Best Flea Medicine For Dogs?

Home remedies for fleas
Homemade flea collar

Homemade flea spray
Homemade flea bath
Herbal flea spray

Outdoor treatments

Front line
Virbac

Indoor treatments

Raid
Pills from the vet

Video: top 5 best flea medicine for dogs 2016

Click Here to view the Top Selling Flea, Lice, and Tick killers on Amazon.com!

There are many different options for warding off fleas.

For those looking to avoid synthetic medicines that are full of chemicals and that can come with side effects that are potentially harmful, there are a number of natural remedies that can be quite effective.

These options are especially good if your dogs are going to be around children while they are being treated. Natural methods can be not only effective but much safer for those who come into contact with your dog.

Home Remedies for Fleas

Essential oils and simple ingredients found in most kitchens can be very effective insecticide/ pesticides and have been proven to not only deter but also get rid of pests such as fleas. Many commercial treatments, in fact, use these simple ingredients.

Homemade Flea Collar

dog-190276_1280 For this easy remedy, you will need a collar or bandana, your choice of either cedar oil or lavender oil, several tablespoon of water and an applicator of choice such as an eyedropper.

Dilute the oil into the water, using a ratio of roughly 1 drop of oil per 1 tablespoon of water. Either using the eye dropper or even a small spray bottle, distribute about 5-10 drops worth of the liquid mixture to your dog’s collar or a simple bandana that you will then tie loosely around your dog’s neck.

The treatment can be reapplied to the collar or bandana about once a week for the duration of the treatment.

Both of these oils can also be mixed with olive oil in the ration of 1-2 drops of essential oil to 1 tablespoon of olive oil minimum and applied to the base of your dog’s tail for added effectiveness.

Homemade Flea Spray

This spray also calls for your choice of either cedar oil or lavender oil. You will also need either distilled vinegar or apple cider vinegar or you can use a combination of equal parts of both.

In addition you will need fresh water and a large spray bottle. This spray can be made without the essential oil, if you prefer but the addition of the oil helps to give the spray a bit of edge as well as helping it to mask the vinegar smells a bit, making a little bit more pleasant and easy on your nose.

If you opt to use the oil, simply add a few drops to a mixture of one cup of vinegar and one quart of water. Once this is mixed, simply transfer the liquid to your spray bottle. You will use the spray all over your dog, being careful to not get the mixture on their head to avoid it getting into their eyes, nose or ears.

When you are ready to apply it closer to their heads you can simply spray a soft cloth with the vinegar solution and gently wipe around their neck, under their chin and behind their ears. The solution can also be lightly sprayed on and around their bedding for additional effectiveness.

Homemade Flea Bath

As a once a week treatment for deterring fleas you can give your dog a bath with a homemade flea bath mixture.

For this solution you will need fresh water, your soap or shampoo of choice formulated for pets and freshly squeezed lemon juice. The size of your dog will determine how much lemon juice you will need, but as a general rule, it is best to mix two parts water with every half cup of lemon juice and half cup of soap or shampoo.

Simply mix together your half cup of lemon juice, ¼ to ½ cup of shampoo and 1 ½ to 2 cups of water in a bottle, label it clearly and use it to bathe your dog every week to aid in keeping fleas away.

In addition to treating your pet directly, there are natural remedies that can help to eliminate fleas from your house and keep them from reoccurring. Once your dog has had, fleas, if they are allowed any indoor time, it is highly likely that your living space has been infected.

The eggs that are laid by the fleas on your dog can fall off indoors and remain dormant for quite awhile. This can result in a reappearance of the pests, seemingly out of nowhere, even after you have cleaned and treated your surroundings thinking that you had completely eliminated the problem.

Therefore it is important, that even after pet and environmental treatments to not only clean frequently but also to keep an eye out for those pesky fleas.

You can use regular items found in most kitchen pantries to put together natural house hold treatments. One example is as follows:

Herbal Flea Spray

For this spray you will need to gather vinegar, water, lemon juice, and witch hazel.

You will also need one unused vacuum bag and a home and garden sprayer that will hold a minimum of 6 to 7 liters. Mix ½ gallon of water with 1 gallon of vinegar, 16 oz of lemon juice, and 8 oz of witch hazel.

Fill the sprayer with this mix and spray a heavy layer on your furniture, carpets, all bedding including your pets bedding, floors, window sills and everywhere it can reach.

Be sure to first remove all objects that cannot be vacuumed and wash them thoroughly in the hottest setting available on your washer. Also be sure to first vacuum all floors, upholstery reaching as far into every crevice you can with the help of your vacuum attachments.

Using a fresh bag for this vacuum will help ensure that you pick up as much dirt as possible. Repeat the spraying anywhere from 2 days in a row to a full week depending on how bad your recent flea infestation was.

For those who are not looking for natural remedies but simply want quick, strong and effective treatments, the following options are easy to find and purchase.

Outdoor Treatments

Front Line

husky-524155_1280 For quick relief from ticks and fleas, many turn to Front Line plus. Frontline plus is a topical treatment that is used once a month and is guaranteed to rid your dog or cat of ticks and flees within 12 hours.

Not only does it kill off 100% of full grown fleas that have taken over your pet, but it also kills off any and all chewing lice and ticks that my be present within a 48 hour period.

Front Line Plus is formulated with an insect growth regulator called S-methoprene which is guaranteed to dispose of flea larvae and eggs.

Every treatment is effective for killing off common tick types including the brown dog tick, the lone star tick, the American dog tick and the deer tick, in all of their stages of growth.

The applications are water proof, and each treatment will last an entire month. Front Line also help to control sarcoptic mange infections.

Virbac

Virbac provides several effective options for indoor flea and tick treatments for home infestations. Several options are available:

Knockout Area Treatment – This aerosol house spray is effective in quickly killing off fleas and ticks in both the adult and larval stages through the use of synthetic pyrethroids.

It then continues to prevent further flea infestations for up to 4 months following treatment. Designed to reach hard to reach areas such as inside carpets, drapes, bedding, floor cracks, rugs and upholstery to kill of all pests.

The spray can be used without fear of it making a mess, causing any staining or leaving an unpleasant odor. One 14 oz can covers about 2000 square feet.

Knockout E.S. Area Treatment – This inverted aerosol spray uses pyrethrins and permethrin to terminate and end tick and flea infestations. Pyriprozyfen, a growth regulator, also prevents the reoccurrence of fleas for up to 4 months. One 14 oz bottle covers up to 2100 sq feet.

Knockout Room and Area Fogger – For quick and thorough treatment of hard to reach areas, this fogger contains pyrethrins and permethrin to terminate and prevent future outbreaks for up to 7 months after treatment. One 6 oz treatment covers up to 6000 cubic feet.

Indoor Treatments

Raid

Raid Flea Killer Treatment can be applied directly onto your pet and also can be sprayed around your house for killing fleas and ticks. It kills adult fleas on contact as well as preventing reinfestation for up to 4 months.

Raid is only for indoor use and should not be used on dogs younger than 12 weeks. Your veterinarian should be consulted before using Raid on older dogs, pregnant dogs or dogs that are injured or on other medications.

After treating, be sure to thoroughly vacuum surfaces to remove larvae and eggs and throw out the vacuum bag.

Pills from the Vet

Your vet may also recommend oral treatments. These include such brands as prescription Comfortis, for pets 14 weeks and older, Program Flea Killer which is given every 6 months and Capstar, a pill used for daily treatment for ongoing infestations.