Getting rid of fleas

Many wonder what the big problem about the flea removal is. After all, once you realise there are fleas in your house and on your dog, you just buy some nice flea bomb and use it, wash your dog in some anti-flea shampoo and the problem's done with.

Well, don't be so hasty. If you act this way, you are quite sure to have your house and pet re-infested with these pesky creatures. Why?

Firstly, you did not make sure you actually got rid of all the fleas, both the adult ones and the larvae. Fleas have different developmental stages and therefore different substances are needed to kill adult fleas and, say, eggs. Even if you wipe out all the adult fleas in your house, fleas will soon reappear.

First and foremost, make sure you get rid of all the flea eggs. This you will achieve by thoroughly washing carpets and bedding with a strong detergent and vacuuming the entire house. Also, try to dehumidify your house, eg. by turning on air conditioning. To kill larvae, you could wash carpets with an insecticide, or have them steam-washed.

Frontline plus for dogs

Although is is generally argued that natural methods are better, they may sometimes fail. Then you must resort to what some call “toxic methods”. Don't be too upset, however. Most non-natural products on the market are there for you to use - you just have to make 100% sure that you have read and understood the recommendations and, better still, consulted a reliable vet. The thing is, toxic products may have a detrimental impact not only on your flowerbed but also may pose a threat to your dog's health and life, and even your family's. Better safe than sorry, they say, and in this case this saying  hits the nail on the head.

Now that you have decided that there's absolutely no other other way for you to approach the flea problem apart from applying some monstrous toxic methods of flea extermination, you can have a quick look at our list of - if used properly - safe products.

Frontline Plus for dogs is among the most popular preventatives. It kills all existing adult fleas on your pet within 12 hours and all ticks and chewing lice within 48 hours. One application ensures a full month protection.  Another advantage of Frontline is that it's waterproof, which is great for water-loving dogs (you still need to keep your dog away from water for the application to become dry, which usually takes about 24 hours). You need to remember that it must not be applied to pets younger than 8 weeks!

Dog illnesses

Fleas are potential illness bringers. However, sickness doesn't have to be connected with parasites, which may make it more difficult for you to notice that something's up with your pet. To make things more tricky, it's in animals' nature to deny the fact that they're under the weather (to mislead any predators). It's up to the owners to be alert enough to notice any illness symptoms.