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 Post subject: fleas and ticks
PostPosted: Fri May 23, 2003 8:59 am 
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Joined: Sat Apr 26, 2003 8:02 am
Posts: 20
Location: Bulverde
What are natural flea and tick controls for pets. Any suggestions on the best shampoo for a dog.


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PostPosted: Fri May 23, 2003 9:37 am 
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Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2003 10:51 pm
Posts: 747
Location: Garland, Texas
Cailou

HG recently did a segment on the local TV station WFAA on flea and tick control. The shampoo he used was from the Espree line as I recall. I am currently fighting a flea infestation on my Boxer. I'm not sure where they are coming from??? I am using a shampoo from the TropiClean product line. It is labeled "NEEM Natural Shampoo with Yarrow, Coconut, & Oatmeal I'm not sure of the complete list of ingredients. I am supplementing the shampoo with Flea 'n Tick B Gone. I found that product at HG's last Organic Show. I have not tried to source that locally, yet.


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PostPosted: Thu Jun 19, 2003 10:59 am 
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Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2003 10:51 pm
Posts: 747
Location: Garland, Texas
In the three years we have had our Boxer, this is our first year of a noticeable flea infestation. I have been using the Lice B Gone product in conjunction with the baths. Does Lice B Gone supposed to have any residual effects on the fleas? What stages are effected?

We are having to bathe her at least once per week to eliminate the adult fleas, and hand picking them off several evenings during the week. In addition to her baths, we are supplementing her food with a product from Pet Organics containing brewers yeast and garlic powder. She is an inside dog, so the carpet get vacuumed several times per week. The yard has been organically kept for the entire 9 years we have been here. I have even left three fire ant beds intact as they count among their prey termites and fleas.

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PostPosted: Sat Jun 21, 2003 3:45 pm 
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Joined: Fri Jun 13, 2003 4:52 pm
Posts: 147
Location: Dallas,TEXAS
There are some herbal/edible treatments for fleas and ticks. if you live in the country, I am not sure that what I use in the city would be effective. I feed my four garlic (one clover per 15 pounds of body weight, minced into their morning meal) and brewer's yeast - about a tablespoon per dog per day with their afternoon treat. This and the boric acid I use around entrances to the house seems to work really well in keeping fleas away. I am not sure if it is effective against ticks. If you are knowledgeable about pennyroyal, a weak effusion of end leaves and flowers combed through the dogs' coats once a week or so is also an effective pest control. Major caution, though - pennyroyal can be highly poisonous to the dog, so if you have not been taught by someone who knows, I don't recommend this.
As far as ticks are concerned, I rely more on the "flea comb and hot soapy water" technique. This would probably nor be practicable if I lived out in the countryside, but here in the wilds of suburban Dallas, it works.
One preventive that I strongly urge all dog guardians in the Southwest (or anywhere in the US) is heartworm preventive - ivermectin. As far as I am concerned, there is no natural substitute, and preventing heartworm disease is so easy, and heartworm disease is so terrible that I have to recommend the pharmaceutical product, and I insist that any dog that I adopt out be kept on preventive medication.


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 Post subject: fleas & ticks
PostPosted: Tue Jun 24, 2003 4:24 pm 
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Joined: Wed May 21, 2003 5:33 pm
Posts: 829
Location: Dallas,TX
Another thing you can do inside your house is spray with a d-limonene & water solution. It will kill any adult fleas and larva in the carpet. It works very well, is a natural air freshener and also will knock out some of the stains you might have in your carpet. The one I always use is Orange TKO as it has the oil removed. Mix 1 oz. with a half gallon of water and spray away. The only thing is don't get it on your wood furniture, naturally dyed carpets or plexiglass. It will break down the varnish on the wood if you leave it there (I just wipe it off after I'm done), biodegrade the natural dyes and pock plexiglass. But it's great on tile & other floors and didn't bother my wood floors that have polyurethane on them. You can get TKO at all kinds of stores, including Lowe's in the lawn & garden organic section. Outside you can use the Bioganic spray. It will kill beneficials too but if you get desperate enough it's a good solution that won't harm anything but insects. Just soak the soil with it. It will kill the fleas & ticks that are in the ground. Hope this is helpful. Fleas are bad news!


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 Post subject: Re: fleas & ticks
PostPosted: Wed Jun 25, 2003 6:45 am 
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Joined: Sun Apr 06, 2003 10:59 am
Posts: 277
Kathe Kitchens wrote:
Another thing you can do inside your house is spray with a d-limonene & water solution. It will kill any adult fleas and larva in the carpet. It works very well, is a natural air freshener and also will knock out some of the stains you might have in your carpet. The one I always use is Orange TKO as it has the oil removed.


If you do mist the carpet and if you have pets (which probably is the case if there are fleas in the house), I would remove the pets, especially cats, during the spraying and until the d-limonene dries. Onto the paw pads and into the mouths -- my experience with this wasn't good.

There are statements on the Web that the linalool in citrus oil (and in things like lavender) will kill flea eggs, but that d-limonene will not. I have yet to see a clinical reference, so I regard that statement as merely anecdotal and maybe poppycock. I have a hard time believing that d-limonene will not kill flea eggs effectively, but I don't think a lot is widely known about the physical characteristics of flea eggs and their susceptibility to chemical attack. I suppose that, if the statement is true, a pure d-limonene product is not the best choice for flea control. I also don't know if I care for usinig a full-constituent "oily" citrus oil. One compromise might be to add some lavender to the d-limonene, if the linalool/d-limonene story really is true.

As for the carpets, "mist" is the operative word on d-limonene applications. I know from theory and experience that a d-limonene (depending on the solution strength) drench will/can dissolve some, many, or all of the adhesives that attach the carpet to the backing. That can ruin the physical structure and release who-knows-what adhesive breakdown products. Now, if all the carpets would just dissolve completely, we might have something...

Another possibility that is commonly mentioned is to mist a mild boric acid solution onto the carpets. I think that requires a delicate touch if there are pets and/or infants in the house, and I think I prefer the citrus as a probably less toxic and more instantly effective method. Probably the borate crystals would be better than spraying a boric acid solution, but that's another story.
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