We just ran across an article from the Whole Dog Journal magazine regarding the safety of “spot-on” flea treatments such as Frontline and Advantage.
The article starts off:
Tempting as it may be to simplistically consider fleas as horrible insects, the bane of dogs everywhere, poisoning your dog in a vain attempt to wipe fleas out of existence doesn’t really make sense. Even though more than half a billion dollars annually are spent on products that kill fleas in that vain pursuit. Of course fleas can make dogs (and everyone else in the household) perfectly miserable. But it’s not as if using toxic flea killing chemicals is the only way to control fleas. When we attempt to get rid of our dogs’ fleas by utilizing chemicals that are toxic to the brain and nervous system, that may disrupt hormone (endocrine) systems, and that cause cancer, it’s sort of like burning the house down to get rid of ants – effective, sure, but what are you left with?
It is for the reasons in this article that Flea Free, an all natural and safe method of flea control, was developed. Our manufacturer, a chemist, sought out a safe alternative after losing his beloved Shelties to toxic poisoning from a popular flea spray.
We invite you to read this and other articles about the safety of “spot-on” flea treatments. If you’re looking for safe, all natural pet products, check out our products page.
Here’s some interesting information about fleas. Some you may know, some you may not.
Public Enemy #1?
Fleas pass through a complete life cycle of four stages.
Egg (50% of the population)
Larvae (30% of the population)
Pupae (15% of the population)
Adults (5% of the population)
So only 5% of fleas actually bite!
Completion of the life cycle from egg to adult varies from two weeks to eight months
Normally the female flea lays about 15 to 20 eggs per day up to 600 in a lifetime.
Usual hosts for fleas are dogs, cats, rats, rabbits, mice, squirrels, chipmunks, raccoons, opossums, foxes, chickens, and humans.
Eggs loosely laid in the hair or fur, drop out where the pet rests, sleeps or nests (rugs, carpets, upholstered furniture, cat or dog boxes, kennels, sand boxes, etc.)
Eggs hatch in two days to two weeks into larvae found indoors in floor cracks & crevices, along baseboards, under rug edges and in furniture or beds.
Sand and gravel are very suitable for flea development which is the reason fleas are erroneously called “sand fleas.”
Larvae are blind, avoid light, pass through three larval stages and take a week to several months to develop.
Their food consists of digested blood from adult flea feces, dead skin, hair, feathers, and other organic debris. (Larvae do not suck blood.)
Pupa mature to adulthood within a silken cocoon woven by the larva to which pet hair, carpet fiber, dust, grass cuttings, and other debris adheres.
In about five to fourteen days, adult fleas can emerge or may remain resting in the cocoon until the detection of vibration (pet and people movement), pressure (host animal lying down on them), heat, noise, or carbon dioxide (meaning a potential blood source is near).
Most fleas survive the winter in the larval or pupa stage and grow best during warm, moist winters and spring.
Adult fleas cannot survive or lay eggs without a blood meal, but may hibernate from two months to one year without feeding.
One big surprise people get is when they return from vacation and they find themselves with a major flea problem in the house. There is often a desperate need for flea control after a family has returned from a long vacation. The house has been empty with no cat or dog around for fleas to feed on. When the family and pets are gone, flea eggs hatch and larvae pupate. The adult fleas fully developed inside the pupa cocoon remains in a kind of “limbo” for a long time until a blood source is near. The family returning from vacation is immediately attacked by waiting hungry hordes of fleas. (In just 30 days, 10 female fleas under ideal conditions can multiply to over a quarter million different life stages.)
Completely developed adult fleas can live for several months without eating, as long as they do not emerge from their cocoons.
Newly emerged adult fleas live only about one week if a blood meal is not obtained.
Optimum temperatures for the flea’s life cycle are 70°F to 85°F and optimum humidity is 70 percent.
We’re currently test-marketing a new product: Natural Training Treats. These are 100% Beef jerky strips seasoned with Flea-Free. Flea-Free is our garlic and vinegar based all natural flea control supplement.
Garlic and vinegar naturally make a tasty seasoning mix for beef jerky strips. So far, the dogs we’ve used as guinea pigs (guinea dogs?) are really chomping these down.
Are you interested in a free sample? Leave a comment or contact us on the contact form and I can probably send you some to try for free.
We’re currently test-marketing a new product: Natural Training Treats. These are 100% Beef jerky strips seasoned with Flea-Free. Flea-Free is our garlic and vinegar based all natural flea control supplement.
