My dog has fleas! How do I get rid of them when nothing works?

Hello. I am so sorry for your concerns with Harley. Unfortunately, you must have a terrible flea problem in your area. Everything you are doing is appropriate & good, but it can take 3 months of constant battle to eliminate a current flea problem. Continue the Simparica, & retreat your yard & home as needed. You can bathe Harley weekly with a an anti-itch shampoo, one that contains either 1% hydrocortisone or pramoxine. They also make leave on conditioners & mousse's you might try. Because Simparica ( & all other oral & topical flea products ) require the flea to bite in order to die, you can also use a flea shampoo along with the anti-itch shampoo for an immediate knockdown of the fleas on Harley. I would also consider a injection of Cytopoint, which is immunotherapy that your veterinarian can administer. This will do nothing for fleas, but may help the irritation from the flea bites. Hopefully, this will all help. Thanks for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Flea infestations can be really frustrating to manage! It sounds as though you're doing all of the right things to manage this issue. However, in recent years, I have not found Frontline Plus to be as effective as it once was. Consider talking to your vet about switching to an oral flea preventive, such as Bravecto, Nexgard, Credelio or Simparica. (All are prescription-based, which is why you'll need to first talk to your vet.) I find these medications MUCH more effective at rapidly killing several flea lifestages, which helps to break the flea life cycle (adults lay eggs, which become larvae, then pupae, then adults, which lay more eggs). Consistently giving flea preventives is the best way to resolve a flea infestation. Over the counter oral medications like Capstar are great at killing adult fleas, but only last for 24 hours. K9 Advantix II is an over the counter topical option that works well, but isn't quite in the same league as the prescription orals. Also be sure to wash any blankets, pillows or bedding that is machine washable on the hottest setting allowable. Try to wash these things at least once a week. If all else fails, consult an exterminator to treat your environment. Flea baths are largely ineffective at treating fleas. Many of these flea shampoos cause skin irritation, so I would just try using a regular dog shampoo every few months to wash off any dead fleas or flea dirt. Also be sure to talk to your vet about checking a stool sample for tapeworms, as dogs can ingest tapeworm eggs if they eat infected fleas. I hope this helps and that all goes well for Atlas! https://www.petcoach.co/dog/condition/flea-infestation-1/

Unfortunately fleas only hop on the body of your pet when they want to feed, then they hop off again and stay in your pet's environment. So you need to treat all pets in the household as well as the environment (which contains the fleas, their eggs and larvae). Flea treatment:  1) Get some flea medication such as a Flea spray or a spot on from a pet shop or your veterinarian and apply monthly 2) get flea powder, put some in your vacuum cleaner bag and vacuum your house and furniture and also non-carpeted areas frequently to remove flea larvae and eggs which live off house dust., Dispose of the bag in the trash outside. Hot-wash all the pet's bedding, If you do this diligently for a few months you will get rid of the fleas. Flea products: Some of these are prescription, best call your veet and ask if you need to bring in the dog in order to buy those from him or get a prescription from him. Spot-ons and/or chews Advantage, Advantix Advantage Multi (Advocate in the UK) Frontline (ticks as well) Bravecto spot on (ticks as well) - for cats, in tablet form for dogs Simparica, Nexgard Revolution (stronghold in the UK) Tablets: comfortis (will only kill fleas once) Collar: Seresto (ticks as well)

I am so sorry you are dealing with this. It is a very frustrating situation. I would try oral flea/tick prevention. I would also recommend calling an exterminator. Fleas can be extremely difficult to get rid of in certain situations. It can take a full 3 months to completely get rid of them. I hope you get rid of them soon and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Unfortunately fleas do not live on the dog, but only hop on to feed and then they hop off and stay in his environment (your apartment!) until it is time to feed again. So you need to treat all pets in the household as well as the environment (which contains the fleas, their eggs and larvae). Flea treatment:  1) Get some flea medication such as a Flea spray or a spot on from a pet shop or your veterinarian and apply monthly (which you have done already) 2) get flea powder, put some in your vacuum cleaner bag and vacuum your house and furniture and also non-carpeted areas frequently to remove flea larvae and eggs which live off house dust., Dispose of the bag in the trash outside. Hot-wash all the pet's bedding, If you do this diligently for a few months you will get rid of the fleas. Flea products: Spot-ons: Advantage, Advantix Advantage Multi Frontline (ticks as well) Bravecto spot on (ticks as well) - for cats, in tablet form for dogs Nexgard Revolution Tablets: comfortis (will only kill fleas once) Collar: Seresto (ticks as well) House spray: Indoorex

Because adult fleas only represent a very small percentage of the flea population it is very possible Princess has fleas and you just aren't seeing them. I'd recommend using a good quality flea preventative like Frontline Plus, Revolution or Advantage. It usually takes 4 months of monthly treatment to fully eradicate a flea problem. Princess could also be having these skin issues related to a food allergy or environmental allergy so if the problem persists or gets worse you should have her examined by your veterinarian. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I hope Princess's issue resolves quickly!

I'm sorry you are having such problems with fleas! I have personally found, as have a number of my colleagues, that there is resistance to Frontline and pets continue to have problems with them despite applying the Frontline. I will give you the flea treatment program I typically recommend and have found to be very effective. First, I would give Shadow Capstar. It's a one time pill that starts killing fleas within 30 minutes. Then follow up with a spot on treatment, such as Advantage or Revolution. This is a treatment that has to be used once a month. You will also have to disinfect the environment, this is very important. Wash his bedding in hot soapy water, and vacuum the furniture and carpet surfaces. You can use a spray to kill fleas in the house, such as Indorex, or a flea bomb would work well to kill the fleas in the home. You may have to flea bomb the house a few times to kill all the fleas. My brother had a problem with fleas in his home, and the exterminator had to visit three times before they were all gone. I hope this helps!