Advantage washes off.

Here is a flea emerging from its cocoon.  I'd go through the whole flea life cycle, but these folks have done a lovely job for you.  The point is that most of the flea's life cycle takes place OFF the animal in the environment.  Each flea lays hundreds of eggs each weak, and they fall off into the environment.  Once they develop into a new flea, they can remain dormant for months in your yard, carpet, upholstery, etcetera.  This is why having a flea-control product that stays on the pet for one month is so great.  When they return to the flea-cocoon-infested area, and pick up new fleas (within seconds), the new fleas die before they start the cycle over again.

Unfortunately, this only works if the product really stays on the pet for the whole month, if that's what you're expecting it to do.  Today we had a lady who felt that her dog must have multiple allergy problems requiring lots of cortisone, because she had the fleas under control -- she was using Advantage every month.  Examination revealed that the dog had many fleas present. "How often do you bathe him?  Bathing removes the Advantage pretty quickly you know."  Turns out, this dog likes to roll in nasty things (imagine that!) and sometimes is bathed more than once in a single day.  He certainly gets several baths per month.  This is one of those times that points up why it is so important to take a complete history when looking at the dog's problem.  You need to examine that patient's entire lifestyle.

Now Adantage (Bayer's imidocloprid) is a good product.  It spreads over the entire body when you squirt the little tube on the back.  The chemical forms tiny crystals that stick to the hair and skin and kill fleas (and their eggs) on contact.  A simple wetting, like getting caught in the rain, does not remove them.  It does last for a month, unless...  Scrubbing with soap and water takes it right off.  The first bath will take half of the product and the next bath takes the rest.  The dog is now "Advantage-free" and unprotected as far as fleas go.  If you're bathing three times per month (much less three times per day), this is not a good product for you to use once per month.

The over-the-counter products you can buy at Wal-Mart are either pyrethrin or permethrin.  They are also water-soluble, so a bath eliminates the product.  Worse, though they say you can use them once per month, they don't mention that these particular chemicals degrade rapidly in the open air and sunlight.  If you use these products, you probably need to use them once per  week, not once per month.  Now they don't seem like quite so much of a bargain. [Note: the permethrin-containing products say "do not use on cats"; this is no joke -- it will kill them.]

At KVC, we've had better luck with Frontline Plus (Merial's fipronil).  Like the aforementioned products, you apply the contents of one pre-measured tube to the pet's skin, putting it under the hair. Unlike the aforementioned products, it really lasts a month for most pets, and it survives bathing.  Fipronil is oil-soluble, not water-soluble.  When you apply it, it distributes through the skin oil, spreading over the entire body.  The excess wicks down into the oil glands in the hair follicles.  Certainly you can scrub it off with soap and water.  You know how dry your own skin feels when you get out of the shower in the wintertime -- you've stripped off the oil layer and there's nothing to hold the moisture in  your skin.   Even without lotion, the skin will put out another layer of oil from the little glands in the hair follicles.  If the pet has had Frontline applied, that skin oil will contain the flea-killing chemicals.  Even bathing once weekly, you should still have pretty good flea-control for a month.

Comments

[Robin]

What type of shampoo can I use on small dog using frontline? She is itching constantly!!! Can I simply bathe w/water and dishsoap, something that doesn't have flea chemicals?

[Doc]

Hello, Robin,

Dishwashing soap will probably be very drying to the skin. Dog and cat skin has a lot different pH balance and is much thinner and more delicate than human skin. We occasionally use Dawn for de-greasing animals that have become contaminated with motor oil or machinery grease, but I wouldn't use it for routine bathing.

I would recommend a soap-free hypoallergenic pet shampoo, like HyLyt EFA. Your veterinarian should be able to help you with this.

Thanks for reading and writing.

[Sarah]

Hi, love your site, have been reading through the archives after finding you via a Google search.

We just started our two (inside-only) cats on Advantage, as in they received the first dose this morning. Should we be okay with this? We put it on the base of their skull where they can't reach it (though it didn't stop them from trying!), so they can't lick it off. And like I said, they never go outside and we do not bathe them. Should the Advantage last all month?

Thanks for any info you can provide. Once again, love your site!

[Doc]

Hello, Sarah,

I think you will be happy with the Advantage on your house-cats. It is a good product, but it can't stand much bathing. Since most house-cats don't get much bathing, this should be no problem.

