What are the Dogs Telling Dr. Blake about Natural Flea and Tick Care? This message comes from the flea capital of the United States, San Diego. I have been here for 34 years and have had to become a flea expert to avoid the uses of chemicals which nearly killed me over 25 years ago. First of all, when you are having a flea problem there are two factors that are most responsible for them getting a foothold on your pets and in your homes. The first is the immune factor. A healthy animal will naturally repel parasites, forcing the parasites to seek greener pastures. Feeding a natural diet http://www.thepetwhisperer.com/natural_food.html and no over-vaccinating or chemicals of any kind on or in the pets are all a good start as well. Hereditary or miasmatic conditions are common in 90%+ of all domestic animals. I would first look at them from a homeopathic evaluation and try to determine if there is any sign of chronic disease. If there were symptoms I would prescribe accordingly. A simple nutritional supplement which will help to maximize their immune systems would be Bovine Colostrum. This may also help with the tapeworms but to be honest with you, all these little guys can be difficult to get rid of. One product that I have heard has cleared many of my patients is (Parastat: 1-800-370-3447) herbal wormer for all internal parasites. The second part of the puzzle is the environment. If the energy of the home has any disharmony in it (nothing personal), this can weaken the immune system also. Make sure everyone is as content as they can be and open with each other so the animals do not stress over their over concern for you. I often have my clients make a mixture of the following Bach flowers and spray it around the house to help detoxify negative energy from the environment. Walnut, Crabapple, Holly, Wild rose and Wild oat. Bathing with any natural shampoo (MAL SCENTS -Pets SHAMPOO) http://www.thepetwhisperer.com/essential_oil.html that kills them on contact due to its saponification properties should work. I have used natural dish soap and found it to kill them as well as anything. For fleas and mosquitoes I have the owners follow up with an Essential Blend of oils consisting of one drop Lemon, Lemongrass and one drop of R. C. (blend of essential oils containing 4 blends of Eucalyptus species , Pine, Lavender, Cypress, Spruce, Myrtle, Marjoram and Peppermint.) per ounce of water and spraying this on the dogs after they are dried off. You can also spray them with this any time they are going into an area that is flea/tick or mosquito infested to help repel them. For Ticks I use one drop of each of the following oils in water and spray it on them each day they go out in tick-infested areas; Lavender, Lemon grass, Sage and Thyme. I have also had good luck with ultrasound devices you can get at Costco that give off a frequency that repels the mosquitoes. Make sure they do not bother the pets and that where you buy them they give money-back guarantee. I have found that many of my clients who live in tick-infested areas of the country have had great luck with natural flea collars from Holistic Family and Pets. Within three days the tick population was reduced by 90% with no toxins. It is also very effective against fleas as well. The company has devised a holistic approach which combines a natural blend: Calendula, Silica, Cayenne, Calcarea Fluorica, Echinacea, Flea Bane, Odorless Garlic, Cinnamon, Red Cedar, Asian Mint, Rhus Tox, Tiger Lily, Aconitum Napellus, Aloe, Anacardium, Aloe, Vitamin E, Graphites, Berberis, Echinacea, Sulfur, Placenta, Milk Thistle, Chamomile, Daffodil. For carpets and furniture, place one teaspoon of wintergreen essential oil - the same kind that you use in vaporizers for colds - into a quart of hot water in a mist sprayer. Mist carpets, upholstered furniture, pillows and anything where flea eggs can hatch. The mist will not kill fleas but it will kill the eggs. Spray about 3 times a year. The odor goes away in a few days and you are safe for months without danger of pesticides. Since oil of wintergreen is used on babies, I do not believe it can hurt cats or dogs. You don't spray the animals; just their environment. I have found that if you steam clean or rent a Rug Doctor and clean with Simple Green (You may want to try this on carpet out of sight just in case it discolors your carpet, so you will not be mad at me;) you will kill all of the adult fleas immediately. When the carpets are completely dry, put a mixture of 1 part Borax salts to 3 parts salt and rake it into all carpeted areas of the house. Leave for a week and then vacuum as you would do normally. This treatment will last years from my experience. Good luck and remember "No wolf ever went to a chemical plant for a flea/tick or mosquito repellent!" LAST MINUTE Emergency Information just received by Dr. Blake from one of his Crusaders for helping animals stay safe! Dangers of topical flea and tick products. Dear Dr. Blake, I recently came to see you for a more “holistic” and “natural” approach for treating my pets medical conditions. During that first meeting I shared with you the recent experience that I had that led me to do some research related to the ingredients and side effects of the flea/tick control that we use on our pets. I have attached the information to this e-mail. Please feel free to include it in your news letter so that we can inform as many pet owners as possible. Everyone needs to know that these companies are killing our pets and possibly us, their owners. The reason for my research started when a very good friend of mine, Dan, went into liver failure acutely. His liver biopsy showed an inflammatory response due to an unknown chemical and/or medication. His wife and I were brain storming trying to identify anything that he had been newly exposed to. The only thing that could be identified was that Dan had recently applied “Frontline Plus” to both of his dogs for flea/tick control. FYI, I had to quit using Frontline on one of my dogs about 6 months ago because it was causing her severe lethargy and vomiting right after I applied the liquid flea control to her back. Thus, my research began. The attachment gives you the ingredients to a few popular flea/tick control topicals. Use the table to identify the specific ingredient that is used in a given brand, i.e. Frontline, Advantage, etc. and look at the side effects that are listed. Funny thing is that none of these side effects are listed on the packaging for Frontline Plus. I don’t have access to the other brands packaging so I cannot comment on their warning label. Also I find it interesting that many of the brands don’t tell you what the “inert” ingredients are. Frontline does list its “inert” ingredients and their side effects include birth defects, cancer producing, neuro toxic and damage to organs. No wonder some of these other brands don’t list the inert ingredients. After having completed my research I have decided that I will never use any type of chemical flea/tick control on my pets. Because of the information that I obtained from your web site I will use a “natural” approach to flea control in the future. You can order “natural” flea/tick collars for your pets at www.holisticfamilyandpets.com or go to www.thepetwhisperer.com for other flea/tick control remedies that are natural. This is the site where I obtained the information regarding the ingredients and side effects of flea/tick control. There is also much more information on this site that is interesting because it really tells you how the companies have tried to hide these side effects from the consumer: http://www.apnm.org/publications/resources/fleachemfin.pdf I have never recommended any of these products due to the dangers of using neurotoxic chemicals on animals. My concern is that these chemicals cause acute and chronic disease to my friends the animals. My other concern is that the caregivers and their children are being exposed to these chemicals by touching and hugging them 24/7. There are no safety studies on the long term effect of any of these chemicals on children. Any product that tells you to ware gloves, do not get it on your skin and then put on your pet once a month should be warning enough that it is dangerous to be around. These chemicals can causing seizures, liver,kidney, thyroid, spleen and adrenal disease weakness of muscles, labored breathing, incoordination, increased miscarriages, birth defects, heart and brain disease as well. There are no studies on long term use or the levels of these chemicals in the body. My advise is to make sure your pets do not have this on them and if they do, wash it off immediately and never use it again. Make sure your children's doctors are aware of their exposure to these chemicals if they are having any acute or chronic conditions that relate to these chemicals. Please pay this forward and save a life. Dr. Stephen Blake