Check with your vet before using the garlic on your pets. Some experts will tell you that onion and garlic are toxic to animals. Also remember that cats and dogs may require different treatments, and treatments may differ according to the size and age of the animal. Please check with your vet before using ANYTHING on or around your pets.

ON CATS:
Feed 1/2 teaspoon of powdered yeast daily to the cat.
OR
Feed half a garlic clove per day.
OR
Put dried chamomile flowers in the cat's basket.

ON DOGS:
Feed 2 large teaspoons powdered yeast daily for large dogs.
OR
Feed 2 cloves garlic per day for large dogs, added to the usual food.
OR
Put DRIED bracken ferns under the dog's blanket.
OR
Add 1 tablespoon of salt to the water in which the dog is washed to kill fleas.

TO DETER:
Take a 'tea' of lemon peels and water, by steeping overnight, then sponge it over the dog's coat.
OR
Rub dog over with tansy, fennel, basil or mint, pennyroyal or other strong smelling herb. Grow any of these herbs, or wormwood, pyrethrum, rue and marigolds around kennel areas.
OR
Bathe dog in eucalyptus wool wash solution.
OR
Dust some derris powder (from garden suppliers) through the animal's coat, leave for half an hour, then comb or brush it out over some newspaper. Do not allow the pet to swim in creeks or ponds, as derris is deadly to fish, but it breaks down in sunlight after a few days.

HOME MADE FLEA COLLAR FOR DOGS:
2 tablespoons peppermint essential oil
1/2 cup rosemary essential oil
2 tablespoons white cedar essential oil
1/4 cup citronella essential oil
2 tablespoons eucalyptus essential oil

Soak a natural fibre rope in mixture and let dry for several hours. Tie around pet's neck. DO NOT use on cats.

FROM CARPETS:
Vacuum regularly, remembering to do areas like under beds, around skirting boards and window sills.

Sprinkle with borax and leave for 48 hours, then vacuum. Keep pets and children away during treatment.
OR
Wet pieces of newspaper with oil of cedar, scatter these over the floor, under beds or on rugs, and leave overnight. Fleas will gather on the newspaper, and you can put them, newspaper and all, into plastic bags and dispose of them in the garbage bin.

FROM MATTRESSES:
Place some sprigs of mint under mattresses.
OR
Dissolve 3 blocks of camphor in 2 cups methylated spirits, and rub onto the mattress and nearby furniture.

TO TREAT BITES:
Rub over with tea-tree oil.

PYRETHRUM SPRAY:
The concentration of pyrethrums is at its peak when the flowers are in full bloom, from the time the first row of florets open on the central disk opens to the time all the florets are open. Add 1 litre of boiling water to half a cup of firmly packed flowers. Leave to cool, strain and add 1 teaspoon of pure soap. Shake well before use. Spray only in early morning or evening when bees are not active, and never in temperatures more than 32C. You will need to use the spray or dust every day until the infestation is over. It deteriorates in sunlight. The spray is useful against aphids, woolly aphids, scale, spider mites, thrips, whitefly, codling moth, cabbage loopers, caterpillars, earwigs, leaf-miners, millipedes, some beetles, spiders, termites and slaters, spiders, termites, weevils, grasshoppers, stink bugs, thrips, gnats, mosquitoes, tomato pinworms, spider mites and crickets. In the house, the spray will eradicate fleas and spiders. Combine with soap to kill lice (test for skin sensitivity first.) The spray may stain some fabrics. Dried pyrethrum flowers can be ground to a powder and used as a dust.

DRY DOG SHAMPOO:
Rub some bicarbonate of soda thoroughly into the dog's coat, then brush off excess. Leaves the coat clean and shiny. You can add a few drops of appropriate essential oils to the powder for added flea protection. I used to use lavender when I had a dog.

To get rid of fleas in your carpet, after removing pets from the room, sprinkle Borax over the carpet and rub it in. Wait a while, then vacuum as usual. Keep pets and children outside while you wait. Reapply the Borax once a week until the problem is gone. After bathing your pet, put a little Lavender or Tea Tree essential oil into the final rinse water, or rub a little of the oil over the pet's coat, to repel fleas. Or wipe over with some fresh Tansy leaf. Grow Fennel near a dog's kennel to deter fleas. Feed your pet a little Garlic with its meals, or rub garlic over the animal. Or wash the dog with a strong infusion of Lobelia leaves. Or brush pets with a brush that has been stroked across the cut surface on an onion. The smell soon dissapates, but not as fast as the fleas. Rue, Tansy and Wormwood also repel fleas. Plant some in the garden, scatter in pets bedding, or massage into their coat. Powdered Southernwood, scattered on carpets, will rid the house of fleas.

