Flea treatment issues

[Tom_C76]

We seem to have a recurring issue with fleas. Have two rough collies, both dosed monthly with Effipro. Smaller dog weighs 18kg so gets the medium dog pipette (10 to 20kg). Larger dog weighs 26kg so gets the large dog treatment (up to 40kg, so much larger than he is).

Smaller dog is free of fleas. Larger has lots of them. Seems as though the treatment isn't spreading on him for some reason rather than being fleas that resist the treatment, as otherwise I'd expect both to have the same issue.

Any suggestions as to what to try next? Flea combs or regular baths are a non-starter with a particularly hairy rough collie.

[bexVN]

Fipronil (which is what Effipro is I believe) appears to be reducing in efficacy.

We advise Advocate - definitely better than Fipronil - but this doesn't cover against ticks if this is of concern aswell (we advise tick removers)

There is a newish collar out for flea and ticks, slow release, water resistant, safety collar, proving to be very good called Seresto.

There are a couple of newer products out but I'm not that familiar with them yet (been on maternity leave)

[Mr Tom]

As above regards with the fipronil. I would stronghold as it contains selemectin which stays present in the blood rather than advocate (active ingredient imidacloprid) which washes off more easy over the month (especially if your dogs swim). Both work well though.

Tom

[Tom_C76]

Advocate was recommended and dispensed by a local vet. I didn't use it as the worm treatment in it is very toxic to collies by ingestion, and I'm not going to risk one licking it off the other.

Will look into the other suggestions, but I'm baffled as to why the fipronil is killing/preventing fleas on one dog and not on the other...

[bexVN]

It is safe in Rough Collies, I honestly would not have suggested it othereise.

We researched into it very carefully as we have a Rough Collie owner (shows and has bred in the past) she has since been using it on her rough collies with no issue and believe me there is no way she would have if she wasn't satisfied with its safety. You are obviously right to be aware though. Advocate and Stronghold use derivatives of ivermectin (this is dangerous in collies) and with advocate it has had no adverse affects even in 5x the dose.

There is a chance of neurological signs if 40% of required dose is ingested (no signs at 10%) so giving it chance to absorb would be sensible (2hrs).

Best thing would be to get your vet to talk to Bayer technical support (they will be honest, they have no interest in risking the life of an animal)

Some people add garlic to food to repel fleas but care with dosing as even garlic has the potential to be toxic (causing anaemia)and isn't regulated in the same way.

You may want to check out the Seresto collar instead maybe.

Some animals just attract fleas more than others and some react and scratch at the bites more than others so it is more noticeable.

Edited by bexVN on Thursday 18th June 12:49

[Tom_C76]

Just to follow up, and with thanks to Bex for her comments, we took both beasts along to a different vet who has prescribed Bravecto tablets. They agreed that dog No 1 wasn't showing any signs of fleas but we're treating them both with the same stuff anyway to help with tracking when it's due.

Advantage of this stuff is that it does work on ticks too, which are a major issue round here due to the deer population and grass in the parks not being cut very frequently.

[bexVN]

Tom_C76 said:

Just to follow up, and with thanks to Bex for her comments, we took both beasts along to a different vet who has prescribed Bravecto tablets. They agreed that dog No 1 wasn't showing any signs of fleas but we're treating them both with the same stuff anyway to help with tracking when it's due.

Advantage of this stuff is that it does work on ticks too, which are a major issue round here due to the deer population and grass in the parks not being cut very frequently.

Glad you found something you can use, I am not familiar with Bravecto, though on reading up it does say flea and ticks need to attach for a few hours (8 for flea, 12 for ticks) for it too work, so you may well see a tick latch on but after half a day it should be dead and then fall off.. Will be interesting to see how you find it goes.