Natural method to deal with fleas and ticks???

[jeaucamom]

It is full blown tick season here in CA and Nevada county is the number ONE spot in the country for Lymes disease. But when I was in Petsmart today, all those chemicals sound horrible..... and how to tell one from another???

Does anyone know any natural way to deal with ticks and fleas??? Thanks, Suz

 

[ozark hen]

Suz, I just asked the same thing in a different thread yesterday, I think it was...here is what I was told:
sprinkle garlic powder over dog food...I use dry and they are still eating it
Mix one teasp. of food grade D.E. in some yogurt and give to them. I also dusted the dogs...all seven of them in D.E. I was told it would get into their system and take care of the problem. I am so disgusted with throwing away $ $ $ for Frontline, which isn't working and other products from the vet. I don't like giving my animals chemicals so I am trying the natural way myself. Any other suggestions would be welcomed.

 

[EggCentric]

Cut up 4 lemons and boil them for about 15 minutes. Let the mixture cool and put it in a gallon jug. Fill up the jug the rest of the way with water. Bathe your animal with this. It won't kill ticks and fleas, but it will repel them. Plus it leaves them smelling nice!

 

[chickenshadow]

We refuse to use Frontline and the other brands because of the toxic nature
and reports of them being unaffective.

Our srategy is:
1-The chickens free range in the areas we take our dogs.
2-Always do a tick check when bringing the dogs in from a hike.
3-Treat the problem acutely, meaning at the first sign of fleas
they get a flea bath.

DE is on our list and the lemon idea sounds really good. Citrus naturally
repels many insects.

 

[sundance]

Sounds crazy but if you have to bath your dogs for fleas use DAWN dish washing detergent,just lather up good and let set for a couple mins, kill fleas DEAD. at least for me. then I use de when they are dry.I use baby shampoo on their faces so it won't burn their eyes,Do I spoil my dogs YESS

 

[southernsibe]

Something I make and use on both my horses and dogs is this:
use a double boiler, or a very very low flame and melt some vaseline, blend in some citronella oil, not a lot, just a bit to make it smell a bit. Turn off and let cool. You can store this for a while in something with a decent lid. I usually just do the whole thing of vaseline then put it back in the same jar.

I smear a decent amount on the inside of the ear. Don't glob it on too much or it will clog the ear and get nasty, just a decent coating on the inside of the ear and it will help repel fleas ticks and flies from around the face.
By no means will this do it by itself, but every little bit helps.
Good luck.
Rachel

 

[mudhen]

I give my dogs a bit of garlic in their food, sometimes with brewers yeast, sometimes straight.
It really seems to keep the flea population down, almost nil. Unfortunately, I do find an occasional tick.

BTW, I also feed garlic (granulated) as part of my feed mix to my hens. It helps keep smell down in coop, and is part of egg-cholesterol lowering diet with Omega3 rice bran.

 

[Maidservant]

My cat has extremely sensitive skin (right now we are battling with her over grooming her arm pit....), so chemicals are out of the question. I've found that washing her with hand made basil soap works wonders. I also have a bottle of "Buzz Off" which is a natural bug repellent that she gets two squirts of once per week. The bug repellent contains Joboba Nut Oil, Vitamin E, Esentilal Oils of: Basil, Bay, Cedarwood, Citronella, Clove, Eucalyptus, Geranium, Lavender, Lemongrass, Orange, Peppermint, and Rose. Surprisingly, this stuff doesn't smell too strongly and you can't even tell there is citronella in it. It also rubs in a leaves you feeling smooth instead of greasy or sticky like commercial flea/tick/and bug sprays.

My only word of caution, I've been bathing my cat once per week for the last 8 years (her whole life), so she is accustomed to holding still. She still doesn't like it, but she doesn't fight it. Do not bathe a cat by yourself for the first few times! Your sweet little fluff ball will turn evil trying to get out of the tub!

I can give the website of the place where I bought the soap to anyone who pms me. The website is still under construction, but they have 13 different types of soap. Their store is located in Asheville, NC.

Hope this helps,
Emily

 

[beefy]

i also use Dawn to wash the dogs (and i used it to bath kittens a couple of times that were flea infested). the surfactant took care of the fleas.

also, supposedly, wax myrtle repels fleas.
guineas and wild turkeys are supposed to eat ticks, i assume domestic turkeys may eat them as well.

 

[ozark hen]

I can look at my puppie's bellies and the skin where they have white fur and do not see fleas but they have these horrible crusty scabs on their heads and neck. Now I am speaking of two out of the three. The little female does not seem to have a problem??? Weird. I have bathed them in Dawn and did see one flea..but only one?? What is going on? I put vaseline, panalog, bactine on the scabs. One at a time of course. LOL These little guys are miserable and I keep trying to soften the scabs up to get them healed. It has to be fleas even though I don't see them unless they stay just on their heads? I use baby shampoo for their heads so the dawn isn't going on their heads. I really need help here if anyone has a suggestion to soften these up for me and to get them healed? I am putting garlic powder on their food...whew..their breath!!