Chick-N-Picker

Hey, I just searched my dog again with my flashlight like I've been doing and guess what? I found a demon flea. Flea treatment incoming as soon as I can get the stuff. I actually have some Hartz ulteaguard stuff on hand but NO way am I giving that after the horror stories I read.

Yeah, sorry I re-read your Capstar suggestion after posting. I looked it up and it said it only works for 2 days and quickly leaves the system. Not sure how effective that would be for my situation. And I wasn't going to spray her with Spinosad. I just found it interesting I have it 10 feet from me and then stumbled on to it as a flea treatment in a chew. But I appreciate you recommending not to, just in case I was.

Ok. I'm back with a question. As others have mentioned to go ahead and treat for fleas because 1) It's good to. And 2)Just because you don't see any fleas or many fleas does not mean they are not there. Well, I've been reading a lot about flea allergies in dogs and it said despite common belief most fleas actually do not live on a dog but for a few minutes to a few hours, barring an infestation. It said they feed and usually hop back off or get knocked by the dog. It also said that a SINGLE flea bite can cause itching for up to two weeks. That means technically only 4 fleas would have had to bite my dog as I've had her 2 months today. I did find one flea on her last week. Only one and it's the only one I've ever seen and I check her alot. But as established not seeing them doesn't matter with an allergy. I'll be honest I bought flea shampoo when I first got her and just sort of always thought if I don't see fleas they are ok. Apparently not with flea allergies, with only one bite being enough. I said all that to simply ask, what flea treatment y'all would recommend? I know with some the flea has to bite for it to kill them. That seems like it would be of little use if a flea allergy is present. I know other kinds kill on contact. Thank you for any suggestions. Edit I was just reading about various treatments and came across a treatment called Comfortis which is just Spinosad. I use Spinosad on the corn I grow to keep out corn worms. It is an organic substance. I have it sitting 10 feet from me. It is apparently very effect for fleas. I can make gallons of it for cheap. But of course that will be a spray. Not sure how long that would work in comparison to the expensive chew that lasts a month. Just found that interesting.

Oh, I know that just because my previous Border Collie never itched doesn't mean none will. I was just throwing that out there about him. He was just a good ol dog. And yeah, if this doesn't go away within a reasonable amount of time (change of season) or with the things I am trying then I will take her to a vet. I only changed her food 1.5 weeks ago. I am reading and being told it can take 1 month to see improvements. If it gets much worse quickly, I'll figure out some way to get her to a vet. That's why I am checking her closely. I check her skin a few times a day to see if it is getting red or any cuts beneath the fur. So far it's still white as milk and no cuts. Thank you for the help.

Dang. I just never expected this. Like I said, my last Borde Collie virtually never itched and could eat anything. So you had to continually give the medication? If you stopped the itch came back?

Oh, I meant to add that I treated her for worms too incase it was caused by that. Here is one more of her at 6 to 8 weeks. And another from yesterday.

Hey thank you for the replies. She hates baths and she actually hates being sprayed with anything as well except just now I sprayed her again and she actually set fairly still and didn't try to get away. I will pick up some oatmeal shampoo. I seen it last night beside the spray. And will do with the diet. Didn't realize it would take a month to see any improvements, if that is the issue. Glad y'all told me that. I figured it should at least start to gradually improve so I was about to just start back feeding her the chicken and rice again, because she does like it better. But I will wait.

I have a 4+ month old rough coat puppy and she has itched since I got her. At first I didn't pay it too much attention. I checked her for fleas and never found any. I started to notice as it seemed to get worse. She is always scratching, licking, or reaching back and doing that bite thing where they just barely nibble. Her stomach may be slight pink. Hard to tell. But all of her skin down under the fur is white as milk. So far she has not scratched/bit until sores or nothing. Oh she also seems to shed a fair amount at 4-5 months but no noticeable hair loss, except maybe parts of her back legs where the tendon runs. But to be honest I can't tell and ain't that always a little thinner? My first thought was maybe a food allergy. I was feeding her chicken and rice formula kibble. I switched her food to salmon and pea no grain formula to rule out both chicken and grains. Long story short, I don't believe that is it. I've had her exclusively on salmon and pea for over a week now and seen virtually zero improvement. I know it can take a while but if it was chicken or grains would it not at least show signs of improving by now and at least not worsened? So then I decided to try some claritan (non D). Didn't help. Tried benadryl. No help. That makes me think it may not be pollen and such because I read that benadryl, etc will only help with those type of allergies and not other types such as skin/food/fungus/bacteria itch. I did pick her up some Vetinarian Formula Clinch Care Antiseptic and Antifungal spray. I actually sat down in the store and read probably 50 reviews and every single one of them was glowing. And it helped various things. I only sprayed her with that maybe 30 minutes ago so not really enough time to even judge it. First question, has anybody used that spray and did it help/cure your itch? Two, any other advice? I have never had a dog itchy like this. My last Border Collie virtually never itched and could eat anything under the sun. I miss that dog. He was such a good dog. I am trying what I can that is the cheapest option as I don't have lots of money for vets right now. If you are going to ridicule me for that then that is fine but it is what it is. I am not saying I will never take her to a vet of necessary but I want to try what I can and get advice from other Border Collie people. A few pictures.

Delete.

Been a while since I posted about Yoti. I had to leave him with my maw maw for over the Spring & Summer. Well I went to check on him a few days ago (He will be returning to be with me shortly). He did turn out to have a descent length and very thick fur. When I went to check on him she didn't do to good of job to keep his fur brushed out. She loves the dog and kept him fed really good but the brushing must have never occurred to her & to be honest I forgot to tell her, which makes me mad at myself. It was matted pretty good on his tail and around his ears (That's the only places). I know you are not supposed to shave a border collie but I had to take scissors and cut the mats out. There is no way to get them out. By the time I would have picked the mats out it wouldn't have been any fur left there anyway. I did have to cut it pretty short where the mats were but I only used scissors. Is it going to grow back or did I make a mistake? I really don't how else it would have been possible to get those mats oit with cutting them in some way. I really hated doing it. I could tell he missed me because he wouldn't leave my side the whole time.