since he started taking it.....and Mosquitoes die if they suck from him...

[zefi]

So humans can take it too?

[Luke]

YEp...but I really hope you don't have that bad a flea problem

[Lesly]

Capstar does work, but is only good for 24 hours, so you need to followup with Advantage or Frontline, or go the natural route, as I do, with Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth.  Used externally in the home, yard, and on the dogs, and also internally, as a dewormer.  Humans can use it, too. 

Lesly, Maddy & Beau

[Lelune]

Wow I never knew humans could take Capstar tablets???

We tried for years with Frontline and it didn't work, changed to other brans like Advantage and Sentile (sp) and used Nusadol (sp) on the dogs and it kinda kept the fleas under control, but when i oved to SA i didn't have mush of a Flea prob