# Do your Chi's all get a flea control



## Ivy's mom (Feb 15, 2008)

Ok......now for my next question. If your dogs are basically indoors, except for going potty outdoors, do you use a flea control, and if so, what brand and at what age.

Lori


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## DlTobin (May 15, 2007)

yes I do. and let me tell you why.....Flea come in on their own.....You can bring them in just off your pants....Cedar bark...they LOVE that people put it along the sides of their houses in Flower beds...Honey I swear I have seen one I was looking out a window and it jump in the screen.
My dogs only go out when I take them....and yes....they get fleas.
I buy what the vet carries I will never buy crappy cheap stuff like at a pet store or grocery store I did once ....NEVER again! I put it on one of my cats and she lost a patch of fur about the size of a softballl and it never grew back!
Best Best bet call your vet....Your vet I am sure sells something up here...I think its advantage....or program.....


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## Harley Ridin Chopper (Nov 8, 2007)

I don't put anything on my pups that they don't need. If I see a flea I will apply one application to them and that is it, I don't use it monthly or whatever. I have heard bad things about long term use of some of these products. But some people use them all the time and depending on where you live you might not have a choice. If you treat your lawn with a pesticide you usually will not have a flea problem, at least we don't. I have not treated Duke or Champ in almost two years and Chopper has never had treatment and none of them have fleas (which I do have to say is suprising since we had such a mild winter). Even though it is more expensive to treat my lawn I would rather to that and like Dee said it prevents them from coming in on people too.


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## Pauline Leland (Oct 9, 2006)

Boop takes a pill, Sentinel, for fleas, worms, and heartworms. It doesn't kill the fleas; it interrupts their life cycle - no baby fleas - but they can hitch a ride on her and get a few free meals. If she scratches too much, I give her a bath to drown them.


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## Ivy's mom (Feb 15, 2008)

Well...my problem is we get all of these dang neighbor cats that come into our back yard, and I know they aren't defleaed(sp) rofl!!! Soooo....I guess I should use a pesticide for the lawn and ask the vet what would I should use. We have VERY mild winters also, We had a horrible flea problem in our old house with one of our cats. My poor dautghter got soo many bites when she was little and it was aweful!!!!! The dang cat would sneak into my room and hide in my closet. Fleas are one of the main reasons I wanted to keep them indoors, but I let them go play at my mom and dads today and they LOVED it!!!!!! They never get any cats around their house. Ok......as for the lawn pestiides...how long do you have to wait until pets and kids can go out and play?? I worry about pesticides on all of their feet.

LOri


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## lisa&lily (Sep 8, 2007)

Oh yeah, I would say protect all your pets from fleas, because they can be brought in on clothing, they could get them from wild animals in the garden. (don't know about US, but in England we have little hedgehogs and rabbits who are riddled with fleas!)
If one of those blighters lays eggs either in the garden, or on the pet, it could easily be hatched in your house. And once that starts they are harder to get rid of.
So my advise would be to just put on something like Frontline and you know they are safe and flea free!


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## pompom (Oct 1, 2007)

I Use Frontline  every 3 months


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## Harley Ridin Chopper (Nov 8, 2007)

Ivy's mom said:


> Well...my problem is we get all of these dang neighbor cats that come into our back yard, and I know they aren't defleaed(sp) rofl!!! Soooo....I guess I should use a pesticide for the lawn and ask the vet what would I should use. We have VERY mild winters also, We had a horrible flea problem in our old house with one of our cats. My poor dautghter got soo many bites when she was little and it was aweful!!!!! The dang cat would sneak into my room and hide in my closet. Fleas are one of the main reasons I wanted to keep them indoors, but I let them go play at my mom and dads today and they LOVED it!!!!!! They never get any cats around their house. Ok......as for the lawn pestiides...how long do you have to wait until pets and kids can go out and play?? I worry about pesticides on all of their feet.
> 
> LOri


For us we use the granuals and put it on ourselves with a spread (LOL ourselves...yeah right I guess I should say Hubby puts it down). We try to do it in the evening and then water the lawn to water it in. Chopper as a box to use the potty in and the big dogs will just go out back (we try to do the yard in halves so if they have to go out they can). If you use a company with the liquid you just have to let it dry.


