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Has anyone done the diatomaceous earth as a flea repellent?


Liz CA
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For a dog that is.

We've had our girl on something (cannot remember now) that is administered every 3 months. I have since read that it can cause some adverse reactions after a few doses. So far our dog has not exhibited any side effects but always leaning proactive and toward less "chemicals" I saw the diatomaceous earth option...but I'd like to hear if it's just internet hype or if someone has tried it and if it worked?

 

http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/5-easy-uses-of-diatomaceous-earth-for-your-dog/

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I tried it just once but did not see any change in my dachshund and did not want to continue in case it caused more harm than help. I think he might have a yeast issue though, not fleas.

 

I really wanted it to work too.

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We didn't use it on the pet. I think you're not supposed to apply it to them. But using it around the home or outside the home is fine. You would want the food-grade version. We used it when I was pregnant and our cat got fleas. I absolutely did not want to bomb the inside of my home. Dh got a duster pistol thing and wore a mask. He left a fine mist all over right before we left town. I wasn't sure how fast/effective it was since we were gone for a bit and we treated the cat separately. But I think it must work because I don't remember flea issues when we returned. The cat got on some pill briefly... Comfortis I believe.

 

I know your link says you can apply it directly to coat, but I thought I read somewhere else not to do that. Is your dog outdoors a lot? I guess the alternative would be to feed it some, but I'm not familiar with that method. I mean, I think farmers feed some to their livestock so it's probably a legit thing but I don't know too much about it. It's dusty and I don't know if it would scratch the inside of their throat but maybe not if mixed with food since it's called food-grade.

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You have to follow directions to a T. It has to be a fine mist or else the bugs or fleas will walk around it. And as far as fleas, you're supposed to put some DE inside the vacuum so if you vacuum up eggs and they hatch then the hatched fleas will bounce up and down on the DE inside the vacuum. DE does NOT kill eggs.

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I know someone who uses DE in their chicken's feed and sometimes gives it to their dogs and cats but I have not. I think it is very dehydrating.

I researched this last year and we sprinkled food-grade DE on our carpet and hard floors. The first time we vacuumed it up after 3 days, re-applied it, let it sit for a week to 10 days, vacuumed again. Repeat. 

We sometimes would forget to vacuum and we do not want to use flea bombs either. We also don't like using the monthly applications but Revolution helped on our cat; an off brand from WM didn't work so well. Flea season is upon us.

We used cedar chips (like what you'd get for rodents' bedding) in pillowcases and left them in areas where the pets rest. Refreshing the chips with cedar oil in the bag from time to time. Fresh lavender wands are also a repellant.

Or a handful of cedar chips, 1-2 tsp. dried lavender buds, peel of a lemon, placed in a muslin bag where you don't want fleas.

 

FOR DOGS ONLY:

Recipe: 3-5 drops of cedar or lavender oil. 1-3 TBLSP. of water. Bandana. Eyedropper.

Apply 5-10 drops of mixture to bandana and rub sides of fabric together. Tie it around dog's neck. Reapply to collar once or twice a week. We used this.

Also recommended was 1-2 drops of mixture with 1 TBLSP. of olive oil placed at base of dog's tail. I didn't try that.

+++++Flea bath recipe: 1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice. 1 1/2 to 2 cups fresh water. 1/4 to 1/2 c. mild pet friendly soap. We used Dawn but the vet's office swears that strips the coat and is not the best thing to use. We had no problem with it and the dog didn't seem to have adverse reactions.

Bottle it, label it. We refrigerated it. Bathe dog weekly. Use it like pet shampoo.

FLEA SPRAY, for DOGS ONLY: 1 c. white distilled or regular vinegar, or 50/50 each. 1 quart fresh water. 2-3 drops of lavender or cedar oil. Spray bottle. Spray mist for dog, avoid the dog's face. Good for spraying around the dog's bedding too.

 

I researched a lot of websites trying to find what I thought looked like reliable information and this is what I have found, most of it I've tried and think it works okay if you're not wanting to use chemicals or your pet seems sensitive it.

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Once the house is infested, it's too late. Nuke the place.

 

But it works really well IME puffed around the yard (use one of those things that blows it around) used in conjunction with on-skin cat/dog treatments.

 

Whenever I caught a flea on any of the dogs, I puffed the carpets with DE too.

 

Coming from a small farm perspective, ymmv.

 

Using it internally would be for worms and other such intestinal friends, no? Not fleas.

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Once the house is infested, it's too late. Nuke the place.

 

But it works really well IME puffed around the yard (use one of those things that blows it around) used in conjunction with on-skin cat/dog treatments.

 

Whenever I caught a flea on any of the dogs, I puffed the carpets with DE too.

 

Coming from a small farm perspective, ymmv.

 

Using it internally would be for worms and other such intestinal friends, no? Not fleas.

I'm sorry, I should have stated that using it internally was for intestinal enemies, worms, etc. with your farmyard friends and animals. 

;)

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Main thing is keep your grass trimmed. We got fleas one year when dh let the grass get long. You can also put a bit of vinegar in their water to make them taste bad to the fleas, hehe. I bathed the poor pooch in a vinegar and Dawn mixture, and that zapped them. Took a while to work through the cycles, but with enough sweeping and washing they were gone. Now I just keep after dh to keep the grass mowed.

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