Suggestions for fleas

[Butts Mom]

Last year I saw one flea on Butt late in the year went and got Frontline and treated him once.I talked with the Vet when Butt was in for his xrays and asked him if I should use Frontline as a preventative and he said with lasytyears history he wouldn't worry about it unless they got fleas.My neighbor(1/2 mile away) was down on Sunday and said both his dogs had a major infestation of fleas.So now I'm wondering if I should use a preventative? I called the Vets office to set up a weight appt for Tub and see what the next course of action for Butt is,but my Vet is on vacation,so I couldn't discuss the flea issue with him or Butt for that matter.I did find out though that the Frontline is $16.60 a mth per dog,ouch!!That's alot on top of what I pay for both their heart worm pills a mth,their glucosomine and Butt's meds,so tell me what do to and I'll do it

[Ice Blue]

My breeder suggested using original Palmolive dish soap, it kills fleas on contact and is gentle on dogs skin. We haven't had a problem with fleas so I have yet to try it, tell me if it works, I hope it does!

[Nicole]

Well, if you haven't seen any then now is the best time to prevent them! Its SUPER hard trying to eliminate an infestation.

We alternate between Frontline and Revolution. I hate putting chemicals on them, but its way better than fleas, I think. I also do other types of preventative measures. Vacuum like CRAZY. It is the single-most effective anti-flea measure. Also check out Diatomaceous Earth. Its kind of a pain in the butt (no pun intended!) to use but really effective. I'm sure there is a thread about it around here somewhere.

I also groom Cabeza and Mabel every day, spray lavendar/sage/patchouli oil on them, and bathe them in peppermint soap.

[Scootergirl]

All good suggestions. You can also try putting garlic in their food - it's a natural flea repellant. I highly recomment the boric acid (a.k.a. borax) carpet treatment, too. Check out www.omahavacci nes.com - they have the best prices I've found for advantage, etc. and heartworm medication.

Jeanne