Has anyone ever heard of adding vinegar to pet's water to ward off fleas? I heard this on a PBS show, but their site is down for construction.
Apparently the pets drink the vinegar water and by it coming through their pores, it keeps fleas away. There were different amounts of vinegar based on the pets' weight. Any input would be appreciated.
By Teri Van Hecke from St. Louis, MO
I have used this. I learned about it from a veterinarian. White vinegar is fine. I use an old water jug....1/4 cup per gallon and the fleas stay away! And the best and cheapest way I've used and learned to treat your yard is PineSol and water in a pump sprayer! You can Google the amounts for the size of your pump sprayer....I have a 3 gallon backpack pump strayer so it's either 4 cups or 1 small bottle and the rest water. Then pump up and spray the border of your yard and for extra protection I suggest spraying all of the inside of your yard for the first treatment every sping.
This page contains the following solutions.
50/50 Apple Cider Vinegar and water. Put the mixture in spray bottle and spray on your dog/cat. This will stop itching, kill any bacteria/fleas and shine their coat.
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I have heard that you can add apple cider vinegar to your pet's water to help with fleas, is this true?
By Lora from TX
This is true, and if you go to earthclinic.com and look under the pets tab you can find it...let me see..here are a few starter links to begin your research:
Some info I found....
Add a small amount of apple cider vinegar to your pet's drinking water. The appropriate ratio is 1 tsp. of vinegar to 1 qt. of water.
According to The Vinegar Institute, this ratio will work to keep a 40 lb. animal flea-free. Using white distilled vinegar instead of apple cider vinegar is acceptable, but your pet may enjoy the apple cider more than the distilled white.
Vinegar is an acidic substance, and when your pet ingests it, it will make his coat more acidic.....
www.ehow.com/
Notice that salt is less toxic than borax. I put it all over the house when I see a flea.
Also what I do for my dogs is that often, I will take a rag washed with a dove soap bar and rinsed out...and yet it still has enough water to wash their skin under the fur. It makes them feel like they have just had a bath and their coat is so soft.
The skin needs to be washed, it develops lot of dead cells over time...and it feels better to have their skin wiped down every so often...they love it. It also rids them of pollen and toxins off their coat.
The next day it is dry and I put adams flea spray on them in the "spots" I hold the fur up and spray under the hair.
I don't cover them completely. First, I do a circle around their ears, and then I do under their arms, up their spine where they cant lick at it and then on their tail at the base and around their collar.
I am going to have to thin out our chow shepherd's hair since it is so thick I cant even be sure the spray will get where it is supposed to go. I would put the salt all over the floors and under the sheets...fleas hate salt with a passion. And it is cheap.
Also, If you are going to bathe the animal and you want a tried and true way to kill fleas on them, use dawn and baby shampoo mixed with peroxide on them. Lather it and leave it about five to ten minutes. Then rinse two or three times. Have a special treat for after the bath.
If the dogs are on a supplement of fish oil pills, then they should be healthier...anything to help the skin on a dog and it's overall health will help with fleas.
Also the dosage for a dog for benadryl is one to two milliarams per body weight.
Food is an issue too, I like to feed Pedigree even though it is far from the perfect food. Whenever I have chicken I give it to them. If you look up on the internet which dog foods are the best you will find authority and pro plan are the best because meat is a first ingredient.
I cant afford the whole bag of it, but I buy it in the extra small bags and give it to them as treats.
Lots of things can help with fleas. There is tons of information on earthclinic.com just don't inhale the peroxide, that is the craziest remedy I have seen on there.
I am sad to say that Frontline is no longer working for me or a lot of people. The formula seems to be useless.
Blessings, Robyn
How much white vinegar do you use to get rid of fleas on a dog?
Either half and half or one part vinegar to two parts water-your choice.
Please do not use vinegar to kill fleas. It does not work and can make things worse. This is my experience. Others may have good experiences, but no one I know has. Using vinegar just prolonged the issue.
Also never buy flea treatments from the dollar stores. I have heard too many horror stories about those. Again, my experience, others may have good stories, but I have only heard of them making the animals very ill.
Best to talk to your vet (most will do this with a call and not an office visit) and find what he recommends for your dog based on the pup's size/weight.
In addition to the treatment, ask if the dog can take an over the counter medication like benedryl and the amount for itching. That was what our vet gave us when our boy had issues for the itching. I have no memory of the name of the treatment she gave us, but it worked in a few days. It was not that expensive either.
We had to wash everything (all of his bedding, our bedding, steam cleaned the carpet and chairs and couch before we finally got it all under control.
Post back what the vet says! Prayers for all!
Please take the advice of Pghgirl40. I agree that vinegar is not a solution to a flea problem. It's also best to buy brand name flea control products.
You have probably heard or read about a mixture of vinegar killing fleas but this mixture is for killing fleas in your house/carpet and not fleas on your dog or cat.
You can give your dog a bath with original blue Dawn dish soap and it will kill adult fleas (if left on for 5 minutes).
www.wikihow.com/
www.petmd.com/
There are several home remedies for killing fleas but to be effective you will have to use something all over your house as well as doing a good job of vacuuming before and after treatment. These measures will have to be repeated several times to completely remove fleas as they produce in cycles and repeated clean up is the only way that will work.
You can use food grade diatomaceous earth (DE) for killing fleas in your home and on your pet. This is safe for humans and pets but precautions have to be taken when applying. You will only need a small amount (2 lbs.) as it goes a long way. This can be purchased online or pet stores as well as garden/farm stores.
www.amazon.com/
There are other safe remedies for killing fleas but some are not to be used on pets.
If the fleas are really bad you may have to start with a commercial product similar to this one.
www.1800petmeds.com/
You can actually put in a spray bottle and spray it on dog and rub it in. Be sure to mix the vinegar with water. Works well. Little smelly but hey it works. Good luck
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