Herbal anti-flea dip for your pet:
2 cups packed fresh Peppermint, Pennyroyal, or Rosemary
1 litre boiling water
4 litres warm water

Prepare an infusion by pouring the boiling water over the herbs and allow it to steep for 30 minutes. Strain the liquid and dilute it with the warm water. Saturate the animal's coat thoroughly with the solution, allowing it to air dry. Use at the first sign of flea activity. This remedy will need to be repeated every three to four days

LAVENDER WATER:
3 tablespoons dried lavender flowers
200ml boiling water
1 tablespoon vodka
150ml rosewater
pinch powdered nutmeg
15-20 drops lavender essential oil

Pour boiling water over the dried lavender and leave to cool. Strain, reserving liquid. Combine lavender infusion with the vodka, rosewater, nutmeg and essential oil. Pour through a coffee filter several times, then transfer to a bottle with a glass stopper. This mixture makes an excellent mouthwash, a refreshing skin toner, a soothing compress for tension headaches. It will help you sleep if you put a few drops on a pillow or in the bath just before bed. An insect repellent against fleas, flies, mosquitoes.

Grown in the garden, catnip helps to repel fleas.

Grow 'fennel near the kennel' to repel fleas.

Pennyroyal is used to get rid of fleas, but it's a herb I never recommend because it can cause fitting in some animals - and humans.

in addition to the warning- many say pennyroyal is exceptionally toxic to pets, yet it is in many recommended herbal treatments.???????????????????????

Not suer about pets, but I wouldn't take pennyroyal; it can cause serious, even fatal, liver and kidney damage.

Garlic is toxic for dogs?!?
I gave my Chihuahuas each about 1/3 of a raw garlic clove (as a de-wormer) the other day and they are both still alive and no allergic reaction what so ever.

Diatomaceous Earth might be something to check into for sprinkling around to kill fleas.

BTW thank you daisyduckworth for that helpful information.
How do you get a cat to eat yeast?
I assume you are talking about brewers or nutritional yeast.

Here's a list of past flea discussions. All you do is go to the bottom of forum page and type in "flea", or what ever subject interests you.
I personally make a very strong pennyroyal tincture, use it as a dip, add to shampoo, make collars, etc.
As long as one does research before using herbs, and uses appropriately, all will be well. Don't take one persons word as gospel. (including mine :o)

I've used rubbing alcohol (green prefered for better smell). Put it in a spray bottle, but be extra careful not to spray in eyes! Kills fleas instantly. Also helps to relieve the itching from the bites.

Answer: Nutritional Yeast (found in health food stores can usually find in the bulk bins) Great on popcorn too!

Okay... this isn't for positive, but they've found that lemon eucalyptus against mosquitos... wonder if it is effective against fleas???? just wondering...

I read somewhere to kill fleas is this. After bathing, rinse dog with lemon water. This is supposed to kill fleas but I have no way of knowing if this works. Does anyone know if this is effective. I would like to know. thanks

Very easy to get rid of fleas with diatomaceous earth. You can get it in the garden centers or order it online. To treat your carpets just sprinkle it over them and leave it for 7 days and then vacuum up. Give each kitty an all over sprinkling of it and rub in every two weeks during heavy flea season. You can sprinkle this on their food to keep bugs out(ants and roaches). I usually put a small ring around each bowl for the outside kitties. Sprinkle dog pens with it of course. We were severely over run by fleas 2 years ago. You could walk outside and your ankles would be black with them in under a minute. This natural earth stuff is the way to go. I have one cat out of 9 (Asia) that hates breathing it so I'm careful they don't breathe it in. Asia starts sneezing if she snorts some of it and gives me dirty looks the rest of the day.

I agree about the DE - just don't 'dust' w/ it!It is not safe to inhale.

