We just took Harley to the vet & she recommended that we start him on a flea treatment as it is the start of flea season. She said either Advantix (a topical treatment) or else a pill (can't remember the name).

Just wondering what other people use and what are the pros/cons for Harley as well as what the pros/cons would be for the people in our house. Specifically I was worried about the toxicity of the topical treatment because of all the kids in the house.

Oh my goodness! So many things to think about with this new (& super terrific) family member!

I don't typically use any flea treatment until I see a flea. We've never had a problem - for whatever reason our dogs don't get fleas.
The only time we've had any fleas were – oddly enough? -- both times we brought a kitten into the house. The darned cats CAME with fleas.

I've tried Advantix, which tore the daylights out of my cat's neck.

The best thing we've ever done as far as fleas were concerned was
to use Adam's Flea treatment -- available as shampoo, mousse, and carpet spray. It kills the fleas immediately, and the spray kills the eggs in the carpet. We never had a problem again. period. And it leaves the animals coat soft and not smelling bad. And it's not toxic.

My vet cautioned against it, recommending the Advantix, etc. that he sells there :-/. However, my sister was working in a clinic in NC at that time and that is what they used with great success. I also noticed it on the shelves of the clinic in "Animal Precinct", so figured it can't be all bad. LOL
It's available at PetCo, I believe and at some area feed stores.

I would prefer the topical treatment and not the pill.. I have used the topical treatment both Advantix and some of the others after I have seen fleas.. but (cross fingeres) we really do not have a flea or tick problems here….. I would not use the pill...

I dont like putting chemicles on our dogs. I use an organic spray which works really well against fleas and ticks. You have to apply it weekly but I dont mind. I worry about what's actually in those flea and tick topical treatments. It can't be healthy.

We only use something when we start to see fleas. I use a flea comb and kill the critters, but once we find 3 or 4 on each dog, I get out the Advantix or Frontline, whatever I have ordered. I switch around, I have heard that if you use one all the time it becomes less effective. I put it on and then don't repeat till I see another round of fleas, so I get usually 2 months for every application, and we usually only have to do it 3-4 times a year max.
Our weather stays hot and some years are bad for fleas, and I have not had any problems with it, though I do hate the idea of 'poison' it doesn't seem to bother them as much as fleas!

I've been using Frontline on Dallas but have still managed to see a few fleas on him over the past several months. My vet said that if I only find a few that means it is working…hm...anyway, not sure if I will continue to use it monthly as my old vet said to do now that I have moved to a different state with a different vet!

@Vanessa:

I dont like putting chemicles on our dogs. I use an organic spray which works really well against fleas and ticks. You have to apply it weekly but I dont mind. I worry about what's actually in those flea and tick topical treatments. It can't be healthy.

Yes, but Vanessa, we don't have a bad problem in No. California so you can get away with organic sprays most times… some place are horrible... and give the things that fleas can carry, I would opt for the topical meds... for sure...

Same goes for Heartworm meds... it is chemicals... however given the choice of heartworm in my dogs or giving meds... (and I have seen dogs with heartworms) I will take the meds any day

I use Frontline Plus, since I give separate heartworm meds. The B's don't seem to pick up the fleas too bad but if there's one around it will find Marlowe.
I usually apply it every 45 days. Last year for some reason we had alot more fleas, so I applied it every 30 days for a few months, then went back to 45.

Maybe these articles will help – they compare flea medicines and also comment on the compounds used
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/pic/article.cfm?dept_id=0&siteid=12&acatid=176&aid=281
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/pic/article.cfm?dept_id=&aid=521

I usually give jack a bath with a flea-killing shampoo (for sensitive skin- mainly because I break out in hives at the sight of dryer sheets, laundry detergent- pretty much anything with crazy chemicals in it) the shampoo doesn't cause any problems with my skin, and, aside from taking a bath, it doesn't seem to hurt Jack at all. I have never seen a flea on him.

Generally, unless I see a lot of fleas, I don't use anything. I do use Advantage on the cats, mainly because this is where the fleas come from. But I very, very rarely see any on the basenji's or the boxer. I might sometimes use the advantage on the Heeler mix-mainly because fleas are attracted to white and she is a white dog. I also shave her down so I can see what is going on with her.

I live in westminster Maryland, I have been putting advantix on my pup since ive had her Every month 1 year 3 months) IM not quite sure what i should be using or not using.

I have never seen a flea or tick on her, the meds do tend to make her coat dandruff-y and itchy. She is not around cats.

Do i need to keep this up? AM i hurting her? PLEASE ADVISE! this is my first and only dog and i cant trust my vet(s) I have moved 3 times this year and all 3 vets advise differently and usually make me pay WAY to much money. I feel like they just want my money and dont care for my baby…. but i dont know who else to trust!

i was giving her heartgaurd once a month as well, his new vet would not renew (perscribe) a new perscription for mee even though i paid for a "exam fee" twice even though she just went for shots they said she needed. they gave me a new medicine and retested her for heart worms even though se has already been through that at my last vet..... I hate not knowing who to talk to!

lastly, what food does everyone use? How is beneful wet and dry? good life? thoughts advice?

I only treat my b's one or twice during the summer.
I don't give the topical flea treatments in the winter at all.
Less is best with our dogs IMO.

