Yuck. Fleas. The bane of every dog's existence. Yet, it is not absolutely necessary to create a toxic waste area around your dog in order to get rid of them. By using a combination of the least poisonous chemicals and general "housekeeping", you can keep your dog and home in a relatively flea-free state.
The most important thing to remember when fighting fleas is that they spend about 90 percent of their time OFF THE DOG. So the logical place to get them is where they live - and two of your common household appliances are invaluable allies in the fight: your washing machine and your vacuum cleaner. Put sheets or bath towels on every piece of furniture where your dog is likely to sleep, and put washable bedding in the crates. During flea "season", launder these ***EVERY DAY*** and run the vacuum cleaner around the dog's favorite spots. Since flea eggs tend to fall off dogs as they are sleeping, you are eliminating most of the next generation.
As far as attacking the other 10 percent on the dog is concerned:
* Maintain the dog in good health and on a quality diet. There is some belief that fleas are drawn to a dog whose overall condition is compromised.
* Flea Combing. There is a comb with teeth placed very closely together - and it catches fleas. Pay particular attention to the back right above the tail. If you have fleas, they will be there, and the hair is short enough to get the comb through easily. You can "pop" the fleas with your fingernail on the comb or you can drown them in a glass of soapy water once you've caught them.
* Bathing. Any shampoo will kill SOME fleas. You can make any standard shampoo more lethal to fleas with the addition of Shaklee's Basic H. This is a gentle cleaner - or more accurately a wetting agent. What it tends to do is enable the water to penetrate the flea's chitin (shell), and the flea drowns. I use a squirt of Basic H to a pint of shampoo. Remember, the general rule of flea baths still applies - make a collar of shampoo around the neck first, then do the body - and leave it on long enough to do its damage. You still have to catch fleas on the face with manual methods. Be sure to rinse the dog thoroughly to knock off fleas which may just be stunned.
* And, as a last resort, Frontline ***Spray***. This product, available from veterinarians, binds to the oil in hair and skin and affects the nervous system of any flea which contacts it. I have achieved success using it at a fraction of the recommended rate by "outsmarting" the flea. Although you see fleas on various parts of the dog's body - they have to go to the face or genital areas to get a drink. If you apply the Frontline ONLY on the back by the tail (where you flea combed) and on the hairless groin area, you're going to get MOST of the fleas because they're eventually going to walk there. A couple of comments about Frontline's application not explained on the label - you shouldn't bathe the dog within 48 hours either direction of its application because there has to be oil for it to adhere to. And if the dog has an allergic reaction, you will need to use Benzoyl Peroxide shampoo to remove it - ordinary shampoo has no effect on it once the binding has occurred.
No, this method may not give you a 100 percent knockout the first day, but you WILL get rid of the fleas without putting a lot of chemicals in and on your dog.