I found a few ideas on how to get rid of fleas on pets

**pollypurebred39** · 06-23-2010, 05:18 AM

Thought I'd share them in the event anyone is struggling with fleas this season

If the kittens have fleas, then they are in your house. Oil of American Cedar Leaf is what I've used for years with great success. It is a bit costly, and you put 2-3 drops on pieces of brown bag in every corner of EVERY room in your home. Within a week, all fleas were gone. You can get this at LoRann Oils at www.lorannoils.com/. I bought a bottle 3 years ago and still have a bit over half the bottle left. After fleas have gone, put a couple of drops on the brown paper every week for a 'flea free' home. Make sure it is cedar leaf and American.

Several years ago, I had found a kitten with fleas. He was sick and anemic. The Vet had told me to use PALMOLIVE DISH DETERGENT. I did and it worked. That along with feeding him chicken noodle soup help him get better.

Lime juice not from concentrate works on my kittens and cat. I put a couple drops behind their ears.

**ladykemma2** · 06-23-2010, 07:05 AM

why don't you just use revolution or advantage?

**Pemberleyan** · 06-23-2010, 07:49 AM

Polly, thanks for that info. I've had a recent battle with fleas and prefer less toxic means, and I assume those you mentioned are less toxic than Revolution and Advantage. Even if a dog doesn't have outward signs of reaction to their toxicity, there could be long-term effects of usage. Here's some info about those:

From petmedications.com:

"In addition to the aforementioned clinical signs that were reported in pre-approval clinical trials, there have been reports of pruritis, urticaria, erythema, ataxia, fever, and rare reports of death. There have also been rare reports of seizures in dogs."

Info about Advantage from eHow:

"Symptoms that can result from Advantage or any spot-on flea control product, include: itching and burning sensations and actual chemical burns, hyperactivity, drooling, lack of appetite, listlessness, nausea, and vomiting. The more severe symptoms include staggering or falling, tremors, seizures and death. Immune system disorders such as anemia and malignant tumors at the site of the application have also been reported."

**frugalwarrior2** · 06-23-2010, 08:02 AM

My parents used to put a hot plate in the middle of the room. The fleas heat seek and make a satisfying ping. They had them in their carpet. You of course keep the pet and small kids out of the room. And it doesn't do anything about the fleas on the pet.

In may try that if my guys get fleas this summer. Thanks.

**freebs** · 06-23-2010, 09:11 AM

I use dawn on my dogs, i have small dogs and they have had bad reactions to all the drops that i have used. of course it doesnt last as long but for $1 a bottle i can give them lots of baths!

**alotofgooddeals** · 06-23-2010, 09:23 AM

The stuff you get from the vets is so expensive and they are suppose to have a treatment every thirty days.... ugh! I simply can't afford it however i can't stand to see the dogs itching either so......I am gonna try this the next time i need to use something....

**nodmicks** · 06-23-2010, 09:41 AM

Thanks for the info. We don't have a flea problem but my MIL has. She used the stuff from the vet 2 years ago and her poor little dog is absolutely bald everywhere the drops were applied!!!!!

**karone** · 06-26-2010, 10:22 PM

I have heard that fleas hate the taste of salt.

**ttistin** · 06-26-2010, 10:32 PM

We use dawn dish soap. Cleans the doggies good, nice smell and no fleas!! Our lab has sensitive skin and dawn is the only thing I have found that does not bother him. Plus it is a lot cheaper then other products out there

**KatieInLa2** · 06-26-2010, 11:20 PM

I use the plain blue dawn to bathe my dogs too.

**Contrary Housewife** · 06-27-2010, 10:52 AM

You want to avoid Hartz flea and tick products. They can be lethal to your pet. People have filed lawsuits trying to get that stuff off the market.

[ame=http://www.google.com/search?q=hartz+victims&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US

fficial&client=firefox-a]hartz victims - Google Search[/ame]

It's been long time since we had fleas, but I just used plain old flea powder.

**cheles2kids** · 06-27-2010, 06:54 PM

Another option to use for kittens is rubbing alcohol, you can use a cotton ball and just rub it into their fur.

Yes. It stinks. But it will kill the fleas and thankfully it dries fairly quickly as well. The smell of the alcohol smoothers the fleas and kills them instantly.

As for controlling the fleas on my pets? I use the flea collars they sell at Wal-mart for a $1.00 a piece, this is the 2nd year we've used them and we've had no fleas...so this might be another option for people who don't want to use any of the spot-on treatments.

((Note)**These flea collars state that they only kill adult fleas so if you already have fleas they might not work as well for you.)

I tried to find a link to the ones that we buy but with no luck.
They are the "Adams" brand in a blue box but it has a green label and has a pic. of a labrador puppy down in the corner and states "4 month flea protection".
Even though they state '4 month protection', we switch them out every two months because I don't want to take the risk of any of our pets picking up a flea.

Alot of times they are sold out of them (I'm sure this is because of the price) but when we do find them we buy as many as they have because we have 4 large dogs & 1 small dog that all stay in the house, so fleas for us is not an option.
This is one of those 'stockpile' items that I always keep extras of.

**pollypurebred39** · 06-28-2010, 02:39 AM

My Mom used to keep flea collars in the sweeper bag to kill the fleas she swept up. Now it gets packed down under the dirt so she would just put another one in on top. She changed the bag often. It really kept the fleas at bay, and kept our carpets from becoming infested. Not sure how healthy it is to have the toxic fumes blowing back at you, but if you've developed a real problem you might find that it helps.

I've also heard that a salt and borax (not boric acid) combo spread over carpets, furniture, hardwood floors, & bedding will kill an infestation.

Contrary Housewife, Thanks So Much for the information on Hartz products. I too have heard a story about how dangerous this product is. The girl at the gas station down here had her pet die after using it. It's important to get that information out during flea season. It would be tragic to lose our furry ones because of lack of information.

**bumplett** · 06-28-2010, 10:29 AM

Adams flea spray is safe for ALL ages - we've used it when needed on week old kittens, also on elderly pets.

http://www.adamsfleacontrol.com/prod...sF&Tmist_s.jpg

we've also used dawn dish soap on puppies, dogs, cats & kittens. All ages.

here's a great link on the subject of fleas & tick prevention-

http://www.paw-rescue.org/PAW/PETTIP...Prevention.php

**arnie** · 07-10-2010, 08:53 PM

I gave my cats a bath last weekend- what fun that was.

We had bug bombed the house and then brought the cats in to bathe. I used frontline on them.
they still have fleas. I am getting bit up still as well.
I will try the salt tomorrow- will let you all know how that works.