Dr. Becker, in her Mercola blog, has addressed fleas and ticks. She left the most important to last – by building up the health of your animals – voila! – no bugs!! Or fewer.
Information from her post –
“This does not mean you need to douse your pet in chemical flea and tick preventatives. In fact, I typically discourage pet owners from applying harsh chemicals to their pets for this purpose.Spot-on and similar pest-repellent products may lead to problems ranging from skin irritation to seizures and paralysis.If you apply too much to a small dog — or apply a product meant for dogs to cats — the result can even be deadly. The other issue is that many pests are becoming resistant to these widely used chemicals, which means applying one is not a guarantee of safety.”
and I totally agree with her caution about test results leading to uneeded treatments. Again, please work with integrative vets. “If you find a tick on your pet, she may have been exposed to tick-borne pathogens, but exposure is not the same thing as infection. This is an important distinction, because many veterinarians unnecessarily prescribe antibiotics when a dog’s blood shows exposure has occurred.Up to 90 percent of dogs may have exposure to these tick-borne pathogens, but most dogs’ immune systems fight off these infections all on their own. If your pet tests positive for exposure, it’s important to follow up with the Quantitative C6 (QC6) test, which differentiates exposure from infection.I see dozens of dogs each year unnecessarily treated with extensive antibiotic therapy because their veterinarian panicked after seeing a positive exposure. Please don’t let your vet do this!Another important point is that most tick-borne diseases take many hours to be transmitted to your pets, so removing ticks soon after they attach may help prevent illness. This is why it’s so important to inspect your dog for ticks regularly, especially after you’ve been to a high-risk area like a forest preserve.”
some ways to prevent fleas and ticks:
My kindle book, Fleas Be Gone, has over 60 pages of suggestions. Some that may not be in there include:
Shoo tags – now Zero Bug Zone company – are excellent if attached to the collars (even taped or sewn on flat and not dangling) early in the season, or even now if you are not seeing many fleas or ticks. Good for People, too.
Success with collars made from the gemstone, amber.
NONI – Steve and wife have sustainably harvested Noni on the island of Kauai for decades. When the Veterinary Medical Botanical Association had a conference there, everyone came home using noni for themselves and their pets with great reports of tick repelling.
Cedar oil products in the yard, around the house, and even on your animals.
Lots more information at this article on my site.
Please share below what you are doing for fleas and ticks – what’s worked and what has not.
Dr. Christina, I find that Brewer’s Yeast and fresh garlic help to keep my dogs flea free. I don’t have to use a lot but I do make it a point to use it every day. Also the cedar product from Austin – Wondercide – is amazing for killing fleas in their tracks. Also, a few drops of Halo in their shampoo kills any rogue fleas we may have missed. We have a lot of “lap time” and never see fleas on our dogs. They scratch a bit but I think it is allergies. Which I would like a discussion on – allergies as an autoimmune issue – is it wise to overstimulate an immune system that is already overstimulated? Much thanks, Kelly
A next step may be to realize that really healthy dogs do not get fleas at all (may see one or two a few times a year) even without using brewer’s yeast, garlic or the many other methods listed in the kindle book by me – Fleas Be Gone. Healthy dogs also do not have allergies, though they certainly can scratch a bit, so you have to decide if that is a healthy amount of scratching or indicative of mild ill health. One way to determine this is to look at all of the Early Warning Signs and list them. Then evaluate the energy level and emotional stability, appetite and thirst. If all of these are great, then the itch is probably normal. If there are a few of these, then begin home treatments or work with deeper energetic treatments with a holistic vet doing homeopathy or acupuncture (TCVM).
Allergies at one level can be considered autoimmune. The real truth is that there is an energetic imbalance trying to become healthy that is producing the symptoms. Not sure what you mean by overstimulating the immune system. Usually that is caused by vaccines and toxins. Too many people work with allergies by “elimination” or “allergy shots”. These merely temporarily help, if at all.
RE-read the 7 keys to healthy animals and begin working through each step. If you would some coaching on more specifically how to help at home or to be matched with the vet care of your choice, please call me for an appointment, or email HealthyAnimals@aol.com
Dr. Christina, I totally agree with you and need to keep in mind that my goal is to raise healthy dogs. And yes, I do believe that most of my dogs have mild illnesses. Because they were rescues and strays, all have been vaccinated and fixed too early in their lives. Only one has had the benefit of homeopathic care but I need to address some issues with all of them. As I love Dr. F in Austin, but he is not taking new patients until next year, I may take you up on your suggestion for an appointment. My little Tink, a feisty chi mix, came to us with bad seasonal allergies and now it seems like she scratches most of the year (worse in the middle of the night). I know allergies are a tricky thing, and sometimes I lose sight of what is normal and that she may be transitioning through say, a detox. But I feel that homeopathy could give her some respite. Thanks for the comment. Really appreciate your suggestions and will follow through. Kelly
In addition to homeopathic care (always great) – and you can learn lots more by taking one of my classes (ME and MD in Sept, probably one in NY in spring) – you can do Reiki, acupressure, flower essences, Healing touch for animals, Tellington Ttouch for energetic treatments.
I would love to help educate you more with a Pet Health Coaching call, or you could go to my links page, then to http://www.theAHV.org and select a homeopathic vet.