For my patients that go in and out, I really like Revolution because it also gives me heartworm prevention and protection from ear mites (which require direct contact to catch, so no problem with your house-cats).

Thanks for reading and writing.

[Alexis]

Well...

Advantage nearly killed my cat. Three days after treatment (his behavior got worse and worse starting from the first day of treatment) he was listless and lying on the floor, unwilling to get up, shaking/seizures, unable to eat or even drink. I thought he would die that night - and stayed up with him all night - and took him to the vet first thing in the morning.

He had to be hospitalized and fluids given intravenously... and the first thing the vet asked was "Has he been poisoned?"

No, he wasn't poisoned by anything other than the Advantage - as it started the night I put it on him.

I would not recommend this product to ANY ONE who loves their animal - especially not for cats!

[Alexis]

Oh - one thing I forgot to mention:

I even ran into a VET who, when I quizzed her about the effects of this poison (Advantage) said she would personally NEVER recommend Advantage to any animal.

That was the only vet I talked to who knew the scoop on just how many pets had died or were sickened by this horrible product.

It also "ate" a hole in my cat's neck where I put the original application of the product - and the hole refused to heal for weeks... bleeding and weeping - as if it had literally burned into his skin (which it had).

I will never use another commercial flea product again (whether it's vet-recommended or not). Some vets out there do know (and tell) the truth. They are rare, though. Most of them seem to care more about their sales of the product than the life of your animal, sadly.

I truly hope no one else's pet has to go through such a horrific experience - as it nearly killed my cat and broke my heart to see him like that.

As for Dawn: it may cause dryness, I don't know, or flakiness of the skin. But after that incident we did use Dawn and it killed every single flea and my cat was still healthy. It won't, however kill flea eggs. And the cat most likely won't like a bath. But it's better than having a sick animal. (Dawn will not sicken your animal; it is used on wildlife to clean their skin/feathers/fur etc. of oil after oil spills and has helped save many, many animals. Including mine - because I used it to wash off the Advantage (it is the only product recommended to remove Advantage).

[Doc]

Hello, Alexis,

I am sorry that you have had such a terrible experience. This is the first time I have heard of such a thing with Advantage, and I know that many people use it with no apparent problems.

Even when such an occurrence is rare, that is no consolation when it is YOUR beloved pet.

I suspect that you and your veterinarian have reported this adverse event to the manufacturer. If not, you should.

Thanks for reading and writing.

[Alexis]

Thank you for responding - I appreciate it.

Well, we used Advantage on this particular cat three times. The first time, all he did was seem a little "off" - the second time, we noticed he was lethargic but not enough to warrant a vet visit. On the third time, he literally almost died from the product - which we couldn't understand because we only used it about once every year and didn't have problems before (other than a little odd behavior and lethargy).

Also, the dose we gave him on that last time was a SMALLER dose than we usually gave.

I don't understand why it happened but I know I can't trust it anymore.

I do thank you for your concern for my cat. You're right, it really is no consolation when it's a pet that you love.

I would love to trust Advantage again, but due to that last experience and the fact that my cat is very much loved, I just can't.

Thank you for responding to me ... have a good evening.

[Marceia]

hello,

My dog swims a LOT. In the pond and in the pool. Will that remove advantage the same as a bath will? I know you said rain wouldn't have any effect.

thanks!

[Front Line Plus]

@Marceia If he goes under water it is a possibility.

[Jennifer Nichols]

My cat nearly died from Advantage also. Our experience was almost exactly the same as Alexis'. I had used the product several times previously (more than 3 times) and it got worse each time until she had to spend several days in the vet hospital and get hydration treatments.

Another similarity that I'm noticing, that I've been wondering about, is that we both used product that was probably at least a few years old. Well, I know I did, and I assume if Alexis only applied once a year that she bought at least 3 applications which would make the last one 3 years old. I wonder if the chemical breaks down and becomes more toxic with time...

[Doc]

I will have to remember to check with the manufacturer on this. Most drugs are stable and effective long beyond their "expiration date". The date simply reflects the length of time the manufacturer has proven it will last.

Even when they are losing potency with age, there are apparently very few that then change into something toxic. No doubt there are instances of this, but it doesn't seem to be much of a problem. People would be dying like flies,as most hardly ever throw out old medicines. They "save a little in case I get it again later".