Frontline not working?

[Belinda Stevens]

Just wondering if anyone is having any issues with Frontline? I have use Frontline for years in fact I never even needed to use it every month (more like every 2) and with this last pack I noticed after the 3rd application the fleas on my oldest dog are getting worse. When I went to Petco to find something to use inbetween the next application time I was told that I was the 7th person in telling them that Frontline was not working. Has anyone else noticed anything? Does anyone know if they have changed the formula or could there just be a bad batch out there. Is it possible that a dog will become "immune" to it and it stop working? The manager there really didn't want to say anything bad about Frontline since he loves it and recommends it all the time but he seemed the think that their quality control was going down hill. I just ordered a pack of Advantix (never tried it before) and hope that will do the job as soon as I am able to put that on them.

[Leslie, Dexter & Kirby]

We use advantix every month (live in NJ) and have never had a problem with ticks/fleas/mosquitos/etc. I don't know much about frontline, but we really like advantix.

[Adina P]

I wonder if fleas are developing resistance? The dog can't be immune to it because it's not systemic and stays on the outside of the dog and it's not fighting anything in the dog. But either fleas are becoming resistant or frontline has some issues of quality control?

A few months ago I attended a lecture by a vet who works with a parasite specialist. He said that frontline can no longer say it works for six weeks like it used to, so perhaps it only works for 30 days on the dot.

[SD Suz - Mom of 3 Doodz]

At our house it hasn't worked even 5 days this year! Guess we're on our way to Advantix. I've been trying to reduce toxins as much as possible but the fleas are tougher than all my efforts. There is a new independent pet store that carries a product they guarantee to work on fleas (or your money back) and I'll look there next time in the area.

[SD Suz - Mom of 3 Doodz]

Hi~Our house, yard, & obviously our Doodles had the worst flea infestation ever this year. We're in Southern California where it rarely freezes so I guess they just hibernate until it warms up. Yep, we've used Frontline Plus for years, mainly in the summer for two or three months but this year I thought it must have been made of baby oil for all the good it did--or DIDN'T do! We did the Dawn detergent baths a few weeks ago, then diatomaceous earth for about three weeks. Still fleas!!!! Anyone interested in about 40 pounds of diatomaceous earth left? Friday we had our house and yard treated for fleas and I also gave each of the dogs & the cat a Capstar tablet. The yard will be redone in two weeks and, since we had to be out for a few hours, we took the girlz to the beach. Of course, that had to be followed up with baths for the dogs with the Dawn & conditioner again, I washed of all their blankets (one at a time) in HOT water and dried them in a hot dryer. We still have to vacuum every day for 7-10 days but we only have carpet in three rooms & an area rug in the living room so it's not like it takes forever but still...I can only empathize with you but next year I'm stocking up on one of the other monthly treatments before 'flea time'.

[Pauline Rackley]

Hi Belinda,
Hope you and Stella are doing well. Funny you should mention Frontline. I also have been using it for a long time, but lately I have been finding fleas on Zeus and 1 flea will drive him crazy itching. As you know, I work at a vet hospital and we have been getting complaints from clients and seeing animals with fleas whose owners have used it. I asked the sales rep last week and he was adamant that the product works and the fleas have not developed a resistance. He went on to say that an occasional flea might jump on, but would die within 24 hours. He also questioned me as to how I was applying it, were there fleas in the environment etc. I will also mention that we also have two other dogs and two cats in the house and I don't use frontline on them and they don't have fleas! So it seems that the dog with frontline attracts the fleas! Needless to say his attitude was condenscending and extremely annoying. We also carry a product called Promeris, but have had a few problems with it - lethargy etc- so I'm not comfortable with it either. It also has a very strong odor and a large quantity has to be used. I have no experience with Advantage or Advantix, but I do know that some products are very toxic to cats, so if you use it don't allow your cat to touch the dog until it dries (I don't remember if you have a cat, but anyone else who reads this should know)

[Belinda Stevens]

Wow! Well I guess it's good (or not good) to know that there seems to be an issue with Frontline. I just have to think that there could be a big possiblity that the fleas could be building a resistants to a particular product but it's puzzling that it is all the sudden and seems to be pretty wide spead.
Thanks Pauline about the information about the cats. I do have two of them.
I will also check out Vectra after I see how the Advantix does.
I really hate having to use any of these products on my animals just because I worry that putting any chemical on them can't always be completly harmless. Like one day the will discover that is causes some unknown problem.

[Anthony & Lori Jacobs]

I have used this for since last year I just spray them once a week we have never had fleas. It was given to me on this site. You might want to give it a try it is wonderful.

