The Best Ways to Medicate Fleas

When your dog develops a flea problem it is both an annoyance and a health concern. Not only is not safe for your pet, it can become a problem in your house if enough fleas set-up camp in your carpet and furniture. There are a multitude of ways to treat fleas to keep your dog comfortable, happy and healthy. Most dog owners find that a combination of therapies is best for treating and preventing flea outbreaks.

  1. Flea Collars

    • Flea collars are small, medicated bands worn around the animal's neck like a standard collar. The chemicals on the collar are not harmful to your dog and are formulated to repel fleas. This is a suitable choice for ridding a dog of fleas, but it works best in combination with another treatment. Flea collars are best used as a preventative measure. It is comfortable and safe for your dog to wear the collar for an extended or indeterminate time, and it is narrow enough to be worn with the pet's standard collar.

    Spot-On Treatments

    • Spot-on treatments are small, bulbous packets of concentrated flea medication that you apply to the dog's coat in intervals of time specified by the manufacturer. The treatment is often applied just once a month. You apply it by opening the package, which loosely resembles a medicine dropper. Then, you place droplets of the medication in common center points of the dog's body like behind its neck, above the tail or at the ears. These treatments are an alternative to flea collars and are best used a preventative measure, but they can aid in flea removal.

    Shampoo

    • Shampooing your dog with a product formulated to target fleas is a reliable preventative and treatment option. As any dog owner knows, giving a dog a bath can be a taxing experience if not an outright nightmare. However, cleaning the animal with flea shampoo is an effective way to rid a dog of fleas if it has a mild to moderate outbreak. Using a flea shampoo for regular dog baths, regardless of flea presence, is a simple way to protect the dog against future infestations.

    Flea Dip

    • The most concentrated way to treat a severe case of fleas is to give the animal a flea dip. The process is almost identical to a bath, but flea dip is much stronger chemical than standard dog shampoo. The chemicals are so strong that most dog owners opt to take the dog to the veterinarian for a flea dip rather than attempting one at home. If you do dip your dog at home be very careful to keep the chemicals out of its eyes, nose and mouth.