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## DlTobin (May 15, 2007)

I will tell you a *CRAZY* trick that works in your house...you wont believe me unless you try it LOL

OK get a small reading lamp....take the shade off (if it has one) so you have this like small table lamp...sit it on the floor.
Get a plate...I use and old dinner plate I got from a $1 store.
Fill the plate up with water....take dish soap..put a few drops of dish soap in the plate....
Take you finger and run it side to side in the water to mix up the soap & water.
Take the plate sit it right by the little lamp you have put on the floor.
NOW AT NIGHT when everyone is gone to bed and animals are in the room with you asleep OR in their crates and lights are turned off.....TURN ON THE LAMP!
The next morning IF you have fleas in THAT room the plate will have them! IT IS AMAZING!!
Let me tell you why it works....Fleas really dont have eyes they go for a heat source (bodyheat) that why they jump towards the light blub heat.....there is no fur to grab and they fall off into the plate....they cant jump out cuz of the soap.......CRAZY HUH? you can move the lamp around in different areas of the house and see which is the worst spot!


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## Marie (Apr 22, 2006)

We've had problems with one of our 3 chi-mixes and flea control products. My little Jasmine gets a very weird psychotic type reaction from them...can't use advantix, frontline or just about any flea shampoo that contains a pesticide (like Hartz flea shampoo). She literally starts acting like she's on a mind-altering drug...stares into space with her eyes darting around as if she's looking at objects that aren't there and becomes very clingy and frightened appearing. The reaction lasts for a good 6 hours or more. 

First couple times it happened, we didn't really make the connection because with the advantix and frontline it wasn't nearly as severe as when I gave her a flea bath with Hartz. After the 2nd flea bath though, it was very obvious there was something very wrong with her and that's when we finally realized we were dealing with some type of freaky pesticide reaction. We talked to the vet and she told us never to use any of those products on her again. So it's careful watching, frequent regular shampoos, carpet vaccuming and flea combing in our house when the warm weather rolls around. Fortunately, the only time we ever get fleas anyway (and then just a few) is every few months when our bushy one Penny goes off to the groomers and brings a few back with her. But we simply don't use any of it anymore since all 3 of our are genetically related (same father all three and 2 with the same mother)


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## ~*Jessie*~ (Aug 8, 2007)

Harley Ridin Chopper said:


> I don't put anything on my pups that they don't need. If I see a flea I will apply one application to them and that is it, I don't use it monthly or whatever. I have heard bad things about long term use of some of these products. But some people use them all the time and depending on where you live you might not have a choice. If you treat your lawn with a pesticide you usually will not have a flea problem, at least we don't. I have not treated Duke or Champ in almost two years and Chopper has never had treatment and none of them have fleas (which I do have to say is suprising since we had such a mild winter). Even though it is more expensive to treat my lawn I would rather to that and like Dee said it prevents them from coming in on people too.


This is what we do as well. We hadn't treated our dogs in over a year until we brought in our foster dog last month. We treated everyone because we found a few fleas on him when we gave him a bath.


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## Yoshismom (Jul 6, 2005)

My guys that are outside get Frontline plus but my Chis are inside only and I only put it on them if I see a flea. I had a flea infestation before relocating here and it was almost impossible to get rid of so now I am prepared;-) Thankfully I have lived here for 3 yrs and have never had any issues


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## Kioana (Mar 1, 2005)

I give my chis everything becuase i work in a vet with all types of sick animals , i don't take chances.


