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Flea & Tick Preventative


chrisandgabe
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We pulled a pretty engorged tick off Gabe tonight, and I pull ticks off pretty regularly, but it's hard to get them all before they bite. I'm also concerned that I've found some flea dirt on him.

 

Frontline is clearly not working.

 

He tested positive for lyme disease about a month and a half ago, and finished the 4 weeks of doxy about a week or so before he was attacked by another dog (and started 2 weeks of clavamox). I'm giving him some probiotics to help him get through the insane amount of abx he's been on lately, and his poop has stayed pretty normal looking throughout all of this, which I'm happy about.

 

My biggest issue is- what can I use to repel the ticks? I'm open to any suggestions, I just want to know what people have had success with. I'm hoping they'll die soon, but we've already had some cooler nights (mid 30s or so) and they're still an issue.

 

Apologies if this has been discussed elsewhere, I tried searching a few times with no success.

 

 

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I have found Seresto collars to be very effective although I must admit my dogs' exposure to ticks tends to be minimal.

 

While Seresto is also supposed to be effective against fleas, those are not usually an issue for us and so I can't really comment on that. With older Sereno collars in place two years ago, they were still effective against ticks when no longer effective against fleas.

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I've also had great luck with the Seresto collars on the dogs who wear them (the youngsters, who spend a lot of time chewing on each others' necks don't wear them, nor does the dog who sleeps up against me in bed (per the DEFRA warning about not being in close contact with the collar myself). The dogs who don't have the collars are given Nexgard, which has also worked quite well. The cats (indoor only) are on Sentinel. We have boarding dogs that share some of our yard space, so fleas are always a possibility (and sometimes can be a problem) and at least one of the pastures and much of the woods here are heavily tick infested. I haven't found ticks on anyone, except myself.

 

There's also a new product, Bravecto, that people are using with success. It lasts for more than a month, so if you don't want to have to remember a monthly oral treatment (Nexgard) and don't want to use a Seresto collar, then it's another option for you.

 

For me, with multiple dogs, all of these options are rather expensive up front, but you can get a Seresto collar for less than $50, and they last for 7 months or so. I've had some people tell me that they think they lose effectiveness close to the end of the life cycle, but for one dog, you wouldn't be spending a great deal if you replaced the collar every 6 months.

 

J.

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It's good to know people use the seresto collars with success. There was a thread in Tick-L recently that seemed very anti-seresto on my (quick) reading, mostly due to concerns about chemical exposure. Gabe does sleep with us, but he's above the covers and we are under- is it still a risk to be in that close contact or is it just the skin-to-collar exposure to limit?

 

I'm so hesitant to give Nexguard. Our last dog died of liver failure shortly after the second dose of Nexguard. I have no reason to believe the Nexguard caused it, but it was the only big change around that time. I know someone who knows someone whose poodle died of something called lobular necrotizing hepatitis, which also seems plausible for what happened to our doodle, and the timing of the Nexguard is just a fluke, but I can't quite shake that fear.

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Honestly, all of the tick chemicals scare the bejesus outta me, both for my dogs and myself.

 

But Lyme disease also scares me and I've already had one dog have it (the same year she'd gotten the vax) and another who tests positive, even though she never showed symptoms, and I was finding multiple deer ticks on my dogs daily, just from being in my yard.

 

Tea, I put the collars on in April I think it was, and they're supposed to last for 8 months. I won't get new ones ones till spring, but I'm in the northeast, where winter temps usually keep the tick populations down, at least for the last few bitterly cold years.

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Yeah, I do not like putting chemicals on the dogs. It gets way below zero here in winter. So of course ticks and fleas are not there.

 

I used collars this year and spray my dog yard. But with tall grass I did have two dogs get ticks in early summer. Just want to know what others use and any side effects.

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I don't like chemicals on the dogs either, but the constant worry about TBDs and the number of people/animals I know who have been diagnosed with Lyme, RMSF, and Ehrlichiosis makes the chemical application the lesser of the evils as far as I'm concerned. At least the chemicals I'm using now actually work! With Frontline and similar products, I was just putting stuff on my dogs and cats and essentially throwing money down the drain.

