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And so ad infinitum

(16 Posts)
moomin Sun 20-Sep-15 12:51:22

There's nothing like the sight of sight hounds as far as I'm concerned smile

Eloethan Sun 20-Sep-15 12:34:25

We get Advocat from the vet too. It's more effective than Frontline and it covers a much larger range of parasites.

Tegan Sun 20-Sep-15 11:08:47

Not going for a while, but she's off to the seaside in a week [yesterday she thought she was going to the vets even though we kept telling her she was going to see lots of friends. I bought a Hattie lookalike woollen whippet; when I work out how to put photos on here I'll show you..it's almost as big as her!

Alea Sun 20-Sep-15 10:57:05

Oh envy (Nottingham greyhound gathering) !!!
There is something about sight hounds, isn't there?
Have a lovely time away, wish Hattie a happy hol from Grace! grin

Tegan Sun 20-Sep-15 10:44:55

Same problem here Alea. Had stopped using spot on stuff as much since Hattie had a tumour as I was worried that bombarding her with chemicals was one of the problems. Result was that I had fleas in the house a few months ago. Thankfully, I was just at the point of having new carpet throughout most of the house, but it was a few weeks before the problem went away and it was a horrible few weeks. I did buy a tablet from the vets but didn't give it to her after reading of a whippet coming down with some sort of immune problem after using one [whippets do seem prone to such things]. I thought they only picked them up from other dogs but they can live in grass verges etc. I did spread diatomeous earth [sp] in lots of places as it dehydrates the larvae thus stopping one of the stages in the cycle and it didn't seem as severe as the sprays, even though I do use them as well sometimes. By the way, I went to a retired racing greyhound show at Nottingham racecourse yesterday; hundreds of greyhounds, a few whippets and Italians but it was a wonderful sight. all these massive dogs, some of them being handled by small children in total control of them. Ok, a few with muzzles but in general lots of sweet natured creatures having a day out in the sun with no aggression to be seen or heard from any of them. I had a dehumidifier on a lot as well, as they need a certain amount of humidity [little blighters]. We're going away for a week soon and I'm going to spray everywhere before we go, just to be on the safe side.

Alea Sun 20-Sep-15 09:38:40

Result -at last.
After spraying everything that doesn't move in the house with 2 cans of Indorax and no progress with the Frontline I was beginning to despair as I could still see fleadirt and occasionally tiny bloodstains where the little bu**ers were biting Grace just above her tail. (Being white with very thin short hair it really shows everything.) Not being bitten ourselves, but just thinking about it was starting this "crawling sensation" all over my skin shock
Back to the vets yesterday and I think (everything crossed) that we have cracked it with a tablet called Nextgard. Apparently unlike Frontline it starts working in 20 minutes smile She even scoffed it down like a treat - poor dog!
No sign of fleadirt this morning.

( Expensive, but then what isn't?)

Anya Thu 03-Sep-15 09:10:51

We use Advocat too. It not only prevents fleas and ticks but acts as a wormer.

Not had any ptoblems.

Iam64 Thu 03-Sep-15 09:00:58

Alea - our vets' have changed from Frontline to Advocat (I think that's the correct spelling, though it does sound like a yellow drink my grannie always had in at Christmas)

Evidently, the flea's have got wise to Frontline and developed immunities, rotten little B***** s. I fear you'll have to boil bedding, hoover like a maniac and get a spray from the vet to spray furniture/especially the carpets along the skirting boards where flea's will hide for up to 3 months before emerging to breed and eat again.

Best of luck

numberplease Thu 03-Sep-15 00:53:41

We had a bad do with fleas last year, and were told that fleas are becoming immune to Frontline, which we`d been using religiously. We invested in those fogger things for the 3 bedrooms and the landing/stairs, then sprayed all through downstairs with an expensive spray, then treated the cat with a different back of the neck spot on. We never saw another flea, and if they`re around, I know, because I`m the only human in the house who gets bitten by the nasty little beggars! But a couple of weeks ago I started getting bitten again, so, more foggers, and more expensive spray, hopefully it`s done the trick again.

BlackeyedSusan Wed 02-Sep-15 22:25:03

Mine have got worms... not pets, children! which get just as infested as pets it seems

Good luck with the hoovering and flea spraying. remember it is not skanky to get them, they are designed to spread themselves about, keeping them on the other hand...

Have they invented room foggers for worms yet? MY poor washing machine is going to have a nrevous breakdown.

chelseababy Wed 02-Sep-15 16:51:50

A peculiar thing is a flea
You can't tell a he from a she
But he can and she can
Whoopee!!!

Our late cat had fleas which I spotted on my white slippers! Had to have the council flea man in for the whole house. Scratch scratch.

shysal Wed 02-Sep-15 16:16:07

Despite using Frontline every 4 weeks, my cat Bugsie has a couple of scabs on his neck. I have repeated the Spot-on treatment early for both cats and ordered some room foggers from Ebay, which work a treat. I use one for each floor of my tiny house, which puts an end to any problems. Cheaper and more thorough than sprays.
I have been told that this year is another bad one for fleas, and even the vet's cat (next door) has them! In fact I think he may have brought them into my place.

hildajenniJ Wed 02-Sep-15 15:40:09

A few summers ago I took the dog to the Vet because she was scratching so much, but no sign of fleas, and her anak glands were fine. The Vet reckoned that she had a grass mite allergy. I had never heard of this, but followed his instructions as to the shampoo and bathing regime. It helped a little, but we were all very pleased when winter came and the grass mites disappeared.

merlotgran Wed 02-Sep-15 14:51:59

We've always managed to keep ahead of the game with Frontline and the fact we're two miles away from civilization but DD's chihuahuas returned from kennels a week ago scratching like mad and now our two JRs are at it.

We bathed them on Sunday and couldn't find a single flea. They've also been sprayed and their bedding washed then sprayed etc.

Fingers crossed that's done the trick but the landlady of our local has now banned dogs from the public bar - the one place you could take them - because she's had to have the whole place treated professionally.

A bad year for fleas, I think. hmm

kittylester Wed 02-Sep-15 14:41:50

Oh flip! Alea, now I'm itching! grin

Actually I've had the stuff to do the cat on the work surface for ages. It's been there so long that I've stopped seeing it! The trouble is, apart from the cat being black (!!), that it requires DH, me and the cat to all be in the same place at the same time and to remember that it needs doing. That's the tricky bit!

And please don't remind me about nits! 5 children and nits eeeekkkkkk! #runsoffscreamingtolieinadarkenedroom.

Alea Wed 02-Sep-15 14:32:00

"Big fleas have little fleas
Upon their backs to bite 'em
And little fleas have lesser fleas
And so ad infinitum"

I have owned dogs for the last 36 years, a black lab, a beige greyhound, a brindle greyhound and now a white greyhound with black bits and fleas!!! shock
Possibly because she is white with very short hair, I realised that what I was seeing was not black dandruff (doh!) but "flea dirt"!
Grace rarely meets other dogs, she is "Frontlined" regularly, our house is hoovered etc often enough so I never expected to see tiny black things moving along the poor dog's back. Apparently there has been a massive rise in fleas last summer and this (or perhaps the vet nurse was being kind and we live in a health hazard) and the dogs pick them from grasses, hedges, out on walks, even out in the garden.
So I now have a huge aerosol spray with an equally huge price tag and am in the process of treating the 'whole house*shock
Should I be ringing a bell and shouting "unclean, unclean"?
And why has writing this started me off itching? (It takes me back to the "shameful" nit days with the DC)
Sympathy/empathy please!