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(More customer reviews)I have had my dog, Asia--a Dalmatian/Jack Russell mix--for three years. My husband and I live on 2 and a half acres of partially wooded land, so we knew Asia would be roaming through the brush and trees every day, encountering all sorts of internal and external parasites. When we first got her, I told the vet our circumstances and asked for a combination of products that would "take care of everything."
What we got was Interceptor for heartworm/intestinal worms, and Frontline Plus for fleas and ticks.
Asia had been on that regimen ever since: Interceptor year-around and the Frontline Plus every month except Jan/Feb/Mar (we live in Michigan). Things were fine until the end of last summer when I would comb her out and occasionally find a tick. Like I said, occasionally... So I didn't give it too much thought. But THEN...
Fast forward to early this spring. It was the middle of March, still pretty chilly outside, but we'd had a few warm days. I was roughhousing with Asia and off dropped a tick! What the heck?! I thought those little suckers were showing up pretty early in the year, but no problem-- I'll just start the Frontline Plus a couple weeks early (I had previously been restarting her for the spring on April 1).
But there WAS a problem. I put the Frontline Plus on, but the ticks kept coming! Every day I was combing at least three or four out of her fur. They were hard to find, too, because she has a dense short coat that is white with lots of black spots and speckles (Dalmatian mix, remember..?) The ticks are dark brown, almost black, so I would always be like, "Hmmm... did she have that particular speckle before??? Or is that new?"
According to the product literature, Frontline Plus kills ticks-- but it doesn't repel them, and it can take a day or more to kill them. Meanwhile Asia was bringing them into the house by the boatload, and I can just imagine that they might take a sip of her "toxic" blood and then jump off and find something less poisoned to suck on. Namely, my husband and ME.
For awhile I thought using "natural" products-- both commercially produced herbal flea/tick repellants, as well as concoctions I mixed myself using recipes from the interweb--would help "boost" the effect of the Frontline Plus. I fed her garlic and brewer's yeast, and slathered her coat with peppermint, citronella, sage, and rose geranium oil. It was a lot of work, a huge mess, and had little or no effect on the tick situation.
I also tried the Preventic collar. It didn't seem to make a difference as far as the ticks went... I understand that for it to be effective it has to be in constant contact with the dog's skin. Asia has extremely thick fur around her neck, so I kept the collar as snug as possible on her without choking her to death. She looked uncomfortable, and even at that, I wasn't sure the collar was against her skin. One day she was outside for awhile in the rain (with the Preventic collar on)and the next day she had a red, welted area of skin on the back of her neck where the collar had been. It wasn't getting rid of the ticks, it was tight and uncomfortable, and now her neck was getting raw. That was enough for me. Into the garbage it went!
I went on Amazon and started reading reviews for different products. Obviously, I don't want to hurt my dog (there are a number of commenters who rant about the evils of "chemicals" and describe serious side effects experienced by their dogs.) I get the need for caution. But, understand, I tried EVERYTHING and the ticks were out of control. I felt like I was being stalked. One night I found one crawling around on my husband's back, and the following week I woke up with one attached to my arm. "Yuck" doesn't even begin to describe it, people!
And then...? I bought K9 Advantix. And used it on Asia. She did fine-- no observed side effects. And then the heavens opened and the angels sang, and... OK, well maybe not all that. But there were NO MORE TICKS! They were just... gone. I combed over every inch of her coat (like I had been doing for months), lint roller at the ready, waiting to find one. But it's been over a month and I haven't seen one. Not even one! On her, or on me, or anywhere else. Hallelujah!!!
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