 

One of my dogs who sleeps on the bed wears a Seresto collar. But he sleeps toward the foot of the bed and isn't in direct contact with me. The other dog does get under the covers and is in contact with me, so she doesn't wear a collar.

 

I put some of the collars on in spring, others later. For me it was a matter of being able to spend X amount each time to buy them (while also buying the other two products), so I staggered purchases. If we have the hard winter being predicted I may give everyone a break over the winter. Interestingly, the sheep were so full of ticks in April when they were shorn that we ended up buying a spot on insecticide for them. I no longer see ticks on them (at least nothing obvious--I don't pick through the wool), and I rarely get a tick on me when I walk in that back pasture, and it used to be that if you stepped through the gate and headed up the path, you'd be guaranteed a couple at the very least. So I wonder if some of the apparent success of the chemicals I'm using on the dogs is actually the result of the success of the stuff we used on the sheep....

 

J.

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I use Vectra 3D which works well - as far as I have been able to tell for the past 6 months. I have gone through many of the alternatives, some worked, some didn't. IMHO I think effectiveness can be affected by many factors - individual dog body chemistry, the local population of ticks (density and resistance), the time of year, etc.

 

With regard to Seresto: the collars didn't work on my dogs. I was pulling engorged ticks off my dogs 3 weeks after putting them on, and by that time, they should have been effective since the label says it takes a couple of weeks for full effectiveness. A friend of mine had the same problem.

 

I live in about Zone 6-7 (gardener's lingo). We will usually have 2-3 months where it is below freezing at night. I have found ticks on my dogs in February. I try to reduce use of tick repellent in the winter months, but when I find ticks, I re-apply.

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One observation and one question for Julie.

 

1) I traveled from Utah (where we have essentially NO flea or tick problems) to Illinois recently. Because my dogs have always picked up either fleas or more often ticks on this trip, I put Frontline on them for two months before we left. I was very very careful about where we walked - no woods, no tall grass, no fairgrounds "off path" walks. I also used an essential oil repellent spray on two occasions when I thought they might wander a bit too far off the "safe" path. All seemed well until we got home (4 days after leaving IL) - one dog started scratching (he normally doesn't). I looked and looked and looked, but didn't find much. Eventually we (my vet and I) found ONE "stick tight" flea on him. So Frontline may or may not have been working. Then I started seeing what I thought was flea dirt on his bed (put a light colored sheet on it so I could find anything that showed up). THEN with my magnifying lens, and eventually after a second (different) vet visit, AND the help of a biologist friend with a dissecting microscope - we identified mites. (I don't think Frontline is supposed to repel or kill mites....) That was my thought all along. That's not to say it's 100% certain that the mites are causing the scratching - but I have to believe they are. My other dog has had a few, though curiously isn't scratching much at all. So, after several Mycodex baths (with pyrethrins, which aren't totally benign either, but at least it's all external) and no success - I've just dosed them both with Revolution. I hate hate hate that stuff (and all the rest) - but something has to kill these little buggers. Here's hoping. Vet recommended every two weeks for three doses. I'm hoping two will do it.

 

2) Julie: re the Seresto collar - I looked into this awhile back, after one dermatologist vet recommended it as the least harmful (for a dog with some minor immune issues). When I read the part about not sleeping with the dog wearing it, I declined (this one insists on lying right up next to me). Then someone else said they were using it, but taking it off at night. Does that make sense??? If so, it might be my next trip's attempt.

 

Or maybe I just won't ever leave Utah again.

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Visiting northern CA I was using Frontline, and was told that they've been seeing a lot of resistance to Frontline (not sure if that was tick or fleas or both), but some people were switching to Advantix.

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Frontline hasn't worked here in 2 or 3 years. Seresto collars only work for about 5 month down here, but they still work better than anything else on the market. We are starting to see Comfortis not working for a full month.

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Diane,

I really don't know the answer to your question. If they're handling the collar to take it off every night I wonder if they're not getting greater exposure than just leaving it on. I don't remove it from my one dog and he does rub all over me as soon as my alarm goes off in the morning, but I think the issue is sustained contact with the collar. In reality the dog who sleeps under the covers generally touches me with her back, so maybe it wouldn't matter. I have had problems with atopic contact dermatitis since my college years (specifically reacting to disinfectants, including bleach, and insecticidal dips) and so far the contact I have with my dogs wearing the Seresto collars has not bothered me. Sometimes if I'm watching a movie, Pip will get in my lap. Obviously that's contact for more than 45 minutes (or whatever it was DEFRA said) and I've had no detectable issues. FWIW.

