getting rid of fleas!

downrabbithole

downrabbithole

theatre fashionista
Jul 3, 2008
848
0
#1
oh man, my new doggie is one thing after another!

He got FLEAS yesterday!

I got rid of my rug (it needed to be 86ed anyway), sprayed my mattress and chairs with flea remover along with the two bath mats, sprayed his stairs, washed my bedding and his bed and sprayed him with flea spray and put a flea collar on him.

What else can I do? I am taking all of my clothes i've worn in the past few weeks to the laundry mat tomorrow, but I keep itching now that I KNOW he's had them. I have no bites or anything and only saw one on me....after it jumped from him and I killed it.

Did I do everything I could? Any more tips? How can I tell if they are in my hair or something? Since I have Sjogren's I tend to have itchy skin anyway, so it's making me :wtf:

Any more tips are appreciated!
 
#2
I hate fleas, they are so pesky and I also think I'm allergic to them! As far as tips go, I heard that rubbing a dryer sheet like Bounce on your dog will help kill or help to keep fleas off of your pet. Seems they don't like it. But as far as what you have been doing, keep that up. Keeping your pet clean, vacuming carpets or getting rid of them all help with keeping fleas at bay. And washing clothes in hot water will kill the fleas that are on your clothes. I'm not sure if a flea collar works that well though. I don't use one for my dog. I heard that they can cause irritiation and don't really work that well anyway. I've been using Advantix as a flea and tick prevention. Seems to be helping.
 
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#3
Thanks! I will keep spraying him and ask my vet what is best when we see him on Wednesday :smile: He is scratching right now, but he seems to be better. He was NONSTOP today, but after I sprayed him, he seemed to be able to go to sleep for a bit and chill by the fan with his legs spread eagle...haha his favorite thing. Dogs are funny.
 
#7
I would take him to the groomer's to have a thorough shampooing to get rid of the fleas, vacuum my house from top to bottom, and use Frontline or Revololution every month. Good luck!
 
#8
I would recommend Advantix, Frontline or Capstar to treat your doggie immediately. You may want to take him for a very very long walk, while you set off a flea bomb to destroy all the fleas in your apartment. Just vacuuming alone might not be enough to kill those little guys because they can still live in your carpets and continue to reinfest your apartment. Also, once you have treated your home and your doggie, you will need to wash all of your bedding and towels. Those little suckers can be really tough to get rid of once they get into your home, but between a flea bomb and monthly prevenative for your dog, you should be fine. Just make sure you treat your dog first and then your apartment. You should also probably keep him on monthly flea and tick prevention while the weather until the first frost.
 
#11
Your poor doggie! My dogs never get fleas because they're indoor dogs, and when I take them out, I keep them off the grass. But lately one of them grabbed a couple of fleas, one at a time. I found the first one, but the second one has been a pain. After everything I've heard about Frontline, I tried it, and it had ZERO effect. I even called the company to ask how long it would take for it to kill the flea (s), and I was told it would happen almost immediately. Five days later, that little flea was still hanging around. I gave my dog a bath three days or so ago, and I'm not sure if it's gone or not.

The collars have never worked for dogs or cats in my family. The flea comb sounds like a good idea. The flea "bomb" of the apartment definitely works. That's what my mom used to do in the carpeted areas of the house. I wouldn't take the dog to the groomers because more often than not, animals catch something while there (kennel cough, etc.). Good luck!

Cherrasaki: Thanks for the dryer sheet tip. If that flea is not gone, I might try that. My only concern is, could the chemicals on that sheet hurt the dog?
 
#12
hey karmen, I want to know about that with the drier sheet too!

Happy early birthday!!

I have tried everything you guys suggested and while I'm fine, my puppy is still itching. I hate to see him scratching so much and not being able to fix him! He had a flea collar, Frontline and was douced in natural flea remover. He does need a bath, but he has sensitive skin....since we're going to the vet tomorrow, I will ask him what shampoo is best for him and maybe he can get a flea dip? But I've only ever even SEEN one flea, so this must be something else...unless it's really just that one flea going nuts?
 
#13
The poor baby. You know what? It could very well be a skin condition--and there are tons of those. The summer is usually worse because of the heat. Both of my dogs, when I first brought them home, had skin allergies. And every once in a while, one of my dogs will start scratching and licking a spot, usually on the tail, that obviously itches, but she does it until the skin turns red, sometimes even bleeding. If I don't stop it right there, it gets much worse. Following are the products I've used and measures I've taken to keep the dogs skin-disease free:

1. Best shampoo line: Virbac, sold at some Vet offices. The Epi-Soothe shampoo is antipruritic, soothing, hydrating and restoring. I would use no other.

2. I apply Neosporin (triple-antibiotic) to the area my dog is scratching too much twice a day. I have to watch her for a bit to keep her from licking away the ointment.

3. If it gets worse, I use an ointment the Vet gave me which I think are used for ear infections but that get rid of that irritation (which is probably a small skin infection) right away. It's called MalOtic 25 g bottle. Ingredients: gentamicin sulfate, betamethasone valerate, USP, and clotrimazole USP ointment. The last chemical is for fungal infections, so I think this cream is for both bacterial and fungal infections. It's really good and you can buy it online.

4. If the itching is mostly due to a skin condition vs the flea, applying all the flea-killing stuff could make it worse. Just ask the vet.

I hope this helps. Your doggie needs relief!
 
#14
Most important thing to remember is if you see 1 flea, there are hundreds or thousands more, there is never just 1!
Keep vacuuming, do the flea bomb and wash everything your dog has touched. Frontline Plus is the best monthly treatment I've found, but if you have a house infestation you have to do a little more to get rid of the living fleas 1st. Frontline is good at breaking the flea life cycle and repelling fleas outside so they don't come inside.
Went through this a few years ago and it was a major pain, but I will never make the mistake again of missing a single month of Frontline Plus, even in the winter (living in the south, you can never be too careful)!
Good luck!
 
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