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## Ivy's mom (Feb 15, 2008)

Yoshismom said:


> My guys that are outside get Frontline plus but my Chis are inside only and I only put it on them if I see a flea. I had a flea infestation before relocating here and it was almost impossible to get rid of so now I am prepared;-) Thankfully I have lived here for 3 yrs and have never had any issues


Ok..soooo, do you take them out for walks etc. That is what I wonder. My dogs have always been strickly indoors also, but I worry that they will bring in fleas from walks. I have never talken them outside, exept for today to see what they would do outdoors. Of course they loved it.

Lori


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## Ivy's mom (Feb 15, 2008)

pompom said:


> I Use Frontline  every 3 months


Hmmmm....it says to use it every month. This is the fronline plus. We don't have ANY ticks so I guess I could do a 3 month treatment also right?

Lori


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## Katie (Apr 9, 2005)

Chloe had a really scary neurological reaction to Advantix in the past and after reading online about a bunch of horror stories and deaths from pesticides I stopped using flea treatments. Thankfully we haven't seen any fleas in years but if I had to I'd probably try an all natural approach first and if that didn't work I'd get the pesticides if I had to. They do go outside and for walks and haven't brought any home yet.


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## Pauline Leland (Oct 9, 2006)

What a coincidence. I was just reading on a news site, BBC, that there appears to be a connection between pesticides, both insecticides and herbicides, and Parkinsons. Oh joy!


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## Rah (May 3, 2007)

I stopped treating Baby for fleas over the winter, and the vet said that a lot of people do that too. I'll probably start her up again when it gets warmer and the flies start appearing


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## Yoshismom (Jul 6, 2005)

I have read all of those horror stories about flea treatments as well and even the Frontlines, Advantage, and Advantix at vets office can cause a reaction in some but not all and it is usually an allergic reaction? This is another reason why I do not put it on my little ones unless absolutely necessary:-( I had a cat that I tried Frontline on one time and he lost the fur in the spot where i put the frontline on him. I will however use Frontline on them if I see a flea. I have used it on Yoshi in the past before we moved but I havent had to do so on Chibi yet. 

Ivy...I only put them on the ground when we are out and I know they have to potty other than that they use pads. You can however bring fleas as well as parvo and many other things in on your feet and pants. Just make sure that you check often for fleas and the first sign of one then I would treat. You do not necessarily have to use the Flea products. There are natural flea remedies out there that are harmless. You can google "Natural Flea repellents and products" and see what you can come up with. I have tried the light, pan and soap thing and that has not ever worked for me, but it may be just me:-( Frontline and all of the others are still pesticides that get in your pets system, but they are still safer than the products you can buy at the pet stores....NEVER use things like the Biospot and the cheaper stuff you can find at Walmart and pets stores. If you google the name brands of these products you will find tons of horror stories about peoples pets dying from these products:-(


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## Stephy (Aug 29, 2007)

We do not use any flea control on any of the dogs. If i do see a flea I give them all baths (soooo much fun with 4 of them), and wash thier bedding and spray it down with a flea treatment spray. I would rather not put it on thier skin. in 2 years of having kujo he has only had a flea on him maybe 3 times. And we spend plenty of time outside in the summer . It's a personal choice. If i saw more fleas on them I would use something like frontline.


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## Jangles021204 (Sep 20, 2006)

I use Frontline Plus when needed, but I avoid it if I can. I've only found a flea on Beau twice in 3 years, and both times were after bringing in an infested stray animal. I'm going to see if I can get by without using any at all this summer.

We do spend a lot of time outside, but I have some natural spray that is supposed to repel fleas and other insects, so I will spray that on Beau before we go out, and I will also comb him with a flea comb before coming back in. I think I might put some Boric Acid on the carpets soon too, just as a precaution. And I vaccuum the floors and wash his bedding often anyway. So I'll see how it goes.


