flea/tick prevention

[rubicon]

I use Frontline Plus on LeeAnn and Rusty and at the vets suggestion had them vaccinated for lyme disease. Now the vet is suggesting I put tick collars on them. Do you think that is overkill?

[Leadbutt]

My vet here , dosen't like flea or tick collars, said they don't work, she did tell me to try a yeast and garlic tab, along with the med's she put them on

[huntingvet]

Since I am not your vet and have not examined your pet or evaluated your situation, I'll try to offer generalized information.

Lymes disease is more of a risk in the northeast coastal areas. It is a serious, debilitating, and often misdiagnosed disease that can have human health implications.

Frontline or Frontline Plus are excellent tick control products if applied every 30 days, but even then if tick exposure is high you will continue to see ticks. Advantix (different from Advantage) is equally effective in my experience.

Tick collars that contain the active ingredient "amitraz" are shown to be effective an can be used in conjunction with monthly spot ons.

Homeopathic remedies like garlic lack scientific proof of working but many stories continue to support their use. They are very safe with few side effects. Gross oversupplementation with garlic can cause anemia.

Based on this information and consultation with your vet decide what is appropriate for your situation.

[fabsroman]

I had Nitro vaccinated for Lyme's disease and am pretty glad that I had it done because I found a couple ticks on him earlier in the year and they had actually bitten him. I currently use BioSpot but am thinking about switching to one of the others (e.g., Frontline or Advantix). While I have seen ticks crawling on Nitro after we are outside, I have yet to see another one imbedded in him since I started using the Bio Spot.

Personally, I wouldn't use a collar, but that is just my personal opinion and I am no expert.

[rubicon]

What my vet told me was that frontline would get 80% of ticks and the vaccination ( initial shot then two boosters )was only for lyme disease and wouldnt keep ticks off and the tick collar would help with the other 20 %. We do have LOTS of ticks here and he gets doggie patients with lime every summer. I didnt buy the collars.