I ordered Frontline Plus online today & got Sevin dust for yard(so when he goes tinkle, he won't get hitchhikers). Thanks everyone & George would thank you if he could quit digging.
Frontline came Friday in mail. So George is doing much better today-he looked at me as if to say "Look mom, I'm not scratching." LOL.
Did it occur to you that the same people who care to use flea/tick control would be the same ones who bring their pet in when sick and are therefore found to have cancer? There are many pets out there that have cancer and the owners just don't care enough to bring them to vet (and therefore not find out the pet has cancer); the same owners who don't care if they have fleas/ticks. just a thought. Frontline is just spread through the oils in the skin. it's not absorbed by the bloodstream and processed through the body.
Sorry, but the active ingredient in all Frontline flea medications is Fipronil, and works by storing itself beneath the skin, in the sebaceous glands. Frontline is secreted along with the natural oils of the skin, continuously killing fleas as they come in contact with the skin or hair. The FACT that the chemical is STORED beneath the skin in a GLAND is what causes my concern. Here is everything I have saved in my pc file on the subject. Fipronil (often sold as Frontline) Fipronil insecticide products disrupt hormone function. Scientists at the Universidade Federal do Parana in Brazil showed that an application of Frontline to laboratory animals caused dramatic changes in the levels of two sex hormones and disrupted the animals' reproductive cycle. To see an abstract of this study, click here. http://www.pesticide.org/fipronil.pdf JOURNAL OF PESTICIDE REFORM/ SPRING 2005 • VOL. 25, NO. 1 Fipronil is a relatively new insecticide. It is used in cockroach baits and gels, flea products for pets, ant baits and gels, termite control products, turf and golf course products, and agricultural products. Symptoms of exposure to fipronil include headache, nausea, dizziness, weakness, and sometimes eye irritation and eye injury. In pets, poisoning symptoms include irritation, lethargy, incoordination, and convulsions. In tests with laboratory animals, fipronil caused aggressive behavior, damaged kidneys, and “drastic alterations in thyroid function.” The fipronil-containing product Frontline caused changes in the levels of sex hormones. The offspring of laboratory animals exposed to fipronil during pregnancy were smaller than those of unexposed mothers. They also took longer to mature sexually. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency classifies fipronil as a carcinogen because exposure to fipronil caused benign and malignant thyroid tumors in laboratory animals. One of fipronil’s breakdown products is ten times more toxic than fipronil itself. People can be exposed to fipronil when they pet an animal that has received a flea treatment. Fipronil persists for at least 56 days on pets. Studies of fipronil contamination of water are limited, but it has been found in rivers near rice fields where it is used in Louisiana. It has also been found in an urban stream in Washington. Fipronil is toxic to birds, lizards, fish, crawfish, shrimp, bees, and other animals. Minute oncentrations (as low as five parts per trillion) have caused adverse effects. Humans and Pets Physicians at the Medical University of Gdansk (Poland), report that symptoms of poisoning due to exposure to fipronil-containing insecticides include headache, nausea, dizziness, and weakness. In addition, four fipronil products cause eye irritation and two cause eye injury. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), pets treated with fipronil flea products have developed skin irritation, lethargy, incoordination, dilated pupils, facial swelling, and convulsions. While these symptoms are rare, certain animals (Bichon Frise dogs, for example) seem to be particularly sensitive to fipronil. Animals Fipronil exposure caused a variety of nervous system problems in laboratory tests. A fipronil manufacturer sponsored a study in which rats were fed fipronil for their expected lifetime (two years). The study found signs of neurotoxicity, including aggressive behavior, at all dose levels tested. Effects on Kidneys Fipronil exposure also caused kidney damage in tests of laboratory animals. The study mentioned above showed that fipronil exposure increased both the incidence and severity of damaged kidneys. The incidence of kidney damage increased at the two highest dose levels tested; the severity of damage increased at all dose levels tested. Effects on Hormones Hormones are chemical messengers that regulate all biological processes, including the reproductive system. Laboratory studies indicate that fipronil and commercial fipronil products disrupt the normal functions of two types of hormones: thyroid hormones and sex hormones. According to EPA, fipronil caused “dramatic alterations in thyroid function” (“Neurotoxicity in Laboratory Animals”). In this study, levels of thyroid stimulating hormone in rats fed fipronil were more than double those in unexposed rats. The increases occurred at the two highest dose levels tested. In addition, levels of thyroxine were “dramatically reduced” in rats fed fipronil. Thyroxine is a thyroid hormone that regulates the body’s metabolic rate. This decrease occurred at all dose levels tested. Scientists at the Universidade Federal do Paraná (Brazil) studied the effects on sex hormones of Frontline (a fipronil flea control product). They applied a single dose equivalent to a typical pet application to the skin of rats. They found that Frontline caused levels of progesterone to double and levels of estradiol to decrease to half the levels in unexposed rats.18 Progesterone is a hormone with pregnancy-related functions and estradiol is a hormone important in the development and maintenance of the female reproductive system. Ability to Cause Cancer (Carcinogenicity) EPA classified fipronil as a “possible human carcinogen” (Group C) in 1997 This classification is based on a study sponsored by a fipronil manufacturer. In this study, rats that were fed fipronil developed benign and malignant thyroid tumors. These tumors did not occur in unexposed animals. Anything that can POSSIBLY cause cancer in humans will not go on my pets. Call me crazy, but some minced garlic and brewers yeast just seems so much safer (AND CHEAPER) and they work
Show me where it says "fipronil was APPLIED to rats" rather than "fed" and your argument would be more plausible. FL isn't supposed to be ingested and if you read the box it says to call poison control it it happens. Not to mention these ingredients are made with the intention to be used on specific species. (For instance, Advantix is not made for cats.) So putting Frontline on a rat when it's made for canines and felines is a very bad study. If they want to prove a link of FL and cancer in pets they should use the correct study group... and do the correct procedures. This is like saying "i don't like using hair dryers b/c if you put it in water while its plugged in you'll be electrocuted." This study for carcinogens is not following directions. Also, fipronil (FL) is the largest selling flea/tick prevention, so statistically it will show the greatest number of complications, and furthermore, Merial (the manufactures of FL) are the only company that actually fully complies with reporting any complications. By the way, garlic contains thiosulfate, which is toxic to dogs and can cause anemia and result in increased heart rate, labored breathing and liver damage to name a few.