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## kimmiek915 (Oct 4, 2005)

I use the Ark Naturals Neem Protect Spray, which is all natural and doesn't have any harsh chemicals in it. It's good for preventing ticks and fleas. I use it on them maybe once a month, and I've had no problems. If you take your baby out everyday, maybe you could try this product and just use it more often. Just a thought.


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## Maleighchi (Jan 6, 2008)

I've always used Biospot on my guys, but usually only when I have too. We've not had any fleas and only 1 tick that I think just got caught in my mix pup's long hair.


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## Yoshismom (Jul 6, 2005)

Willowanne said:


> I've always used Biospot on my guys, but usually only when I have too. We've not had any fleas and only 1 tick that I think just got caught in my mix pup's long hair.


Not to scare you but Biospot is one of the worst flea products out there. If you google it you will find all kinds of horror stories on this product as well as many other flea products sold in pet stores and places like Walmart, Target, etc... I know someone personally that both of her dogs died due to using this product. They may be doing fine on it now but over a long period or process or using more than once could change that. Please switch to something safer


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## Keeffer (Feb 26, 2008)

I'm alllergic for fleas, they ALWAYS bite me instead of the dogs. About 3 years ago we had so many fleas inside, it wasn't fun anymore. The dog and cat had flea collars, but that didn't work at all. So we used frontline and other stuff for in the house and after 2 months all fleas were gone. Now we only have 2 dogs, a dutch sheperd and Keeffer. We us Frontline for the sheperd, but I use Advocate for Keeffer. I don't treat him every month, that isn't necessary. I walk him 3 or 4 times a day and he loves really dirty places but I never saw one flea on him. I treated him yesterday though, 'cause tomorrow we'll go to his breeder to cuddle his new sisters and brother (tiny puppys, i love it) and though I didn't see any fleas on him, doesn't mean he doesn't have them. And in 2 weeks he'll be having his first show, now he can't get any fleas from the other dogs over there.


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## ~Kari's*4*Chis~ (Sep 7, 2004)

This is what I use..Diatomaceous Earth! It is ALL natural and it WORKS!!

http://www.ghorganics.com/DiatomaceousEarth.html


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## Jangles021204 (Sep 20, 2006)

I was just going out to buy some DE today!  I may also get some nematodes.


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## bettygrable (May 17, 2008)

We use Revolution, started at 8 weeks for weight-appropriate.


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## catalat (Apr 21, 2008)

we use advantage or advantage multi...

we live out in the country so it is important to use preventative here... flea eggs instantaneously pupate and jump onto dogs. They sense CO2 and vibrations....once you get fleas in the house it is no good. their eggs can live in the environment in certain case for 200 days! so that means they can reinfest your dog in the house long after the adults on the body die off.....yuck!


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## hallow91 (May 4, 2008)

Duke gets Frontline. My in-laws many years ago got an infestation. The grown up cat (Mathew) got so covered in them they had to take him for a dip treatment. His system was so drained from the fleas that he had a heart attack and died. It was the first time I ever saw my husband then boyfriend cry. That was his favorite friend in the whole world. I would rather take precautions now instead of after. Just how we are choosing to do it. Maybe in other parts fleas and tics aren't so abundant. Duke has already had one treatment. He didn't even notice. Hope you get your answers. Ginger and Duke


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## morningsting (May 16, 2008)

i don't give my dogs a flea treatment at all because they don't need one. we don't live in an area where there's a lot of wild animals. i've never had a problem with fleas here, so i find it pointless to give them a flea treatment monthly. however, when we lived in cali, that was a completly different story! my chi would get fleas all the time&we were constantly giving her flea treatments. we used advantage&that worked very well. unfortunately when we lived in cali the fleas got so bad we had to bug bomb our house!

-amy


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## dahlia (Aug 16, 2005)

We have a big flea problem in southern California because it never gets cold enough to kill them off. Lucy goes to dog parks and plays with her friends in the grass near the beach so I have to use something. I use Frontline when it gets really warm out, but I only use half a dose. If I use the whole tube, it's too much and just dries on her fur. Seems to work fine.


