Effective Natural Flea Repellent for Dogs: Preventing and Eliminating Fleas Safely

If you notice your dog demonstrating signs of excessive scratching, licking, and biting at various parts of the body, chances are your four-legged friend is dealing with some type of skin irritation and if it’s due to a flea infestation, then you’ve got some options.

But you need to act fast. Fleas can multiply exponentially over a very short period of time. One adult female flea alone is capable of laying forty to fifty eggs per day and when those eggs hatch, the potential for even more fleas and more eggs becomes a widespread issue that puts your pet’s health and your family’s health at an increased risk.

Think about all of the time your dog spends outdoors. Taking a walk, going to the bathroom, getting some exercise at the local park, and if that happens to be a dog park, with all of those other pups and pooches running and rough-housing together, these are all prime opportunities for your pet to pick up one or more fleas.

That’s how it starts.

A flea infestation is no laughing matter, particularly for your dog. As those flea eggs hatch, they start to bite and a dog with a flea allergy is in constant discomfort from all of the itching. The longer those fleas last and remain in your pet’s fur, the more they start to find other places to land and hatch inside of your home. Fleas tend to hide in bedding, furniture, and hard to reach places where you won’t even realize they’ve taken hold until your dog isn’t the only one itching and scratching from flea bites that can result in nasty infections and broken skin.

Prevention is key. Keeping the fleas off your pet in the first place is the best way to ensure total safety and comfort, especially in the summer months. But if you live in an area with a heavy concentration of fleas, then the potential for an infestation is all but a certainty and you need to take precautions.

There are a lot of options out there, some more effective than others. But when it comes to preventing and eliminating fleas safely, there are many factors to take into consideration. What you choose matters for your pet’s well being and your own. For pet parents who prefer natural, non-toxic alternatives for keeping those fleas at bay, the following are some of the best methods for protecting your pup and your home.

What to Avoid

Too many of the conventional flea repellent products on the market today rely on the use of strong pesticides and poisonous active ingredients to kill fleas and keep them from coming back. But these products that come in the form of flea collars, pills, and topical medications are designed to enter the bloodstream of your dog so that when a pest bites them they are killed. Having low doses of a poison in your dog’s body and in the vicinity of members of your family should make you think twice. Fleas can cause infection and disease, but the so-called cure for the pests can be just as bad.

Just take one look at the potential side effects listed for the most common flea collars you can buy at your local pet store or even a supermarket and it’s enough to make you turn to natural, holistic alternatives instead. Besides skin irritation and rash, some side effects to the harsh chemicals in these repellents include vomiting, diarrhea, seizures, and tremors. The active ingredients in these products are designed to target the central nervous system in fleas and many other pests, and some of the chemicals found in conventional flea repellents have been banned for use in other applications.

Natural Options for Flea Repellent

Sometimes the best and most effective option is also the easiest and most obvious. Consider the following and think about incorporating one or more of these alternatives to make sure fleas don’t take over your home and threaten the health of you or your pet this summer.

Flea Combs

If you even suspect that fleas have started to make your dog’s fur their new home, use a flea comb to remove fleas and their eggs from your pup’s coat. Keep a cup of hot water and soap handy as you extract the vermin with each smooth stroke through your dog’s fur, you’ll want to dip the tines of the comb into the water to kill what you find. Depending on how fine or coarse your dog’s coat might be, you’ll need to apply the comb once or twice a day to ensure you’ve found all of the freeloading insects hiding.

Homemade Shampoos

Skip those flea shampoos that often contain chemicals and other additives and go with an alternative that you can trust because you’re the one who creates and mixes it. Chances are you have most, if not all, the ingredients in your home already. Remember, you’re not creating a toxic shampoo in the vein of some of the popular brands at your local pet store. All you need is some mild baby shampoo, mix it with warm water and white vinegar. Mix it together and wash your dog with this concoction every two weeks. It will kill fleas on contact and destroy any eggs that are ready to hatch.

Bioresonance Energy

An essential component of the BioPower Pet line of products, bioresonance energy gives off bioenergetic frequencies that interact with your dog’s biofield. For most humans and pets, these frequencies offer vital health benefits that are similar to those used by Traditional Chinese Medicine practices like Acupuncture, which influence the body’s natural energy flow as a means for warding off illness and promoting health. In this case, however, the bioenergetic frequencies that are emitted from these products work to drive away fleas as well as ticks and mosquitoes, which are repelled by these frequencies. Available in a stainless steel tag and a flea repellent spray, the BioPower Pet Shield natural flea repellents can be used together or separately for driving away fleas and keeping them off your pet

Diatomaceous Earth

For those consumers who live in areas where fleas are prevalent, food-grade diatomaceous earth offers a one-two punch of protection as fleas will be cut to pieces if they try to maneuver over this razor sharp sedimentary rock (at the microscopic level - it is harmless to humans). The exo-skeleton of the flea will shatter as the insect comes into contact with the diatomaceous earth, where it becomes dehydrated and dies right where it lies.

Stay Safe and Healthy with Natural Methods

Try these alternatives the next time flea season comes around. Not only are these options safer and healthier for your pup, but they’ll be easier on your pocketbook. The conventional solutions for flea control can get pretty expensive, but you don’t have to spend a lot or put your pup’s safety at risk to keep them healthy.