We just adopted a 6 month old puppy and she is infested with fleas. I have given her flea baths, flea sprays, and Frontline but nothing is working. We don't have a whole lot to spend and I need some ideas on how to get rid of the fleas. Has anyone used Capstar? Does it work? I have read that after 24 hours, the fleas could come back.
Any other suggestions would be helpful. Thanks!
You GOTTA treat the pet AND the home and the pet's bedding... ALL at the same time. And the outdoors if the pet is outdoors.
I have used the diatomaceous powder... it worked for us.
I had a roommate that had a dog who got fleas. the only thing that got rid of the fleas was sentinel (http://www.sentinelpet.com/index.html) - it is heart worm and flea medication in one. Topical flea medication kills the fleas/eggs on the dog but not the eggs/larvae that are in your carpet, bedding etc. Sentinel works by using an insect development inhibitor that breaks the flea life cycle by inhibiting egg development. Thus when the flea bites that dog they become “sterile” so all the fleas in the house that bit the dog eventually die off without the use of foggers in the house.
My dog has used it for 9 years and we have never had a flea issue. I LOVE this product!
I have used Capstar, in conjunction with a number of other products. Capstar kills all adult fleas on the animal for 24 hours. You can give a repeat dose, I believe, but I would follow the label directions.
The key to getting rid of fleas is to break the cycle. Killing the adult fleas (which generally the dips and directly-on-the-animal-sprays and baths will do) helps, but there are probably millions of flea eggs hanging around waiting to hatch.
Use Frontline Plus (not the regular Frontline, but the Frontline Plus)--it kills the fleas (and also ticks, I believe) and prevents the fleas from laying eggs that will hatch (I'm not sure it if it prevents the eggs from being laid or just prevents them from hatching).
You also need to eradicate fleas in the environment. On the day you decide to declare war, do a flea bath or dip or give Capstar. After the animal is dry, apply Frontline Plus (please read label directions for all of these--if you use it improperly, you could poison the dog). Strip all the dogs bedding and wash in hot water and dry in the drier. Buy an new flea collar (any brand should do), activate it (most are activated by stretching it a bit, I think) and cut a hunk off and put it in the vaccumm. The immediately vacuum the whole house, paying particular care to the areas where the dog has spent the most time. Fleas like carpet but will also hide other places (cracks between hardwood floor, etc.). Then, spray all the apholstery (sp) with Adams Flea Spray (when you spray, lock the dog in safe place, such as the garage or bathroom, and crack the window and block the door with a towel from the outside, so the spray doesn't get to the dog (this is probably a little bit of overkill on my part, in terms of worrying about the dog, but...), and evacuate the rest of the family for a few hours.
Be absolutely diligent about vacuuming, daily if possible, for the next several weeks, and use the spray again if needed. Use Frontline Plus monthly (or every six weeks, whatever the label reads) for prevention, or ask your vet about other options. We have ordered our Frontline from www.petshed.com, which is an Australian company, but has the cheapest prices I've found anywhere for it. We usually buy a year's worth for our 2 dogs at one time (there are discounts for buying the multi-packs).
This is what we've done on the 2 occasions we needed to get rid of a flea infestation.
Best of luck & I hope you're able to get rid of the nasty little beasts soon.
My ex is a vet, and the only thing he and I use on all of our pets is Revolution. It does work. (It's a small vial of liquid you squirt on the dog's back between the shoulder blades once a month. We've never had one flea and that's all I've ever used.) The baths and sprays -- and Frontline -- really don't work as far as I know.
We put diatomaceous earth all over the place even on our carpets, it was so bad. But it worked! And it was safe and cheap.
garlic powder in his dog food. bomb and bomb again within 7days.
We just got done with a flea infestation ( on 1 dog and 2 cats) and we bought just about everything imaginable. Out of everything we used though the very best thing was using dish soap to wash the fleas out of the animals (we did this about once a week or more) and we vacuumed every other day. We felt super silly for spending hundreds of dollars on various flea treatments and preventatives. We have been keeping frontline on the animals to keep eggs from hatching but it does not keep the fleas off of them. We also used bio spot carpet powder, but I'm not sure that was really that much help. So between baths, vacuuming, and keeping the beds laundered ... I really think that was all that was needed which is very inexpensive. Good luck and congrats on your new puppy.
we now use comfortis monthly. no more fleas. it is rx.
We do a monthly treatment on the back of the neck and do not get fleas, we get it at the Vets office. Your puppy may be getting re-infested from your now flea ridden floors coverings, bedding, yard, etc...we used Sevin dust just thrown around on the grass and areas the dog goes in to. Ask about it at a local farm supply store that has knowledgeable staff. It can be dangerous if used incorrectly I believe.
You have to treat EVERYTHING at the same time (dog and house), and ***don't forget the lint trap!!!***. Lint traps is where I have found SO many "starter" flea colonies. Since the little buggers can live without a host for up to about 6 mo... it really means getting to *everything*. Steaming carpets and furniture, emptying and killing fleas in lint traps/ central heating ducts, bedding (his and yours), etc.
Pets sure are a nuisance. It's a good thing we love them.