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## Chigang (May 15, 2007)

I have never had a problem with fleas before, untill 2 weeks ago when I found some on Bella, you could see them moving on her as she as such a short coat, I used stronghold on them, but I have to bomb the house today as I am being eaten alive, it so horrible.


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## Krista (Dec 29, 2005)

I don't give anything to Yoshi that will kill fleas. If it kills fleas, it's some sort of poison, and that simply can't be good for a dog to have on or in their body no matter what anyone says. She is outside a lot, and never gets flea. We don't really get them around here so at least I'm not forced to give her something like that ^_^


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## Maleighchi (Jan 6, 2008)

What do you treat your lawn with?



Harley Ridin Chopper said:


> I don't put anything on my pups that they don't need. If I see a flea I will apply one application to them and that is it, I don't use it monthly or whatever. I have heard bad things about long term use of some of these products. But some people use them all the time and depending on where you live you might not have a choice. If you treat your lawn with a pesticide you usually will not have a flea problem, at least we don't. I have not treated Duke or Champ in almost two years and Chopper has never had treatment and none of them have fleas (which I do have to say is suprising since we had such a mild winter). Even though it is more expensive to treat my lawn I would rather to that and like Dee said it prevents them from coming in on people too.


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## Maleighchi (Jan 6, 2008)

i am also thinking of using some sort of natural oils. During the summer the ticks can be horrible up here (mosquitos too). Not sure about fleas..but I'd rather be safe than sorry cause their are alot of dogs in my neighborhood.

http://www.onlynaturalpet.com/products/Only-Natural-Pet-Herbal-Defense-Spray/999034.aspx


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## tazruby (Jan 2, 2006)

Harley Ridin Chopper said:


> I don't put anything on my pups that they don't need. If I see a flea I will apply one application to them and that is it, I don't use it monthly or whatever. I have heard bad things about long term use of some of these products. But some people use them all the time and depending on where you live you might not have a choice. If you treat your lawn with a pesticide you usually will not have a flea problem, at least we don't. I have not treated Duke or Champ in almost two years and Chopper has never had treatment and none of them have fleas (which I do have to say is suprising since we had such a mild winter). Even though it is more expensive to treat my lawn I would rather to that and like Dee said it prevents them from coming in on people too.


totally totally our house Taz and Ruby have never had fleas. I had to bug bomb our home this past weekend because our cat had them. I will only use flea puppy shampoo if i see a flea on them. We spray out side and don't seem to have a problem with the litter boogers


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## CaliChi1121 (May 18, 2008)

I live in northern california, and it definitely is harder to get rid of fleas around here. My dogs are both indoor/outdoor depending on the weather. They both go with me to the barn, dog park, pretty much everywhere. I don't use flea drops..had bad reactions from both dogs. My bigger 40pnd mix has skin allergies anyway so anytime I put it on his skin drys and flakes. My chui gets a similar reaction as someone I read before on here, that kind of dazed and confused reaction. Chemical allergy I suppose? I'm meticulous in keeping the outside of the house clean..which I found lead to the problem we had before. Between sweeping corners, damp areas, keeping the grass cut ect. DE works wonders as well! If I see flea's on them they get a puppy flea shampoo bath and they seem to do fine. The previous flea problem at the other house was so bad I had to get my bigger one flea dipped, his hair started to fall off. Bad bad stuff!...but when their so bad you have to get youre house bombed dogs gotta be flea free to!


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## Kristin (Nov 12, 2004)

We get fleas super bad around here since we live so close to the wooded area. We got Boss when he was just 5wks so I just kept him in doors all the time. Once he was allowed outside (had all his puppy shots) though I started using Hartz on him and it works great. We haven't had a flea problem yet.


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## Dixie's mom (Jan 3, 2007)

Dixie uses Revolution for fleas, and heartworms ! I am waiting on the six month supply now !


