Killing Fleas? A moral dilemma

[Mounds]

Originally Posted by elucidate

To most people that would sound awfully morbid, but I actually find that sort of thing fascinating...though I haven't gone to the same extent as you to experiment with it.

I do want to buy a science lab microscope and start studying bacteria again. I work in a lab, and the scientists here have said they will give me some petri dishes and sample bottles to collect specimens...YAY

It's sometimes funny what people become interested in. I once met someone who upon hearing about my interest in insects, confessed his dream job was to be a mortician! To me, anything natural is pretty neat. Most people appreciate a well articulated skeleton but not as many people appreciate the process. Oh well

I have a stereomicroscope that doesn't cut it for seeing bacteria but it does go to 40x, which is supremely handy for identifying insects. You notice a lot of weird things when you see things under that magnification. For instance, most bugs are very... hairy.

-Tim

[elucidate]

Originally Posted by Mounds

It's sometimes funny what people become interested in. I once met someone who upon hearing about my interest in insects, confessed his dream job was to be a mortician! To me, anything natural is pretty neat. Most people appreciate a well articulated skeleton but not as many people appreciate the process. Oh well

I have a stereomicroscope that doesn't cut it for seeing bacteria but it does go to 40x, which is supremely handy for identifying insects. You notice a lot of weird things when you see things under that magnification. For instance, most bugs are very... hairy.

-Tim

I know!

Your common bed mite looks like some sort of highly sophisticated alien up close.

[GhostGoat]

Originally Posted by Indiana

I think you'll find if you go to the Frontline site (or the Advantage site) that they both proudly claim their products kill up to 100 percent of fleas on a dog within 12 hours of application. And then continues to kill them for up to 8 weeks!

It used to kill 100% of the fleas - I've used it on my dogs for a long time with great success - UNTIL we had severe rains in this area a little over a year ago, with historic levels of flooding. There was a huge flea outbreak shortly afterward due to all the dampness.

The dog I have now never had any fleas until then. But he got them, and I used 2 vials of Frontline on him in 2 or 3 weeks, and he had just as many fleas afterward. I did a little googling, and read comments in various forums from a number of other people all over the country who also found that Frontline was no longer working. That's how I found out about Comfortis, which the fleas haven't built up an immunity to yet.

[Indiana]

Originally Posted by GhostGoat

It used to kill 100% of the fleas - I've used it on my dogs for a long time with great success - UNTIL we had severe rains in this area a little over a year ago, with historic levels of flooding. There was a huge flea outbreak shortly afterward due to all the dampness.

The dog I have now never had any fleas until then. But he got them, and I used 2 vials of Frontline on him in 2 or 3 weeks, and he had just as many fleas afterward. I did a little googling, and read comments in various forums from a number of other people all over the country who also found that Frontline was no longer working. That's how I found out about Comfortis, which the fleas haven't built up an immunity to yet.

Hmmmm, interesting. I pointed out that Advantage and Frontline are designed to kill fleas because Roxy seemed to be under the impression that they only made them sterile. But I'm not surprised that they are ceasing to be effective over long-term use. I only treat my dog when he actually gets a flea, as I don't want that stuff in his system year-round.

[GhostGoat]

Originally Posted by Indiana

Hmmmm, interesting. I pointed out that Advantage and Frontline are designed to kill fleas because Roxy seemed to be under the impression that they only made them sterile. But I'm not surprised that they are ceasing to be effective over long-term use. I only treat my dog when he actually gets a flea, as I don't want that stuff in his system year-round.

Yeah, I try to use it sparingly too. My dog doesn't attract fleas too much - he was a stray who liked to live in the woods when I got him, and incredibly he had no fleas at all then.

As Advantage/Frontline is fairly expensive, I'd hate to see anyone waste their money on something not 100% effective. It's always been great in the past, and maybe it still is effective on most fleas, I don't know. Comfortis is about the same price, but not all vets carry it - but it got rid of those super persistent fleas in a hurry.

[Mato Kinze]

When I was younger, my little brother once came to me crying. His nose was bloody and his eye was beginning to swell.

I asked him what happened and he told me that a fifth-grader (he was in 3rd grade at the time) had beat him up. He wanted me to go "take care of that bigger kid for him."

I asked him what happened and after a little hmming and hawing, he admitted that the fifth grader was the older brother of a smaller 3rd grader that my brother had been bullying.

When the other older brother confronted my brother and told him to stop picking on his little brother, my little brother thought he could intimidate the bigger kid. We saw how THAT worked out....

I looked at my brother after this explanation and told him, "Dude, don't pick on smaller people because that's mean. Don't pick on bigger people because that's just stupid."

I feel no remorse in permanently eliminating something that plans on making a meal out of or off of me or has the intention or ability to do me or my loved ones significant harm. This includes blood-sucking insects, venomous arachnids or reptiles, or 12 year-olds with AK-47s.

Now... it you're looking for something a little more natural to help your dog keep fleas and ticks away and don't mind particularly pungent "dog breath", brewer's yeast and garlic twice a day will not only repel pests, but help shine and strengthen their coats.

[Supertramp]

I too used to kill Ants and Mosquitoes and anything that wasn't Homo Sapiens and not taller than a millimeter. But after reading this, I felt Steve had a point. So I decided to write about Bugs in my journal. Actually I wrote that while I was doing a 30 day trial of Non-Veg Abstention and I felt that I still craved for meat durign the trial. So I thought writing about other living beings in order to connect with them emotionally would help me through the trial. So I wrote that and ever since, I stopped killing bugs. However I still use pest control agents to clean my Living room and Toilet! Somewhere a compromise has to be made!

[aelle]

Be careful with the home remedies, though. Garlic in particular is toxic to dogs (google it for actual dosage).

[sorter]

I lived in a flea infested house with four other people.
They didn't bite three of my roommates but bit the holy crap out of
me and another person.

Apparently they aren't interested in biting you.

I hear your concern. I once walked off a landscaping job because I didn't want to end the life of the weeds.

But I've killed millions of those flea bastards and I'll kill again!
If there were a way to capture and release them in the forest, I'd do that.
Until then, KILL KILL KILL!


BTW Sevin garden dust works great but it is toxic.
You need to wear a respirator, leave it for a few hours, then thoroughly vacuum and steam clean carpets.

[garentee]

Anybody have experiences with diatomaceous earth? I have it strewn around my house right now... These fleas(while there are not many at all if any because we treated with Boron earlier) are not the problem now, it is the eggs.. plus the dog does bring a few into the environs from time to time... right now she is covered with the frontline, but I am about to trade down to bio spot.. plus I have putting neem and citronella on her for the past couple of days.. This latest incident has caused a bit of a row with my girl... mostly because she is a single mom.... and has a lot on her plate.... a LOT... and she does not need fleas... no sir. OK thats it G

[neilpage]

Frontline worked for my dogs fast. *Good Luck*

[Drew78]

Fleas to a dog are like lice to a human. If you or your child had lice, would you feel the same way? Not trying to be obnoxious, but it's just a different perspective that might shed some light on this matter for you.