I think a lot of the people on this forum use Advantix or a comparable product. We bought one month doses for each dog to start, to make sure they wouldn't have a reaction to it. I would say if your dog does fine w/ the Advantix, keep using it. We just gave them the second dose yesterday and Riley's coat does look a little flaky. I'll keep an eye on it.

Regarding the heartworm scrip, I'm not surprised that a new vet requires you to have them tested again. We just moved and have 1 yr scrips for our dogs and when we need to order it again our new vet may require the test OR I can ask her to verify with our old vet that they tested negative a year ago and that we've been giving them the meds ever since. I think it might depend on the vet… Our old vet required the test once every 2 years, provided you're giving the meds consistently, of course.

Another thing, our last vet didn't require a test for Riley b/c he was so young. They said they don't test them under 6 months. So I can see our pup needing the test before we can get another scrip. I don't know about our adult.

It must be pretty worrying feeling unable to trust your vet. Do you thoroughly research vets in your area before settling with one? You could start a thread asking about good vets in your area, in case anyone on the forum happens to be close to you. Also, with all that switching around of vets I think it's a good idea to make sure you have copies of everything important. I'm a big fan of filing just about everything. And each dog has 2 files: health, and registration/microchip/breeder contract/coursing/etc.

Regarding food, there are alot of different opinions on that. Check out www.dogfoodanalysis.com. They have an established method for how they critique dog food

http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/how-do-you-rate-the-foods.html

We feed Innova and Zip gets a tsp of either innova or evo canned mixed in with her kibble. I might want to try Evo for Zip once her current bag is gone.

Good luck!

I use Frontline Plus with Dallas. I also live in MD & the fleas & ticks in this area are VERY bad, especially during summer. I would recommend sticking to a flea/tick treatment vs. waiting until you start seeing them only because this is such a bad area for them. I also would recommend using them year round because of where you live.

www.dogfoodanalysis.com

IMO Beneful is not a good food. There are many fillers in it & they add food coloring for consumers only [thats why they are multicolored]. There have been many great debates over foods on this forum actually. I switched from Purina to Blue Buffalo & couldn't be mroe pleased with it. Anyway, check out that website. It gives reasons why certain foods/brands are better than others…

@KiroGurl:

lastly, what food does everyone use? How is beneful wet and dry? good life? thoughts advice?

IMO, beneful isn't good at all. Read the ingredients list and you'll see why. I don't feed my dog or cats anything from the grocery store. I spend a bit more on quality food, BUT I spend LESS time at the vet for skin issues, allergies, etc… to me, it's worth the extra pennies to feed a quality food. I use Solid Gold's Hundnflocken (lamb) kibble, and add in either home cooked foods, or quality canned (wellness or Merrick). My cats eat a blend of Chicken Soup for Cat Lover's Soul and EVO, along with Merrick canned foods.

as for flea/tick treatments, i use Frontline Plus on my dog and on the cats. I don't use it in the winter though.

that website doesnt have any information on the wet benefuls. they are singles food servings. Kiro really loves them. I mix 1/3 in with her dry food for dinner. It looks really good, real peas and carrots. I just havent heard anything so i just wanted some opinions.

thanks guys i will aplly the advantix

@KiroGurl:

that website doesnt have any information on the wet benefuls. they are singles food servings. Kiro really loves them. I mix 1/3 in with her dry food for dinner. It looks really good, real peas and carrots. I just havent heard anything so i just wanted some opinions.

thanks guys i will aplly the advantix

Actually it does have information on the wet, just no reviews. However, it still puts them at a 1 star dog food…which is a gift IMO. Read the reviews from the dry Beneful to give you an idea of the less-than-desired ingrediant in beneful food.

If there's not a review you can always follow their guidelines and look at the ingredients yourself:

Water sufficient for processing, chicken, wheat gluten, liver, meat by-products, corn starch-modified, pasta (wheat flour, egg whites), carrots, spinach, natural & artificial flavors, salt, soy flour, potassium chloride, tricalcium phosphate, added color, zinc sulfate, Vitamin E supplement, ferrous sulfate, choline chloride, thiamine mononitrate, copper sulfate, manganese sulfate, Vitamin A supplement, niacin, calcium pantothenate, riboflavin supplement, Vitamin B-12 supplement, Vitamin D-3 supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, potassium iodide, folic acid, sodium selenite, biotin.

The first meat product in all of the beneful prepared meals is inclusive of water content so once that is removed the meat is much farther down the list. Basically the first ingredient is wheat gluten (not a whole grain). Meat by-products raises a red flag. Corn starch modified is a filler….you get the idea.

What to feed seems to be the Great Debate on the forum.
Everyone seems to have very strong opinions, which isn't a bad thing.

You have to looks at ingredients, true. It's always best to try to feed the highest quality possible to your pet. But you also have to look at your budget and keep a level head about the amount you can afford to spend on dog food.

Do the best you can; I'm sure your dogs will be fine.

I've always fed Purina, which is on the forum dog-food-from-hell-list, LOL but I've always had healthy, happy, fit dogs who only go to the vet IF I remember to take them for annual exams. Gypsy, {non-B}now 14, was on it for her entire lifetime until I changed ….maybe one year ago, if that, because I just decided to try moving up the feed scale a bit because I can now.

Read the ingredients, feed what you feel is best, bur don't kick yourself if you can't afford $50.00/bag foods.