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## Ivy's mom (Feb 15, 2008)

I am just torn on what to do. I bought the frontline plus but still haven't put any on the girls. We have been treating our lawn, and I have been treating our cat with the frontline, hoping that will help with the dogs not get fleas. We live in a VERY mild area also, so we don't get the freeze that kills the fleas.I am sooo worried we will get a ton of them in our new house like we did in our last, but that was from our cat. I check the dogs all of the time, and sooo far we haven't had any, but I'm afraid once I find them on the girls they will start infesting our house as well. arrrrrgggg

Lori


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## arica0523 (May 21, 2008)

I use advantix. You can use it as early as 7 weeks of age. Mine don't go out often but I am in an apartment and there are a lot of stray cats around. I would rather prevent fleas then deal with trying to get rid of them later.


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## Jangles021204 (Sep 20, 2006)

Ivy's Mom, maybe something like Fleabusters could be your answer. :dontknow: One application to your floors ought to last you a good year. Honestly though, I think sometimes the topical flea treatments are necessary, whether we like to use them or not. It is not the worst thing that you could do, and having fleas is not good either. :-? Really, there is no one right answer.

If you do decide to use the Frontline, you could try splitting one application between your two chis, and going longer than one month between applications, and then wait and see if that is going to be enough to control the fleas. If not, apply it per instructions.


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## Ivy's mom (Feb 15, 2008)

Thanks, that flea busters looks very interesting, and we have one in the next town. I don't have any fleas right now, but I don't want to wait until it is too late to control. I'm a freak when it comes to fleas and ants. I HATE with a passion both of those nasty little creatures lol!! You know..I was wondering about splitting in half and treating both the girls. I mean come on, if the stuff goes up to a 20 lb dog, than why on earth would yoou need the same amount on a 2 and 3 lb dog, kwim???? i think I might try it. I sure hope they don;t get any reaction. One they are treated it would be hard to reverse the damage with something that goes into their bloodstream, but like I said I wory about them picking up fleas when I take them out for walks.

Lori




Jangles021204 said:


> Ivy's Mom, maybe something like Fleabusters could be your answer. :dontknow: One application to your floors ought to last you a good year. Honestly though, I think sometimes the topical flea treatments are necessary, whether we like to use them or not. It is not the worst thing that you could do, and having fleas is not good either. :-? Really, there is no one right answer.
> 
> If you do decide to use the Frontline, you could try splitting one application between your two chis, and going longer than one month between applications, and then wait and see if that is going to be enough to control the fleas. If not, apply it per instructions.


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## Jangles021204 (Sep 20, 2006)

Ivy's mom said:


> You know..I was wondering about splitting in half and treating both the girls. I mean come on, if the stuff goes up to a 20 lb dog, than why on earth would yoou need the same amount on a 2 and 3 lb dog, kwim???? i think I might try it.
> Lori


Yeah, I have always thought that a whole application was unnecessary for a 3 lb. chi like I have, if it can also be used on a 20 lb dog.  And if fleas are your main concern, and not ticks, then I *think* you can wait as long as 3 months between doses. Maybe someone else can confirm that.


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## Ivy's mom (Feb 15, 2008)

Jangles021204 said:


> Yeah, I have always thought that a whole application was unnecessary for a 3 lb. chi like I have, if it can also be used on a 20 lb dog.  And if fleas are your main concern, and not ticks, then I *think* you can wait as long as 3 months between doses. Maybe someone else can confirm that.


Exaclty....Yep, ticks aren't really an issue. We don't have them in my yard, but DH Choc lab gets them when He takes her up to our cabin, but she gets treated with the frontline plus, but you never know if any could fall off in our yard when he lets her out there, so that is what I bought the "plus" We're going up to the cabin in a few weeks and the chi's are coming, but they don't go outside at all when we are there.

Lori


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