How to keep fleas of my dog

Question
I have a flea infestation in my house, and my dog has a severe case of flea allergy dermatitis. She was put on two medications for treatment, I giver her missing link supplement in her food, and I use frontline to keep the fleas off. The frontline does not keep the fleas off. They are still crawling all over her, and the dermatitis has not improved after a month on the medication. I can't afford to rid the entire environment of fleas. How can I ensure that my dog will not be bit? And will the dermatitis ever go away?

Answer
Sorry it took me so long to answer this but I am sick.
The first thing I can tell you is yes, you DO need to get rid of the fleas in your environment. You are wasting your money on Frontline since all it does is kill adult fleas. Most of the issue with fleas are the larvae and eggs and the cocooned fleas.

Even ONE flea can start the reaction your dog is having. Flea shampoos DO NOT kill fleas. Even if the kill the ones on your dog at that moment, the fleas will be back on the dog in two hours. Not seeing fleas in the bath water means nothing.

Your main problem with fleas is not the adults but what's in your rugs and floors. The biggest issue are the eggs, cocoons, and larvae, which feed off the feces of the fleas. The eggs fall onto the floors and are in the fibers of the rugs and cracks of the floors. These hatch into the cocoon which nothing can penetrate and kill.
So you need a flea program that will- 1. Kill the adults. I use Ovitrol spray as it is an insect growth regulator, or IGR, and it kills the adults and then makes the eggs unable to hatch and the larvae unable to spin a cocoon.

2. You need an IGR to stop the growth of the millions of eggs in your rugs and floors and to stop the larvae from spinning a cocoon.

3. Once the cocoons that were already spun open and hatch (takes about two weeks) you will have a new crop of fleas that you can use the Ovitrol on to kill before they lay eggs.

4. You should put your dog on Sentinel tablets to sterilize the fleas so any eggs they lay won't hatch at all. Also, it stops the larvae from growing because they eat the flea feces and that is what has the IGR in it from the Sentinel.

If your dog is on a monthly heartworm pill now it is easy to switch to Sentinel and get twice the protection for your dog- from heartworms and fleas.

My cat and one dog are all on it and have been for years. They are inside/outside animals and don't have one flea on them. I have two and a half acres and no fleas. So I know it works.

The flea pyramid is an example of what you are battling here.

http://www.flea-info.com/cab/en/cat_fleas_lifecycle.shtml
http://www.flea-info.com/cab/en/dog.shtml
They are called cat fleas but that is the species of flea, not that they are only on cats.

You MUST rid your house of fleas and if you use these products they will work. It won't be overnight but they will work week after week to kill the adults, eggs and larvae. Your dog's health and quality of life depends on you taking a pro-active approach to ridding your house of these pests. That is the ONLY way you can keep your dog from getting bitten. Her dermatitis will not go away until you do so.

For the cost of one month of Frontline you can get some Ovitrol spray and a fogger to start. That will kill off a great many of the fleas in the house. Then get her on the Sentinel for fleas and heartworm prevention. That will save you money also.
The longer she is on it, the cleaner your home will get. Vacuum regularly and spray Ovitrol into the bag to kill the eggs, larvae and adults it picks up. That will go a long way in helping. Also once the cocooned fleas emerge to feed, the Sentinel will sterilize them and the Ovitrol will kill them if you use it weekly on the dog. It is a wet spray that can be put on a rag and you can wipe her down with it. Also treat any other pets with it.

That is what you need to do Maria. In the end you will save money because you will eliminate the cause- the immature stages of fleas. Your dog will be happier and flea free, thus dermatitis free. That will save you money on vet visits etc. You can buy all of these products except the Sentinel at the vets or the pet store. The Sentinel must be bought at the vets. Since your dog should already be on heartworm prevention, switching to Sentinel will be easy.

If you have any questions please let me know.