Dog with fleas, what do you do?

[SusanBAnthony]

I just found 7 fleas on our dog. I'm not 100% confident there aren't more but I was pretty thorough.

She is on Bravecto but I was about a week late giving her last dose (she got her dose 6 days ago).

She caught a rabbit today. Do you think that could be the source?

Will the Bravecto kill any remaining ones or should I go ahead and burn down my house?

[Deleted]

It's the time of year, if she's going outside.

I recommend permethrin, you can get it for your home and pet

[SusanBAnthony]

Sept 3, 2021 21:11:03 GMT -5 @stevia said:

It's the time of year, if she's going outside.

I recommend permethrin, you can get it for your home and pet

How do you apply it to your house?


Google is also telling me Capstar could be an option.

[Deleted]

Sept 3, 2021 21:14:42 GMT -5 SusanBAnthony said:

Sept 3, 2021 21:11:03 GMT -5 @stevia said:

It's the time of year, if she's going outside.

I recommend permethrin, you can get it for your home and pet

How do you apply it to your house?


Google is also telling me Capstar could be an option.

We buy it as a spray and spray it inside and outside. Good for all pests- spiders in the summer, mice in the winter, etc.

Not harmful to larger mammals, like cat sized or bigger. Nor humans

[Deleted]

We've even just sprayed it directly on the dog

(It's safe)

[fumbalina]

With that few I just wash all my dogs and might reapply my yard spray. I use Cutter Bug Free Backyard.

[georgeglass]

We used capstar with no complaints.

[SusanBAnthony]

Sept 3, 2021 23:35:50 GMT -5 fumbalina said:

With that few I just wash all my dogs and might reapply my yard spray. I use Cutter Bug Free Backyard.

Thank you! I have never dealt with fleas before so I don't really what is just a few and what is a lot.

[meganew]

We found about that many on our dog last week, it totally freaked me out. We treated her and the cats and then washed every single thing in our house- bedding, pillow covers, throw blankets, pet beds, etc. We threw out our living room area rug (it was on its last leg anyway) and then vacuumed like crazy people. We took the couches apart and vacuumed them, did the mattresses, everything. We haven’t seen any since, and the vet said with how few we found that treating the animals and thoroughly cleaning the house we should be able to take care of it ourselves without bug bombing the house or whatever. She did say though that you might see one here and there for a few weeks as they go through their life cycle and die off, you just have to be consistent with washing/cleaning.

It sucks!

[huskymom]

When we got one of our dogs from the pound, he was covered. Got him capstar the next day and never saw any again!

[livinitup]

FYI - when you vacuum your house, remove the vacuum bag or clean out the canister. Even when you do a good job of vacuuming them up, you still need to remove fleas that survived from the bag and your home.

[SusanBAnthony]

Sept 4, 2021 15:09:57 GMT -5 livinitup said:

FYI - when you vacuum your house, remove the vacuum bag or clean out the canister. Even when you do a good job of vacuuming them up, you still need to remove fleas that survived from the bag and your home.

I did this. Currently the canister is in the garage..... It's a 15 year old Dyson. Not sure how to clean the canister or of it even can be cleaned.

[cherry1111]

When our dog had fleas he wasn’t on any preventative. We started him on Bravecto and after a couple of hours never saw a live flea again. Hopefully the Bravecto will do it for you.

[mrspez07]

One way to check if they are still in the house is do a shallow dish of water on the floor in the room you suspect the most, below a small light, overnight. We rarely get them in CO, but 2 years ago I was being bitten, so washed and vacuumed for days! Also did a powder on the carpet that smells a bit like residual cinnamon.

[googled]

I dealt with this twice with my last two dogs. Capstar ASAP, then a very, very thorough flea bath. Start at the neck/head and work your way to the butt - CHECK THEIR BUTTS. The fleas will scurry off to their butts to hide. Make sure you scrub there. While they’re drying off, vacuum all the carpets and furniture really well, then use a flea spray for furniture. Empty the vacuum cleaner into a bag and put outside right away in case eggs are in it. Comb with a furminator if you have one and if needed, follow up with another dose of Capstar in 2-3 days if you think you see more.

[fumbalina]

Sept 4, 2021 6:39:51 GMT -5 SusanBAnthony said:

Sept 3, 2021 23:35:50 GMT -5 fumbalina said:

With that few I just wash all my dogs and might reapply my yard spray. I use Cutter Bug Free Backyard.

Thank you! I have never dealt with fleas before, so I don't really what is just a few and what is a lot.

There are always more fleas than you found, but even so, if you can count them, it is not usually too bad. You should also deal with bedding/flooring as well. I have used pills and topicals before, but the one time I had an overwhelming infestation, the thing that was the most effective was a Seresto flea collar on each of my dogs, topical for the yard, and thorough cleaning. I have four dogs, so fleas happen once in a while. 

As for culprits, honestly the grass, the rabbit, even a cardboard box can be the originator. It only matters to figure that out if mitigation efforts don't work.