I know there's already a flea topic started, but that was more for bad infestations of fleas.. what I'd like to know is, how to keep them off using natural products. I found one flea on the dog and cat, but it's not to the point of infestation. The dog goes in and out all day long, so it's quite possible that he picked up a flea or two outside. I've already treated the carpets with borax, but the dog is starting to get itchy. I'm reluctant to put any chemicals on them because I fear the possible side effects. I don't think I've gotten any bites myself (other than the paranoid itch you get when you think about fleas) because I usually have quite a bad reaction to flea bites.

Any suggestions?

There are citrus based repellents sold but I couldnt tell you if they work or not.

If you have fleas at all, it's no longer flea prevention. There are things like brewers yeast you can add to food that is supposed to help repel fleas (some say garlic too, but garlic can be harmful to cats/dogs), but once you have ANY fleas in the house, I'd go with a topical flea medication because you need them dead at this point. Frontline, Advantage, and Revolution are all very safe and effective. I would not buy anything OTC though, because a lot of them contain ingredients that are neurotoxins for cats.
The co-op I belong to sells herbal flea collars but I don't know if they work.

then frontline or revolution it is...it will just have to wait until I get paid again :( that crap is expensive.

Tea tree oil is good & flees hate it. Use pure ttree oil diluted with water & comb thru coat.

Tea tree oil is good & flees hate it. Use pure ttree oil diluted with water & comb thru coat.

Tea tree oil is poisonous to people and cats if ingested (or licked off fur), and there are tons and tons of things that are poisonous to cats but fine for people. I would never give my cat something w/o permission of my vet first. I would hate to turn something little like fleas into something huge like poisoning.

then frontline or revolution it is...it will just have to wait until I get paid again :( that crap is expensive.

It is $40 online for 3 doses.

The local vets may have a much higher price.

I have been using it for years on myself (I gargle with it daily) & my dogs with no problems at all.
Personally I believe it far superior to a lot of over the counter stuff.
Just my opinion...

I have been using it for years on myself (I gargle with it daily) & my dogs with no problems at all.
Personally I believe it far superior to a lot of over the counter stuff.
Just my opinion...

Cats aren't dogs.

Cats aren't dogs.

I'm not too sure about this.

Cats are furry. Dogs are furry.

Cats can be the size of a small dog.

Cats make large messes. Dogs make large messes.

Cats can try to drink out of the toilet. Dogs drink out of the toilet.

Perhaps cats are a breed of dog. :p

I have been using it for years on myself (I gargle with it daily) & my dogs with no problems at all.
Personally I believe it far superior to a lot of over the counter stuff.
Just my opinion...

Cats have a very slow strange metabolism which is why so much stuff will kill them, they also lick themselves a bunch more than dogs and are typically smaller. As for you, I assume that you spit out the gargle?

True. There are many things deadly to our feline friends that are perfectly fine for dogs. Totally differant species = totally differant needs

I used frontline plus on both animals. I have not heard either one scratch themselves since. Next, I'm going to put borax on the carpets and wash all the blankets.

I will win this flea war!!

I'm not sure about cats..never had one.

But with our dog I use a combination pill of Garlic and Brewer's Yeast - it's 2 pills a day with his food. Not only did it help keep fleas off it also helped with his itchy skin.

Another good thing for winter dry skin for dogs is adding a bit of olive oil to the dry dog food.

Also check any dog shampoos you may have - as they get older they become more sensitive to things - we checked the ingredients and found COAL TAR in the shampoo. We switched to something more gentle with oatmeal in it and it also helps with dry skin.

Another great product is a flea trap. Basically its a glue trap on the bottom with a night-light type lamp. You plug it in near when you may see fleas or where the animals hang out - pet beds, the couch, etc. This got rid of a lot of fleas a few years ago when we had a problem. You don't want to put it where the cats might get into it though.

Cara :)

I'm not too sure about this.

Cats are furry. Dogs are furry.



http://www.naughty-nature.com/images/appearance.jpg

:worried: :worried: :worried:

you can put some vinegar in their drinking water, plus i[ve found that this works: if you have carpeting in your house, sprinkle a good bit of salt all over the carpet, sweep it in with a broom. let it sit 24 hours. vacuum. make sure you throw out the vacuum bag; it will have fleas in it!
this has helped a lot; we moved in to a house that had fleas in the carpet and they found their new taxi cabs: our pups!

I have one of those "bagless" vacuums. So what should I do with that? I can't leave the vacuum outside, otherwise some punk kid with thief it and do something strange with it probably.

I have one of those "bagless" vacuums. So what should I do with that? I can't leave the vacuum outside, otherwise some punk kid with thief it and do something strange with it probably.

You could put a flea collar or something else to kill the fleas in the "bucket" area, or you could empty it out and take the trash outside every time you vacuum.

This link will help you with your flea problem: (add the w's)peta.org/mc/factsheet_display.asp?ID=136
Also, try out: (add the w's) naturalchemistry.com (A natural alternative)


I am having the same problem... I want to use a brand that is cruelty-free, so I tried out the herbal type, but now I'm reading on the internet that natural oils are terrible for cats....SO, I am almost certainly going to try out the Fleabusters stuff :) It's a safe alternative to Borax. I don't want to buy the Borax because it's made by Dial (they test on animals!)

also: if you have a cat and a dog and use the tee tree or other oil on the dog, the cat may lick it off the dog during grooming or playing. so if it's not safe for cats it's not safe to use in the house period if you have one.

when i first got my boy as a kitten he was covered in fleas. it was really bad. we were poor college students and couldn't afford to get revolution or whatever. so we got a powder, forget which, that kills fleas. it claims to be safe to use on pets but i wasn't comfortable with it so i powdered the furniture and rugs (luckily it was all hardwood floors so we only had to worry about our few small area rugs) and vaccumed it up the next day.
because the cat was so young i didn't want to use any chemicals on him so i sat with him for hours combing the fleas out. it took a couple days to get them all, but we did it. never had a problem after that until a couple years ago at which point i just used revolution (that stuff is amazing, put it on, within an hour he was leaving a trail of dead fleas everywhere he went)
i just gave him revolution yesterday actually, i found one flea in the house. he hadn't been itching yet and i checked him and brushed him, no fleas. we must've carried it in on our clothes, but when i found it it was dead already anyways =/
but yeah just to be on the safe side he got a dose. he's not very happy with me but he'll get over it.
i'm guessing it's normal, and it's mentioned in the instruction booklet and all, but i hate that when i give him that stuff, the fur falls out in the spot it was applied. in big clumps. and his skin goes all dry and flaky there. it goes away in a couple days so i'm not too worried, but it must bother him :(