Are coconut and lavender oils safe for puppy tick prevention?

Every essential oil can cause breathing problems in dogs that are sensitive to it. It is usually because their noses are much stronger than ours, and some scents are just not tolerated very well. If you puppy hasn't shown any distress from the oils, then she will probably be fine. However, citronella is not an effective flea preventative. Fleas can carry disease and can cause allergies and even anemia. I recommend that you use a flea preventative like Seresto collars or a prescription flea preventative from your vet to make sure that Panda is well protected. https://www.petcoach.co/article/8-serious-diseases-your-dog-can-get-from-fleas-and-ticks-and-how-/

I am sorry that your pet is having sore skin due to ticks. You really should invest in a good tick preventative such as Bravecto, Nexgard, Seresto collar or the Preventic collar. This will prevent you from having to bath daily, which causes more skin irritation. The best thing for skin irritation is not oils (which often just get licked off and can cause GI upset if ingested), but instead a calming oatmeal based shampoo or hypoallergenic shampoo (i.e. Duoxo calming shampoo). Also daily fish oils is a natural anti-inflammatory that can help also. Try to limit his baths from now on to once every 2-3 weeks, especially if you are giving him a good high quality tick preventative. Also tick removal does not require a bath, but instead just removal of the entire tick with tweezers, making sure to remove the entire head to help avoid transmission of disease.

Hello! Coconut oil may prevent the Frontline from being effective as the active ingredient uses the natural oils and pores in the skin to spread and work properly, and the coconut oil may prevent that from happening. There is no credible research that suggests that coconut oil works as a flea preventative or treatment, however Frontline is a well-tested and safe product for cats. If you would like to continue using Frontline, I suggest giving Clint a bath with a mild soap and water solution (to remove the coconut oil), waiting 24-48 hours for the fur to dry and from natural skin oils to be replaced, then applying the Frontline. Even if Clint had some Frontline applied already, the extra amount should not harm him as it is extremely safe and is not systemic (is not effective through the bloodstream). Good luck, and I hope that Clint becomes and stays flea-free!

Hello. I would be very hesitant to recommend any product containing essential oils be used on dogs, but if a very light wipe was used, avoiding any areas easily reached by the dog licking, then occasional use should be fine. Just do not go heavy at all. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

You should remove all the ticks with tweezers and then apply a flea and tick preventative spot on suitable for young puppies or Frontline spray (which is suitable for puppies). These are available at your veterinarian or in a pet shop.

Where there is one tick, there could be more. Any time you go outside with Max, he needs to be checked thoroughly for ticks. If he is over 7 weeks old, a Seresto flea and tick collar is safe, just make sure he can't chew on it! You can also purchase Frontline spray - spray a small amount on a towel and use the towel to wipe down Max.

Unfortunately, there are no natural products that kill fleas and ticks. The only proven methods of killing fleas and ticks are with spot on products like Frontline and Advantix. I recommend using one of them on your dog to prevent fleas and ticks.