We have an 8 mth female Shih Tzu and have treated her with purina total care flea eliminator and she has?

Question

had a terrible reaction.

she was treated with the correct dose, but has broken out in scabs that r obviously extremely painful. we've taken her to the vet and they gave us dermcare shampoo, which we've used after bathing her in tepid water.

we no doubt have to take her to the vet again as she is still in extreme pain. i wanted to know has anyone had this problem with this or similar products and what did you do, and what was the outcome? i am going to ring purina about this when offices open tomorrow.

Answer 1

Yes - there are several examples on the Web.  Google "Dog reaction to flea medication" -- you'll find some sites.  Several mention that the problem has a correlation to some of the in-store products as opposed to items purchased from your vet.  Personally, I don't understand why that would make a difference.  Also - one thing was that if your dog reacted to his medication - it may react again similarly in the future to other meds or other allergens.  That site recommended having an epi-pen or a dose of benadryl available to mitigate the severity of the next reaction.  You should ask your vet about that.

Remember - you are putting a pesticide on your pet's skin - and the skin can facilitate the absorption of all sorts of things.  I've used Frontline once for two months -- it didn't seem worth the $$.  So, I just vacuum very regularly, use a flea comb and a flea shampoo from time to time.   I don't give anything topical or internal for fleas now .  But, I also live in a wet, colder area and we really only have a bad flea season during the summer.

Hope your little one is better soon.  

Answer 2

Yes, some of these cheap flea removers has harsh chemicals. If it has any wound in skin, it would be very painful.

Use the more expensive ones.

Answer 3

Dogs often suffer when flea treatments are used, its the strong chemicals.

There are lots of treatments for killing and preventing fleas, they are full of nasty chemicals and they are expensive. I make up a solution for my dogs which prevents fleas, although it is also said to kill fleas I have no experience of this because my dogs have never had fleas.

Use a few drops of Citricidal and essential oils of Citronella, Tea Tree and Lavender. Add this to half a pint of vinegar or water and sponge a small amount onto your dog’s coat. I use this about twice a week.

Answer 4

Not had the same problem, but I found with my dachshund that if I used anything with harsh chemicals in it to wash him his skin would flake and he would be very very itchy. The only thing I found that I could wash him with and not have problems was a natural dog soap with neem oil in it.