Natural Repellent Recipe
Repels fleas, ticks, mosquitoes, flies and also makes the van/car smell great. Spray dogs and blankets. Use before going into the show ring instead of those other sprays; no chemical smell spray. Stuff smells great. Dogs look great and gives an additional shine to their coat.
Ingredients are full strength oils:
Tea Tree Oil
Rosemary Oil
Sage Oil
Cedarwood Oil
Peppermint Oil
Orange Oil
Eucalyptus Oil
Citronella Oil
Pine Needle Oil
DIRECTIONS:
Mix 4-6 drops of each with 32 oz of any natural shampoo and now you have a natural flea shampoo OR Mix 2-3 drops each with 16 oz Water in a spray bottle. Shake before each application and spray light over entire body. Health food stores in your area sell the oils or you can purchase online

CITRUS REPELLANT: Cut a lemon into quarters and place in a pint jug. Cover the lemon with boiling water and let it steep overnight. Next day you have a flea repellant that you can use in a spray bottle. Spray all over your dog remembering especially behind the ears and around the head generally (careful of eyes), around the base of the tail
(once again keep away from delicate bits) and under your dog armpits.

AROMATHERAPY REPELLANT. Using 10 ml. of sweet almond oil as your base, add 10 drops of lavender and 5 drops of cedarwood. Shake well and use 1 or 2 drops spread over the skin at least twice a week to keep the fleas away.
A flea collar can be made by rubbing a few drops of one of the following into an ordinary webbing or rope collar or even a doggy bandanna: eucalyptus oil, Tea Tree Oil,
citronella, lavender or geranium. Don’t forget to do this weekly.

YOUR HOME: Fleas spend most of their time in your furnishings and only hop onto your dog or you for their next meal. Make sure you wash your dog’s bedding regularly
because no flea ever survived a hot wash cycle. If you add eucalyptus oil to the final rinse it will also kill 99% of house dust mites.
Vacuum your home very thoroughly and sprinkle a fine layer of ordinary table salt over your upholstery and carpets and leave overnight before vacuuming again to evict your
unwelcome guests safely but don’t forget to empty your vacuum bag.

BATHING: A badly infested dog really needs to be bathed so use your favorite dog shampoo. Rinse the dog off very thoroughly and in the final rinse add a couple of drops of Tea Tree Oil or Lavender oil. An alternative is to make your own herbal flea dip which will also work on ticks. Steep two cups of fresh rosemary in two pints of boiling
water for 30 minutes. Strain the liquid, discard the leaves and make it up to one gallon (8 pints) with warm water. Pour this mixture over the dog until it’s saturated. Do not
rinse off and allow the dog to dry naturally so this is a remedy to use on hot summer days.

INTERNAL FLEA REPELLENTS: Garlic may not be your favorite cologne and it’s not the flea’s favorite smell either. When your dog eats garlic, the smell is excreted through the dog’s skin making your dog less likely to be the flea’s next meal.
Brewer’s yeast tablets will also help to make your dog less attractive to fleas because once again the smell is excreted through the skin.
Adding a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar to the water bowl will make the skin more acidic and unpleasant to fleas and ticks. If your dogs don’t fancy apple cider vinegar in
the water bowl, dilute it 50/50 with water and use in a spray bottle instead of the citrus rep

[Belinda Stevens]

Yes thank you for re-posting this, I do remember reading it. I am going to give it a try this time.

[Deb, Connor & Simon]

Belinda, I had the same problem with Frontline Plus this year. I have used it several times before and it has always done a good job. This year I used it on both of my boys and my INDOOR cats (the dogs brought fleas inside). It was like I had done nothing. By the end of the second application, It was so bad I was having to flea comb the cats every night. I called Merial and asked if they'd had problems with the fleas in our area getting immune. Of course, they said no. I told her I vacuumed every day, washed bedding twice a week, wash the dog every 10 days, etc, but we still had fleas. So I called and talked with my vet. We switched over to Advantage -- for the dogs and cats -- and within a couple of days the scratching stopped. Until a few days ago, we had NO fleas. I think the blast of warm weather we had made my roses bloom ahd the fleas come out again. Yesterday I reapplied Advantage again and the scratching is almost gone.

[Ginny Nightingale]

I have not had any flea issues with Frontline Plus here in the Northeast, but I have recently found 3 live, attached and engorged ticks on my doodle within a week of putting on the Frontline. This is after a year and a half of never finding a tick. My daughter is a student at Cornell Vet school and says that the word around there is that Advantix works much better than Frontline, but she hadn't heard anything yet about an immunity.

[Mary, Scrappy, Sully and Olive]

We haven't had flea issues yet, but we've run out of Frontline Plus and I've been trying to decide if I should purchase it outside the vets office and save some money. Now I'm wondering if I should just switch, but I still have a question. I've been told that Frontline does not guarantee their product unless it's purchased through a certified vet.....has anyone else heard this before? It wasn't even the vet who told me this, so it made me wonder. With so many products being ripped off, does any mail order/online company guarantee the product if purchased through them?
Where does everyone else purchase their Frontline Plus or Advantix?
As I said, no flea problems yet, but I have found many engorged ticks on Grover, more than usual and after reading a discussion a few months back here, regarding ineffective Frontline Plus, it got me wondering. I know frontline states that it kills ticks within 24 hours of attachment and they will then fall off, so maybe no product keeps them away completely?

[Belinda Stevens]

I buy from Petshed.com