Flea and Tick?

[Margie Payne]

Our little guy was born yesterday!!  3 Boys to choose from (we have first pick) 2 that are a white color and one red!

So excited!!

We live near the beach and have LOTS of trees and bushes in the backyard and I've heard that fleas adn ticks are pretty challenging here.

Any suggestions?

Thanks!!!

[Missy]

Congratulations!!!  Let the picture obsessing begin!! I hope your breeder is as good as mine and sends you lots and lots of pictures!!

[Tait & Finn]

I'm having issues here too, in No. Va. I'm currently using Vectra but just called the vet and am going to try Frontline starting May 1. With Vectra I have found 2 dead ticks on him, 1 live tick that was buried deep and 2 that fell off live and were in my house! Yuck!! Hopefully Frontline will work better than Vectra did.

[Jayme K]

I just posted something similar and someone mentioned that frontline does not repel ticks but kills them once they bite. I took Henry hiking in Shenandoah and his head was covered in ticks, none had bitten (that I could find!) but were just crawling around on his head. I am using frontline but will switch to Advantix next month as that is supposed to repel ticks as well. In the meantime, for added protection I am spraying water mixed with lavender oil on his coat when we go out. When Henry got into the ticks this past weekend, I had sprayed all of his body with it except his head and his head was the only place there were ticks. 

[Tait & Finn]

I've heard that none of the products actually repel. I'll have to research. But I will definitely have to get a spray bottle for the lavender oil mixture. I bet they smell good too. :). Where can I find lavender oil?

[Jayme K]

I actually just bought it from Amazon, just make sure it's therapeutic grade so it's not mixed with anything. You can buy very small bottles that last a long time. 

[Tait & Finn]

I just bought some from Whole Foods. Says 100%essential oil.

[Tait & Finn]

I went to the vet to return the Vectra intending to buy Frontline and ended up leaving with Revolution. Anybody with experience with Revolution?

[Jayme K]

Keep us updated on how it works. :) I will have to think about switching to something else next month.

[Star and Goldie]

I used Revolution. It's a great product. the only problem is that it does not do anything for ticks, which for me is a deal breaker now considering there are ticks in my area. I switched to Advantix II. The repelling is what sold me on it. Since it doesn't protect from Heartworms, I also use Heartgard.

[Tait & Finn]

It does protect against some ticks but they also have a collar that is for all ticks. I'm willing to try. If it doesn't work, I'll move on to the next product.

[Star and Goldie]

The only type of tick information in Revolution that you will find is that it "Controls American dog tick (Dermacentor variabilis) infestations".  There are several other types of ticks in which it does nothing for. It's highly recommended for heartworm and fleas but even Revolution, itself, does not advertise tick protection. The box only lists heartworm and fleas so even though you can find the American Dog Tick clause, I would only trust it for heartworm and fleas.

American Dog Ticks do not transmit Lyme Disease but Deer Ticks do- so if you live anywhere that you think ticks may be of concern, you'll want to go with something that is known for tick protection.

If ticks aren't a concern then Revolution is awesome. I used it for years when I lived in a different location.

[Tait & Finn]

We've got loads of ticks here in No.Va. Apparently, the collar is the ticks protection. If not, back it goes and product #3 will be next. I forgot about ticks being such an issue until we got a dog. Argh!