Have You Used Flea and Tick Protection On Your Dog?

Spring is here, summer is coming, and my owner treated me for the first time for fleas and ticks yesterday.  It should have been done as soon as the weather got warm, but we've had a cold spring this year, so we waited a bit.  I haven't had any bites.  Some of you live in climates that are warm all the time, so please, be sure to keep those itchy little pests away from your pets...it's miserable when they bite, I know!

I get terrible allergic reactions to flea bites, just one little bite is enough to cause a rash over almost all of my body, so I was really happy when she read the article listed in the "pages" section to the right.  Or, to make it easier for you, just click this link. 

Updated 2/27/17

Fleas in the Winter?

In the northeast, we are having one of the warmest winters that we've had in a long time. It's nice to have such mild weather, but one thing that my owner didn't think about was the fact that the fleas and ticks are living longer than they usually do. In fact, we stopped doing my flea treatments, and now we are trying to get rid of fleas that are in the house.

This is not fun for any of us. But it's a good reminder that just because the calendar says it's winter in the northern states, it doesn't mean that the fleas are gone unless you have really had a good prolonged hard freeze which we have not. It's a lesson learned the hard way.

Wish us well in ridding ourselves of the fleas naturally. We will be back to let you know what works, and our progress.

Flea Repellent You can Make Yourself

My owner has used Frontline on me to get rid of fleas for years. She just gave me my first "dose" of it for the spring season a couple of weeks ago. I get a terrible rash all over my body with just a couple flea bites, so it's important to keep me treated.

While we were looking at information about flea repellents, we found that there is actually a natural herbal repellent you can use on dogs, cats and other furry animals as long as their skin is not sensitive to it.

What you do is combine 1 part eucalyptus powder; 1 part pennyroyal, sage or rosemary powder; 1 part fennel powder; 1 part yellow dock powder. Put all in something that has a shaker top...we keep a few emptied spice bottles that have shaker tops around to use for things like this.

Try a bit on your pet to make sure they are not sensitive to it. If all seems okay, sprinkle just enough so that the smell is evident on the fur, brushing hair against the grain as you sprinkle it on.

Do not get it in your pet's eyes...concentrate on areas like the back and "chest" area of the belly where they won't lick too much. You don't want to overdo it, and again, make sure it won't irritate your pet's skin.

You can also sprinkle this on carpets to repel fleas in the house, or around the perimeters of the room or outside of the house to keep them away. How often you do this is a matter of trial and error...you shouldn't have to use it every day on your pet unless they are particularly infested. I'd definitely put some on before going for hikes in the woods or grassy fields.

We have just discovered this, and are thinking of giving it a try. Have any of you ever tried natural herbal flea repellents for your pets? If so, tell us about it in a comment.

It's Time for my Spring Grooming

The weather has been warm, and I've been hot with all the hair that I have that kept me warm during the winter, so it's time to be groomed...my owner does the grooming herself, and does a pretty good job....I don't like it very much, but feel a lot better when she's done.

If you want to know how to groom your dog, we recommend that you visit the banner below this post with the cute picture of the Yorkshire Terrier on it about grooming, and visit some of our other pages about grooming by clicking on the "grooming" category in the list in the right margin.

We hope you are looking forward to getting outdoors with your dogs now that the warmer weather is coming to colder parts of the country.  Don't forget to get us ready for fleas and ticks, too...we have a category about that in the list to the right too.

Happy Spring to you all!

Pets Dying from Flea and Tick Products

The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) is putting restrictions on certain flea and tick products because of illnesses and deaths that have resulted from using them.  Among the things that happened to pets were seizures, serious skin reactions, deaths and more.  Here is a bullet-point list of some key facts we heard in a news report today:

• 44,000 adverse reactions attributed to collars and topical preparations


• 600 of these reactions lead to death


• Affects cats more than dogs, small dogs more than big


• EPA wants clearer labeling


• Want owners to read instructions carefully, many reactions are due to owner's carelessness, for example putting dosages meant for large dogs on small dogs, or not putting where you should on the pets body.


• When using a topical application, check the area after you apply, skin reaction can appear like a chemical burn which can become infected.


• Why aren't they taking the products off the market? Because it's even riskier if pets get fleas or ticks to both pets and humans

Click here for the EPA news release for more information.

Natural Pet Remedies for Yorkies and Other Pets

We've done a brand new page on natural pet remedies, you'll find it in the list under "pages" in the right column.

I have some allergies from the tree pollen, and the fleas and ticks are all over, so thought it would be good to share an article like this. Hope you like it!