Look, I don't run tests on animals, but apparently feeding different drugs, even those you would apply topically seems to be the way they do it here in the US and in other countries as well. What do you think they tested RED DYE #2 on all those years ago when it was in soda, candy and a dozen other things humans ingested and applied to their bodies (it was a key color ingredient in foundation, blush and lipstick) The Russians tested on rats and mice and after it was on the market here in the US for decades and then after the panic, it was pulled from the market. Maybe Rats are susceptible to problems with their sebaceous glands. . .who knows? I don't care whether you personally have a problem with the way these labs do their testing. I don't care if you think I'm an idiot or not either. I do care that we are talking about a product that "COULD" cause cancer in humans. Cause in my brain - whether you agree with me or not, IF it COULD cause cancer in a human, it COULD cause cancer in a dog. As I said, anyone can do whatever the heck they choose to do to keep their homes and pets free of fleas and ticks - if their choice is Frontline, or Biospot or any other product, fine. Good for them. I hope they never have a problem with it, or wonder if that product may have caused a health issue in the future. Personally, I don't have to worry about it cause I don't use that crap. It is stored in their bloody sebaceous glands, not hanging out on top of their bodies. You certainly won't give it any more thought Irish - you've made up your mind. . .cool. . .but, maybe some other people on this board might think otherwise. AS for the garlic honey, a dog would have to ingest HEADS of the stuff to get toxic levels . It has been discussed. Do a search on this site.
Oh and if it COULD cause cancer in a human, do you really want to touch that pet who's carrying it around 24/7? Sure, let the kids cuddle nice and close with the pooch - if it only hurts rats that ingest it, what's the harm?
WOW no need to get so defensive. I'm just joining a little debate here. Guess I should stop talking if you're going to get all worked up about it. I don't care if u give garlic, bet your dog feels itchy tho And I know much more about vet med tthan you are probably assuming
:lol: I'm not worked up Nope, none of them do - and Jean S grooms them every 6-8 weeks and has never found a flea on one of them. No, I'm aware you were a vet tech, or something along those lines. Debate - lol, you avoid anything that goes against what you state previously - that's not how you debate. Here are items that I have DEBATED 1. You stated and I stated YOU didn't address that, you just kept stabbing away at whatever. . .like When you obviously skimmed the post I made and pulled out something you could find fault with - FAILING to read: LMAO the FIRST paragraph of the studies: In NONE of the studies above were animals or humans FED fipronil - but you didn't bother to read that. Garlic and it's toxicity HAS been discussed here on this thread as well as others, which I provided links for in the beginning of this thread. Interestingly, regarding the 'inert' ingredients in Frontline: If you check the second page of the link I posted before http://www.pesticide.org/fipronil.pdf Among the "inert" ingredients in Frontline are: • Butylhydroxyanisole(3) caused genetic damage and tumors in laboratory tests.4 • Butylhydroxy toluene(3) caused genetic damage and tumors in laboratory tests.5 • Polyvinylpyrrolidone(3) caused liver and ovarian tumors in laboratory tests. (3.) Merial Limited. 2001. Material safety data sheet: Frontline® TopspotTM. Iselin, NJ.
good grief girls, the posts are getting too long to read, gonna stick with my garlic & yeast, what works works and the longevity of my animals is enough proof for me
Zoo is right, I groom her dogs for her on a regular basis and have done so for approx 6 years and have never seen a flea on her dogs. Zoo also feeds her dogs an all natural diet with meats and veggies that she prepares daily for them and they all have nice white teeth, healthy skin and shiny coats. Plus, her dog with a heart condition that was not supposed to live past 4-5 years is now around 10 or 11 years old and doing well. When it comes to dog health, Zoo knows her stuff!
http://www.wral.com/news/local/story/5355722/ Jill Currin, of Raleigh, gives her dogs Hank, Belle and Allie small doses of garlic and baths with natural soap to keep away the fleas
Be careful with the Garlic, it can be dangerous for dogs. http://www.dog-food-corner.com/toxic-dog-food.htm
pretty sure the small amount I use is not harmful :lol: That being said, onions and garlic appear to be a serious health risk only in large amounts. Some research suggests that the deadly level for a dog is about 50g of onion per kg of dog, which equates to half a kilogram for a 10 kilogram dog, consumed either at one time or over a few days. Research indicates that garlic is less toxic than onion. Despite the dangers of large quantities of onion, many people believe that in small quantities it is beneficial. It is added to many dog foods and is included in many 'home made' dog food recipes. Raw garlic is also used by some dog owners as a natural flea repellent (not necessarily 100% effective, but useful).
