Savingdogs-Saving the chickens

[ohiofarmgirl]

baby you were perfect!!! i figured the dog needed steroids too.. no big whoop. and i think he's got the shepherd lick lick lick..ohmigosh i cant stop! zoikes!

yay you!

 

[sunsaver]

Fleas are one area in which i am not opposed to pesticides. I had some super resistant fleas one time that no over the counter product would cure. Then a friend who works for a chemical company gave me some stuff and i sprayed just a lite drizzle around the house and one drop on the back of the neck of both cats. I never saw another flea. That was two years ago! I asked him, what in the heck was that stuff! He said, "if i told you i'd have to kill you." I figure its new and not approved for use yet, or its been banned by the EPA. I just hope i can eat enough anti-oxidants to prevent it from giving me cancer! It's nice to be rid of the fleas!

 

[Farmfresh]

Inside the house SALT is my flea cure.

We had a cat that brought fleas into the house when we had two babies at the time. I was VERY afraid of spraying anything and did my research.

Salt kills the larva of the flea much like salting a slug on a microscopic level. It works its way down into the carpet pad, furniture cracks and even the cracks of my old hardwood floors. (Yes I know... I am evil). You just use plain cheap salt with no iodine and race through the house like the sandman. When first applied leave it as long as you can possibly stand it walking it into the carpets and brooming it all around. (24 hours +) Then vacuum well and reapply as needed.

Once the salt is worked down into all of the cracks it just stays there working for years.

Plus sides:

CHEAP
Actually works
Totally safe

Problems:

Awful to deal with for that first treatment time - it gets everywhere.
Tends to draw humidity out of the air and leave the floors damp
Could damage your floor, but most carpets are synthetic and it should not matter.
Can NOT be used outside. It will kill plants and make soil sterile for years.

It was and IS WAY worth it to me

 

[MyKidLuvsGreenEgz]

Now that we have a dog, that's good info. Thanks.

I thought I saw a flea the other day. HOPE HOPE HOPE not!

 

[savingdogs]

I'm a big fan of Frontline Plus. I have used salt before, worked okay for me, not great, but you can use DE if you are careful about breathing the fumes, and that is known to work pretty well. I am also opposed to pesticides but there is a time and place for their use. When you have a flea infestation you need to use them wisely, and then take steps next time to not have the problem, that is why I suggest people have the vet explain to them how to get rid of fleas, so they have instructions on the products they purchase. If people have a light case of fleas, they can sometimes do a real real deep cleaning and vacuuming especially around the baseboards of the home, and wash all the dog/cat bedding and spray outdoor areas all at the same time,and then repeat the process two weeks later when the fleas hatch two weeks later, and not have to use pesticides in the house, but the idea is to use them correctly and then prevent the re-infestation. The ingredients in Frontline (and Advantage) are not dangerous to humans and mammals. I mean, we can't drink it or anything.......but compared to pesticides, they are a different product. Some animals are allergic to it (I've seen allergies to Advantage only) and I NEVER EVER would recommend the product "Advantix" as it is highly toxic to cats. If people get confused and put their dog product on their cat the cat could die. When I worked for vets I refused to recommend that product after seeing a kitty die that way. Hartz makes a pour on flea product also that is lethal for cats, so when you recommend flea products for CATS you need to make sure they are not the el cheapo stuff from the feed store, and to always use cat products only on cats. Okay, I'll get off my soapbox now.

Sorry I didn't get those photos posted, we have had company and they have all been using the "good" computer so I haven't been able to get to my photo moving projects.

We did get our RV trailer moved up to the spot we have always wanted it to be in, it was a tricky thing to move it and it took three guys and a lot of backing up and going forward. Now I need to clean it up! We still have our guests however, my hubby's oldest friend and his three boys, and my two sons of course, so we have no lack of testosterone. Other than extra dishes to wash, it has been nice having company. The twins are seven and the older son is 14, and Trouble is 15, so they hang out. The twins are really enjoying the animals and we have a trampoline. This is the same family that adopted Moxie Chicken, so she is here with them. She keeps looking at her person with a worried expression. I told him, she is trying to tell you, "Watch out, they GIVE AWAY dogs here, and I could end up going home with the WRONG family!" She keeps sneaking out to his vehicle and wanting to wait, taking a nap on the front seat. Our feelings would be hurt except we realize we made the right choice for her.

