Monthly treatment is a must as far as protecting your pets from ticks and fleas is concerned. After all, protecting your pets from infestations and disease is much easier and cheaper compared to treating them following a diagnosis. We’ve all seen that flea infestation treatments can be very expensive and a huge burden to pet owners, while tick-borne diseases can cause weight loss, pain and other possibly serious side effects to affected animals.
But what specific treatment will benefit them best? Apparently, this depends on many factors, including the treatments themselves. To know the best choice for your pet, you first have to understand their differences.
Topical Treatments
Topical treatments are pet medicines directly applied to the pet’s skin, where it is absorbed into the animal’s gland system that makes body oils. These oils then spread the medicine all over the pet’s body normally within a 30-day period. If your pets don’t normally go outside, just get a product that acts on fleas (all life stages). If your pets do go outside a lot, consider a product that acts on both fleas and ticks. Topicals are normally waterproof, which is a plus if you plan on bathing your pet within treatment.
Oral Treatments
Oral tablets are meant for pets requiring fast flea relief. They start acting in less than 30 minutes and may continue working for up to a full day, meaning they are a short-term treatment.
Dips
Flea and tick dips are combined with water and applied right over your pet’s skin like a bath, but it must be left to air-dry before being rinsed off. This treatment can keep fleas and ticks at bay for a maximum of 35 days. Make it a point to protect your pet’s mouth or eyes.
Animal Collars
Regular flea collars repel fleas and ticks by releasing a flea and tick-toxic substance all over the animal’s body. While they offer some amount of protection and are generally inexpensive, your pet may just find them irritating, especially with their powerful odor. Fortunately, new and improved flea collars have been introduced recently. These products kill adult fleas and larva and kills and repel ticks via a slow release technology that enables them to work for a maximum of 8 months, making them quite economical. They are water-resistant and odor-free as well.
Shampoos
Flea and tick shampoos usually eliminate adult fleas and ticks at contact and the effect will remain for 5 days to two weeks.
Home Remedies
Driving ticks and fleas away can also be done by spot-treating certain parts of the home or by fogging the entire home. Professional pest control services may provide home flea treatments.
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