Flea tick treatments

Clodagh

Clodagh

Playing chess with pigeons
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Now the scientists amongst us may know this, and even other people who are more clued up than me...but neonicotinoids are a big ingredient in tick and flea pour ons. Who knew!?
I don't use them routinely anyway, but I know many people do.
Apparently in some continental countries routine chemical treatment for anything is discouraged, and you have to prove a problem to get them prescribed.
If anyone would like to read the whole article I could photograph it, it was very interesting. It is in the BASC magazines latest issue.
 
Lots of ticks here and quite a few cases of Lyme disease. I do use anti tick collars as spotting the tiny ones quickly on the hairy dogs is too hit and miss but would also welcome more information.
 
I, however, can't find it on there. I'm rubbish too. He isn't a completely unbiased observer either, but it is interesting none the less.
 
follysmum you realise that all herbs are also made up of chemicals? And that this is no more likely to do less harm than any other topical application? And presumably unless its marketed as killing fleas/ticks it probably has no efficacy whatsoever as it has to have actual evidence to make claims which it cleverly doesnt? I don't get why people trust things that have a 'pretty' label more than one with an evidence test to make sure it is vaguely safe and does waht it its intended to..
 
I do not use products just because of a “pretty label “
I have used this ladies products for many years with excellent results so for me the product speaks for itself.
 
Any 'remedy' that works really well will be snapped up by a drug company - That's what they do. All product are basically 'ingredients' or 'chemicals' just in different forms.
 
SusieT said:
Any 'remedy' that works really well will be snapped up by a drug company - That's what they do. All product are basically 'ingredients' or 'chemicals' just in different forms.
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It doesn’t mean they would automatically be picked up by a pharmaceutical company. I myself take herbal treatment for Lyme disease, my symptoms ceased. And yet you are of course right, without rigorous testing I can’t be sure of the safety of the products or any interactions they may have, which means that I don’t feel comfortable recommending it to others even though it has changed my life. Anyway, my point is it works exceptionally well and yet isn’t offered by any doctor or pharmaceutical company that I am aware of, which all offer antibiotics as treatment.

It looks to me like that product isn’t making medicinal claims and is more of a repellent than an insecticide. Much like using citronella on horses doesn’t kill mosquitoes but repels them.
 
Blazingsaddles said:
Unfortunately, herbal remedies don’t get the funding - their efficacy is mostly anecdotal. Personally, if it works, carry on with it imo.
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not actually true-I know of quite a lot of trials using essential oils and plant extracts (rotenone is a plant extract for all the fluffies that think natural is always nice) for use against ectoparasites. With essential oils, to get them at a concentration that gives a guaranteed efficacy generally means that it is toxic to the animal or has food safety issues (in food animals obvs). Tea tree oil is neurotoxic to birds, cats and dogs at the wrong concentration. You wouldn't get it licensed.
believe me, if companies get the slightest whiff that something might be useful, they are all over it-the reason you don't see these products licensed is because they don't stand up to testing.

the other issue is complex mixes, its very expensive and nigh on impossible to license something crude-better to find the active component and license that.
 
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MotherOfChickens said:
not actually true-I know of quite a lot of trials using essential oils and plant extracts (rotenone is a plant extract for all the fluffies that think natural is always nice) for use against ectoparasites. With essential oils, to get them at a concentration that gives a guaranteed efficacy generally means that it is toxic to the animal or has food safety issues (in food animals obvs). Tea tree oil is neurotoxic to birds, cats and dogs at the wrong concentration. You wouldn't get it licensed.
believe me, if companies get the slightest whiff that something might be useful, they are all over it-the reason you don't see these products licensed is because they don't stand up to testing.

the other issue is complex mixes, its very expensive and nigh on impossible to license something crude-better to find the active component and license that.
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Off topic slighlty but MOC did you ever go into the tea tree forests in Ozx? The rivers have an oily sheen and the smell! I love it but it was pretty pungent.
 
Clodagh said:
Off topic slighlty but MOC did you ever go into the tea tree forests in Ozx? The rivers have an oily sheen and the smell! I love it but it was pretty pungent.
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no I didn't -loved the smell of the eucalyptus though! I can't bear tea tree-we use it to decontaminate PPE from mites on occasion. there was a phase in the US of treating hen houses with it for mite (I think its more northern mite there than red mite) and it killing their hens at a pretty low %.
 
BBP said:
It doesn’t mean they would automatically be picked up by a pharmaceutical company. I myself take herbal treatment for Lyme disease, my symptoms ceased. And yet you are of course right, without rigorous testing I can’t be sure of the safety of the products or any interactions they may have, which means that I don’t feel comfortable recommending it to others even though it has changed my life. Anyway, my point is it works exceptionally well and yet isn’t offered by any doctor or pharmaceutical company that I am aware of, which all offer antibiotics as treatment.

It looks to me like that product isn’t making medicinal claims and is more of a repellent than an insecticide. Much like using citronella on horses doesn’t kill mosquitoes but repels them.
Click to expand...


Interestingly the lady who owns herbal supplies had Lyme disease
 
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