 

[savingdogs]

I'm a big fan of Frontline Plus. I have used salt before, worked okay for me, not great, but you can use DE if you are careful about breathing the fumes, and that is known to work pretty well. I am also opposed to pesticides but there is a time and place for their use. When you have a flea infestation you need to use them wisely, and then take steps next time to not have the problem, that is why I suggest people have the vet explain to them how to get rid of fleas, so they have instructions on the products they purchase. If people have a light case of fleas, they can sometimes do a real real deep cleaning and vacuuming especially around the baseboards of the home, and wash all the dog/cat bedding and spray outdoor areas all at the same time,and then repeat the process two weeks later when the fleas hatch two weeks later, and not have to use pesticides in the house, but the idea is to use them correctly and then prevent the re-infestation. The ingredients in Frontline (and Advantage) are not dangerous to humans and mammals. I mean, we can't drink it or anything.......but compared to pesticides, they are a different product. Some animals are allergic to it (I've seen allergies to Advantage only) and I NEVER EVER would recommend the product "Advantix" as it is highly toxic to cats. If people get confused and put their dog product on their cat the cat could die. When I worked for vets I refused to recommend that product after seeing a kitty die that way. Hartz makes a pour on flea product also that is lethal for cats, so when you recommend flea products for CATS you need to make sure they are not the el cheapo stuff from the feed store, and to always use cat products only on cats. Okay, I'll get off my soapbox now.

Sorry I didn't get those photos posted, we have had company and they have all been using the "good" computer so I haven't been able to get to my photo moving projects.

We did get our RV trailer moved up to the spot we have always wanted it to be in, it was a tricky thing to move it and it took three guys and a lot of backing up and going forward. Now I need to clean it up! We still have our guests however, my hubby's oldest friend and his three boys, and my two sons of course, so we have no lack of testosterone. Other than extra dishes to wash, it has been nice having company. The twins are seven and the older son is 14, and Trouble is 15, so they hang out. The twins are really enjoying the animals and we have a trampoline. This is the same family that adopted Moxie Chicken, so she is here with them. She keeps looking at her person with a worried expression. I told him, she is trying to tell you, "Watch out, they GIVE AWAY dogs here, and I could end up going home with the WRONG family!" She keeps sneaking out to his vehicle and wanting to wait, taking a nap on the front seat. Our feelings would be hurt except we realize we made the right choice for her.

 

[ohiofarmgirl]

we also use a product called Knock Out for the house - totally works. and the best part - its not like a flea bomb... you dont have to evacuate the house.

you can do one room at a time. get all the critters out of one room, spray it on the carpet, wait until its completely dry, then vacuum. then shuffle everyone to another room, spray, dry, vacuum.. shuffle until the house is done.

the only down side is that you cant have birds in the house. at first i thought, "thats totally stupid who would have birds in their house?" HA! we had a full incubator, chicks in the brooder, and at the time we wanted to treat the house we had a turkey in the bathtub!!! ha ha ha ha

so. ahem. anyway. now we have to wait until these chicks are outside before we treat the house again. i'm not a fan of pesticides but none of the other natural treatments worked at all. and our Little Mo was having a terrible flea reaction. i'd rather use some pesticides then keep giving him long acting steroids.

so we treated the house the same day we spotted everyone....and as i said on the herds site - we use Comfortis for the dogs. its a chewable, monthly treatment and really really works well. except... none of the dogs is suckered into the "chewable" thing - they all either eat around it or spit it out. we have to get the tabs down them with a LOT of peanut butter. we all end up sticky.

 

[abifae]

I'm a big fan of Frontline Plus.

That's what my last two vets recommended. They said just about anything else would make kitties very ill.

Anytime I've lived where Amira is allowed outside, she gets treated for fleas, just in case. Outside, outside. Not just sitting on the patio with me lol.

 

[savingdogs]

Advantage is fine for cats, it is Advantix that is not. But those two names are similar.....

 

[sunsaver]

Inside the house SALT is my flea cure.

We had a cat that brought fleas into the house when we had two babies at the time. I was VERY afraid of spraying anything and did my research.

Salt kills the larva of the flea much like salting a slug on a microscopic level. It works its way down into the carpet pad, furniture cracks and even the cracks of my old hardwood floors. (Yes I know... I am evil). You just use plain cheap salt with no iodine and race through the house like the sandman. When first applied leave it as long as you can possibly stand it walking it into the carpets and brooming it all around. (24 hours +) Then vacuum well and reapply as needed.

Once the salt is worked down into all of the cracks it just stays there working for years.

Plus sides:

CHEAP
Actually works
Totally safe

Problems:

Awful to deal with for that first treatment time - it gets everywhere.
Tends to draw humidity out of the air and leave the floors damp
Could damage your floor, but most carpets are synthetic and it should not matter.
Can NOT be used outside. It will kill plants and make soil sterile for years.

It was and IS WAY worth it to me

I tried salt, FF. Covered all of my old pine flooring with it and swept it into the cracks. Didn't even slow them down. I had Superfleas! Whatever this miracle chemical is, i wish everyone had access to it. It didn't seem to bother me or my cats at all, and all fleas were gone in about 12 hours. We've been flea free for two years now. I don't understand why this stuff is so top secret. It should be on the market by now. I can only think that they are saving it for a major plague of some kind, or that is has some long-term health risk or birth defect risk.