 

J.

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Visiting northern CA I was using Frontline, and was told that they've been seeing a lot of resistance to Frontline (not sure if that was tick or fleas or both), but some people were switching to Advantix.

Frontline and Advantage/Advantix are virtually useless for anyone I know around here - the SF Bay area. I use Trifexis and stay out of the tall grass in summer and fall.

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Star's ortho vet here in North Dakota had us switch to Parastar Plus last March. He said he had been seeing a lot of tick born diseases in other patients and said this was suppose to be the best and is also safe for Border Collies. He said it was important to apply every 30 days.

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Advantix worked well for my dogs last year. Had Frontline tritak donated to my SAR team this year and that worked, too. Applied the last one in August and found fleas on the dogs the end of Sept. So I grabbed some PetArmor singles because I didn't want to buy a 3-4 pack of the more expensive stuff. Worked for three weeks :/ then the dogs started biting at themselves again and sure enough, I found a flea. So now back to Advantix. Because the Kolt seemed a bit bothered by the Frontline - rubbing his back off and on for several hours after application. No reaction at all from either dog to Advantix. I also like the fact that it repels the creepy crawlies as well as kills them. At least it still does in this area.

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I haven't tried the collar because we also have 2 cats and Billy gets pretty close to them. Plus he loves to snuggle. Frontline Plus isn't working. Well I don't know that it isn't. It doesn't repel. The ticks have to bite, then they die. The cats are treated too. I tick check everyone every day and I pull off small ticks almost every day. Too small for the tick twister (which works great for removing the larger ones). It's an uphill battle. And only this time of year. Just because animals test positive, doesn't mean they have the disease. Just the antibodies. If you haven't already, check out the Tick Resource Centers website.. http://www.tickencounter.org/. Has some great information.

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Just because animals test positive, doesn't mean they have the disease. Just the antibodies. If you haven't already, check out the Tick Resource Centers website.. http://www.tickencounter.org/. Has some great information.

I'll check them out. That does make sense about the antibodies vs. disease. I was a little surprised the vet wanted to treat him with no signs of illness, but that's what the recommendation was. I asked for bloodwork shortly after we adopted him, just to make sure everything was okay, and that's how we ended up with a lyme test. I might try and go with Vectra. The vet recommended Nexguard, but I think I'm too freaked out by it.

 

I wish there was just an easy answer to the best and safest way to take care of my dog.

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Just because animals test positive, doesn't mean they have the disease. Just the antibodies.

 

What the vet told me was it meant exposure and that the dog may have cleared it by herself without getting sick from it. But the antibodies will always be there and so she'll always test positive. That's the real downside, never being able to know if they've been re-exposed unless they actually show symptoms.

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What the vet told me was it meant exposure and that the dog may have cleared it by herself without getting sick from it. But the antibodies will always be there and so she'll always test positive. That's the real downside, never being able to know if they've been re-exposed unless they actually show symptoms.

Yeah- plus he was living with another family for 2 years, so who knows if he was symptomatic at some point and treated? My vet recommended Nexguard, or Advantage, but said that's not for ticks. I'm more concerned about ticks than fleas. The hard part is, we don't spend a lot of time in tall grass, and stay on the trails whenever we're in the woods. We just gave Gabe a bath, and pulled off 3 or 4 more ticks (not engorged). I use the Petco natural flea and tick shampoo, which we had a lot of success with on our last dog, so hopefully this cuts it down a little until we find a good alternative. I'm not against using chemicals, but in the absence of a good chemical option right now, we'll try something we've used with some success that also smells good.

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Advantage doesn't cover ticks but Advantix does. I am in western NY and Advantix is all I have used for years on dogs and it works. Never any ticks except last May when I somehow forgot to dose it for the first time that year. Two days later I picked up a box and not a tick since. I use advantage on the cats and it works great also.

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