Fleas, Ticks, & Mosquitoes

Ticks...

Ticks

Ticks are parasites that require blood from their host (your cat or dog, or yourself), to sustain life.  They generally live in wooded and grassy areas, bushes, and undergrowth.  Ticks come in various sizes and types - some are tiny and difficult to see, and some are larger.  They attach and embed themselves to skin by inserting a "rostrum" into the skin's surface and anchoring tightly to it.

How To Remove A Tick Removing most of the pests you occasionally find on your dog or cat is not a big issue, except for ticks.  Ticks bore into your pet's skin using backward-pointing spikes that can make safely removing them difficult.  Even with the best insect repellents, you will likely find one of these critters occasionally burrowing into your dog's fur.   DO NOT try to remove them by squeezing them or pulling on them with tweezers.  This can cause the tick to secrete more saliva, and a piece of the tick's rostrum can remain stuck in the skin because it is surrounded by backward-pointing spikes. The Tick Twister is a great little plastic "tool" that removes a tick by slowly twisting it out, rather than pulling it out.  This is important because it also helps to remove the rostrum embedded in the skin.

For natural protection against ticks and lyme disease in humans AND dogs, check out our blog article.

Check Outside Pets Every Day

If your pet spends a lot of time outdoors, or if you live in an area where fleas, ticks, or mosquitoes are a problem, no matter what pest control solution you use it is important to examine your pet daily.  This is especially so when it comes to ticks.  Even if you are applying some of the harshest chemical solutions on the market (which I strongly recommend against), your pets can still wind up with these little blood suckers embedded in their coat and skin.

First, let's take a look at conventional pest control products and just how dangerous they are for our pets, and then talk about natural and much safer alternatives.

Conventional Pest Control Products

Conventional pest control products used on pets are toxic by their very nature.  They are designed to kill pests because they are pesticides, and when they are applied to a pet's body, these chemicals are then absorbed into their skin.  Continually dosing a pet with small amounts of highly toxic pesticides can and does have health consequences.

The EPA intensified its evaluation of flea and tick control products and recently issued an advisory about "spot-on" chemical pesticide products such as Frontline and K9 Advantix.  These are products applied to the neck or back of dogs and cats as a flea and tick preventive.  The advisory was issued due to a significant increase in reported adverse reactions – ranging from mild skin irritation, to seizures and death.  In 2008, over 600 deaths and 44,000 reactions presumed to be tied to spot-on products were reported by pet owners, veterinarians, and other animal caretakers, a significant jump from the already high 28,000 from the previous year.  

If it is toxic on your skin, it is toxic on your pet's skin 

There are many spot-on pest control products on the market, most of which contain toxic chemicals that can poison pets and harm people.  Some ingredients are linked to cancer, allergies, and asthma, and product labels warn that they should not touch human skin (but are considered "fine" to place on a pet's skin...).  

It is clear that the risks of these products are becoming far too great to warrant their continued use, especially considering there are many safer and more natural alternatives.

EPA Report on Spot-On Products (Frontline, K9 Advantix, etc.)

Due to the EPA's concern over the number of incidents reported from spot-on product use, they issued a report in 2010 revealing:

• Most incidents occurred in dogs under 3 years old, likely at their first exposure to a spot-on product.
• Most adverse reactions were seen in dogs weighing between 10 and 20 pounds.
• Reactions in mixed breed dogs were most commonly reported, however, the Dachshund, Chihuahua, Miniature Poodle, Pomeranian, Maltese, Shih Tzu, Yorkshire Terrier, and Bichon Frise seem particularly at risk.
• Products containing cyphenothrin and permethrin were especially problematic for small breed dogs.  Cyphenothrin is found in many spot-on repellents sold both over the counter and through veterinarians.
• Adverse reactions for both dogs and cats were primarily skin, GI tract, and nervous system related.  Skin reactions included itching, redness, hair loss, sores, and ulcers.  Spot-on products found to cause these types of reactions included a major market leader.
• Gastrointestinal symptoms included vomiting, diarrhea, and salivation.  Spot-on repellents found to cause some levels of these symptoms included another major market leader, whose products have been sold by the millions at major pet store chains across the country.
• Reported nervous system symptoms included lethargy, nervousness, ataxia (movement problems), tremors, and seizure.
• A number of serious adverse reactions in cats were the result of the cat either being treated with a product intended for dogs, or through exposure to a treated dog.
• Inert ingredients in spot-on products were generally assumed to contribute to toxicity.
• Dosage ranges were considered to be too wide in some cases, and product labeling was identified by the EPA as needing revamping in many cases.  The EPA's Companion Animal Studies guidelines are insufficient to predict the toxicity of spot-on products.

Avoid all products containing toxic ingredients as much as possible.  To check out the ingredients in your flea and tick medication, head on over to the GreenPaws Flea & Tick Products Directory.  Each product listed is categorized by risk level to help you assess their toxicity. 

Natural Alternatives

Both fleas and ticks have several methods of choosing their host, two of these being by odor and taste.  Natural alternatives work by using scents and tastes that make your pet "unattractive" to pests.  If the odor of a pet is not what the flea or tick senses as a "food source" then they will look somewhere else.  Many of the conventional flea and tick medications on the market today use this method to "mask" the odor of your pet by using harmful toxins.

Let's see how we can naturally protect our pets from these annoying (and disease-carrying) pests: