PrincessMommy Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 (edited) ugh. We just moved in and now we have fleas. The previous owner had a dog but I don't know if we brought them with us or not. I suspect not. Anyway.. ugh. I'm tired all the time and now fleas. I discovered it last Friday night (as I was going to bed). Called the vet Sat. morning, since it was obvious the Frontline wasn't working. They gave me Simparica and Capstar. I had tried Bravecta when we first got our dog and it didn't work at all. I've been using the topical stuff since and haven't had another problem until last week. Sat. I also bought spray stuff and powder stuff which I put on all the carpeted floors and upholstered surfaces as well as mattresses. I wash everything that might have come into contact with the dog. I sprayed after leaving the powder on for many hours and then vacuuming. I've kept the dog out of all our rooms and off our beds. I washed the dog in Hartz flea and tick shampoo. I've also been using a natural flea spray that has peppermint oil and cloves as a deterrent. The dog still has fleas. I comb several off each day. I'm itching all the time so I think I'm getting bit (of course no other human in the house seems affected. :glare: ) I'm going to call the vets again tomorrow. But what else can I do.? Edited October 28, 2017 by PrincessMommy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 Please, please for your dog’s sake throw away the Hartz shampoo! Their stuff is total crap. Just awful. Their spot on flea/tick product has been implicated in quite a few dog deaths. My vet warned me almost forty years ago, when I got my first dog, to never use any of their products. Flea shampoos aren’t very effective anyway. You’re needlessly exposing your poor dog to unnecessary chemicals. Any shampoo will kill fleas if you leave it on for ten minutes or so. Dawn dish detergent may kill them in less time than that. Either will be much safer for your dog than the Hartz crap. If you absolutely have to use a flea shampoo get something from your vet. You may need to treat your yard. If it’s heavily infested the dog will continue to bring them inside no matter how much or with what products you treat her/him and the interior of your house. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hilltopmom Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 After dealing with them for months last year my advice if you’re u have them in the house is call an exterminator immediately. Don’t mess around with diy sprays. Spend the money to get it done right. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 How many times have you given the Capstar? Vacuum, vacuum, vacuum. They have a cycle they have to go through, so it’s unlikely to be rid of them instantly. There’s a helpful website at fleascience.com. Good luck! This. Seeing more fleas at this point doesn't mean what you are doing isn't working. It takes time to get the whole life cycle. Basically, nothing really kills the pupae stage, so even if you killed every adult in the house, those pupae that were already laid are still going to hatch out into new adults, which will jump onto the dog and then eventually die. Do not keep bathing the dog, that reduces the effectiveness of the topical stuff you put on him. Seriously, you need to wait it out. My strategy for fleas is: Monthly product given to dog (either a topical or pill) Capstar given two days in a row, and then again a few days later, and then again a few days later. Wash bedding If there are a LOT of fleas or I have reason to believe this isn't a minor problem I'd also treat any/all carpet, baseboard crevices, furniture the dog gets on, etc with a product that has a growth inhibitor. Something that kills the eggs and the adults. Still not super effective on the pupae really, but the more life stages the better. That should be labeled to last for a long time. Those sprays are a good, quick knock down. Another option is Flea Busters powder, which does not kill as fast but lasts for months and months, continuing to kill as any new fleas hatch out. But no matter what you do you will probably take a few weeks to a month to get a real resolution, due to the life cycle issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrincessMommy Posted October 28, 2017 Author Share Posted October 28, 2017 Please, please for your dog’s sake throw away the Hartz shampoo! Their stuff is total crap. Just awful. Their spot on flea/tick product has been implicated in quite a few dog deaths. My vet warned me almost forty years ago, when I got my first dog, to never use any of their products. Flea shampoos aren’t very effective anyway. You’re needlessly exposing your poor dog to unnecessary chemicals. Any shampoo will kill fleas if you leave it on for ten minutes or so. Dawn dish detergent may kill them in less time than that. Either will be much safer for your dog than the Hartz crap. If you absolutely have to use a flea shampoo get something from your vet. You may need to treat your yard. If it’s heavily infested the dog will continue to bring them inside no matter how much or with what products you treat her/him and the interior of your house. I wondered about this. I'll throw away the Hartz. Thanks for the advice Someone asked about the Capstar. I gave him 2 doses a few days apart per the vets instructions. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 Oh, and stop that essential oil repellent. Two reasons - dogs hate it, and if there are fleas in the house you WANT them to jump on the dog so they will be exposed to his flea treatment and die. Otherwise they are going to jump on you! There used to be a company that took shelter cats that were treated with topical flea killer and would put them in your flea infested house for you for a time, so that the fleas (which love cats) would jump on them, be exposed to the flea treatment, and die. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmasc Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 Fleas are horrible! I’m sorry you’re dealing with this. I agree with above posts...it will take a few weeks, vacuum (and vacuum!) at least daily, it will look worse before it’s better, possibly treat outdoors. Vacuum pet bedding daily too! The absolute best thing we’ve used is Nexgard. It’s an oral medication and works better than anything we’ve ever tried. Good luck! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmrich Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 We used Borax on our carpets to help with flea control. You cannot use it if you have cats. I washed my dog with just regular shampoo but scrubbed vigorously and hand toweled with gusto to get the little fellows off. The dog was on flea control medicine, but it seemed to wear off too quickly. We treated our yard with dichtomous earth and had success. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katilac Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 Food-grade diatomaceous earth will be much better and safer than the store-bought powders. Some people actually put it on their pets also, I personally do not. It's very powdery and floats around too much, you don't want you or your pets breathing it in. It can be put in the yard also. Put out saucers full of water and a drop or two of dish soap, ideally under a nightlight in an otherwise dark room. Fleas will jump in and drown. In addition to reducing the number of fleas, you can get a rough idea of how much progress you are making by tracking how many fleas are in the saucers each day. It also lets you see if fleas are clustering in a certain area, so you can really hit that area hard with vacuuming. You can make your life a bit easier by only using a fitted sheet and smaller, lightweight blankets while you're in the wash every freakin' day stage. Across the household, that can save a load of laundry or two every day. Put heavy comforters and quilts into garbage bags in the meantime, and you'll just have to wash them once when the siege is over. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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