Is Frontline Safe For Pets Or Are Natural Flea Remedies And Natural Tick Remedies Safer?

Copyright (c) 2012 Dr. Deva Khalsa

Safe and natural flea remedies that actually
work are available on the market. Natural tick
products are also available. Additionally, there
are some home made recipes that you can use to
prevent infestation of fleas and ticks. It's
important that we have options that work because
the veterinary products that are commonly used
have been found to have many adverse side
effects. This article will discuss fipronil,
present in many spot-on products

Ticks and fleas are an all too common problem
with our dogs and cats. Ticks carry many serious
diseases- Lyme disease being the most commonly
known. It's in our pets best interest to prevent
them from getting ticks and fleas but the methods
we use to prevent this may have their own adverse
health effects that can be more serious than the
problems we're preventing.

Despite advertising claims to the contrary,
topical treatments with fipronil (the active
ingredient in Frontline) do enter our pets'
internal organs and are eventually eliminated in
their feces and urine. Additionally, children and
adults interacting with pets treated with these
chemicals can also be affected by the toxins.

All flea and tick products are made up of
"active" and " inert" ingredients. The active
ingredients target and kill fleas- but some of
the inert ingredients are also toxic, although
the word suggests that they're safe.
Unfortunately, all the "active" ingredients in
the spot on preparations have been linked to
serious health effects in laboratory animals.

For instance, Dr. Dobozy of the EPA's Pesticide
Division states that the fipronil in the
(Frontline) formulations for pets " is a
persistent chemical that has the potential for
nervous system and thyroid toxicity after long
term exposure at low dosages." Laboratory health
effects include thyroid cancer and altered
thyroid hormones, liver toxicity, kidney damage,
convulsions, whining, barking, crying, loss of
appetite, reduced fertility, fetus mortality,
smaller offspring, loss of hair at or beyond the
application site, moist inflammation, chemical
burn and itching.

Veterinarians, like myself, were told that
Frontline is not absorbed systemically. In fact,
many years ago, this fact made me a proponent of
Frontline. It's important to prevent Lyme
disease. Therefore, a simple spot-on product
that was effective in deterring fleas and was
limited to the skin's surface was a welcome
tool. Merial's web site states the fipronil is
absolved into the skin and the sebaceous glands
(oil glands) provide a natural reservoir. It
creates the impression that the product does not
migrate into your pet's body. Yet Dr. Dobozy's
study showed that a significant amount of
radio-labelled fipronil was found in various
organs and fat and was also excreted in their
urine and feces. So much for Frontline limiting
it's range to the skin of dogs and cats.

Is it safe to continually use fipronil on our
pets? This is one veterinarian who feels that
the medical problems resulting from its use far
outweigh any benefits provided.


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Dr. Deva Khalsa, the author of Dr. Khalsa's
Natural Dog, believes that improving nutrition
and decreasing toxins will help our cats and
dogs live healthier and longer lives. Visit
http://www.deservingpets.com/category_s/27.htm
to find an effective safe flea and tick product.
Go to http://dogandcatvitamins.com/ to learn more
about cat and dog health.


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