I received this question from a friend. I couldn't help her much; neither of us live in areas where fleas and ticks are enough of a problem to require preventatives. (My one and only flea infestation occurred at least 20 years ago.) What do those of you who have to deal with this problem know about long term dangers from these chemicals?
"My Boston sister had a yellow Lab that died last week. He was only
10 1/2 and died of cirrhosis that came on very suddenly and killed him in a
week. She took him to a vet that uses both western and alternative
approaches, and the vet said that ten years of treatment with flea killers
(Advantage or Frontline, not sure which she used) might have caused a build
up of toxins. The vet thought that there was eventually going to be a
lawsuit against the company or companies that manufacture the stuff. Have
you heard of anything like that?"
I live in Minnesota where fleas and ticks are everywhere. I have never had fleas and only a time or two have I found a tick on one of mine. if I do find a tick they are either just crawling on them or recently attached. I use Frontline Plus twice a year...once in the spring and once in the fall. So far everything is fine with my crew. I did have a holistic vet tell me that there is really no reason to dose them any more often as the chemical stays in their system much longer than we realize. I will say I am not a vet and I am not saying this is the correct way to use the product, I am sharing what I do.
Frontline is not supposed to be absorbed systemically. It is supposed to spread through the sebaceous cells/glands on the surface of the skin. So with that concept, it is supposed to be safer than the ones that are absorbed through the skin and into the bloodstream.
Old dips were full of chemicals that were absorbed and caused liver or kidney failure. That's why Frontline was so revolutionary when it first came out. Several of the flea/tick topicals now ARE absorbed and those are the ones to watch out for.
I use Frontline only when needed (going into a bad tick area).