We have a recently adopted stray cat that was infested when she came to us.She is white - & seems extremely sensitive to fleas.
I put DE in a small shaker-topped bottle & carefully sprinkled it all around the house - on carpets, in the corners, behind furniture, on the cat's fave sleeping spots, & I have not seen a single flea now for a couple of months.

Bonus was: it killed a buncha roaches too = J

If your pet is going outside, tho, I think it might be a losing battle.....

HELP..I do not have any pets however i have a severe flea problem in my garage. I have thoought about spaying bleach but not sure if this will help. i have used the vet stuff, bombed 6 times. It is getting crazy and i need your help.

you aren't supposed to make the pet eat the pennyroyal it is for their skin/coat. tie a few long springs in a chain on their neck and it will run off the (runnoft) the fleas. or make an infusion of pennyroyal and mint (for the smell) and pour it over the pet's coat

I was told that Doxie's (dashounds) have a nervous system that will not tolerate very many cemicals used to de-flea.
Is anyone familiar with this.?
Concerned In Idaho
If so Please let me know what a doxie owner can use that is safe ..!

My long-time regimen for removing fleas from my three dogs and three cats is time consuming but very effective. I go to a pet store and buy several flea combs (they are easily misplaced). Then I make up a small bowl of hot soapy water and dip the comb in it then comb the animals, quickly replacing the comb in the soapy water before the fleas can jump off. The soapy water insures that the fleas will sink into the water and drown. Then put the fleas and water down the toilet. Probably you could put the flea water on your plants, but I don't want them to dry out and hop back into action.

When we get a room-sized infestation, I make up a wide low pan of hot soapy water and place it in the center of the problem. In a few minutes many of the fleas will have hopped into the pan and drowned.

I just repeat these procedures until we get over the problem. I use no chemicals or pesticides on my pets, except the small amount of dish soap. Also, this is pretty inexpensive.

Hope this helps.
Jeanine

In response to weiser_penni (concerned in Idaho) .... I have had doxies now for over 20 years. I never use chemicals in anything for them because I too was told about their sensitivity. One of our doxies was chemical sensitive but the others haven't been. All the above suggestions on natural flea remedies do work but some of them take a long time. All those natural oils are great for cats and dogs in helping with fleas, hyper activity, poor eating habits and everything.

thanks for all the ideas. question for jrmankins, though: where do you find dish soap without 'antibacterial' junk in it? I'm assuming you don't want to put that on your pets.

I was having a huge flea problem, I just got done reading and article about how the top spots like frontline and ect. were killing your beloved pets. So I mixed some cactus equine ( horse) spray according to the direction 7 to 1 and wow fleas on animals gone and staying off woks good on people to for flies misquitos gnats ect.

Please do not give your pets garlic or anything from the onion family. And dear god do not put tea tree oil on your pet as it is toxic and can kill them!And some plants,herbs,and essential oils are toxic and can cause serious damage and possible death! So you need to call your vet if you have issues with fleas as they can find the appropriate treatment for you pet!

And as for dishsoap and washing your pets in it.. Don't! It seriously dries out their skin and can cause problems in the long run.. And if it gets in their eyes... Then a visit to the vet.

think hard before using diatomaceous earth internally! diatoms are microscopic marine creatures with razor sharp silica shells, ie glass. they kill insects by cutting and scratching their outer skeletons so they dehydrate and die. now imagine razor sharp shards of glass moving thru the GI tract....

Kaliaman gave a good and accurate answer.

HerbDoctor

Everyone posting to this thread is likely consuming small amounts of diatomaceous earth (it's used in the food industry in packaging and filtering equipment). In the tiny amounts that might reach food (from processing or natural sources) it's not considered hazardous.

Ingesting significant quantities of it as a supplement might be a different story, both for pets and humans. There's very little good evidence regarding safety and efficacy.

You don't want the cure to be worse than the disease, assuming disease is even there in the first place.

Holy cow! Kaliaman, Eric and I are all in agreement about the same subject at the same time! (Did anyone feel the earth shift off its axis???)

HerbDoctor

except we're not in agreement since eric advocates internal use of small amounts, i do not. it may be okay but knowing how it works and having handled it, i prefer to err on the side of caution.

Agree, kali. There are so many better remedies in the plant kingdom.

HerbDoctor

"except we're not in agreement since eric advocates internal use of small amounts, i do not"

Nope, try reading the post again. I noted that it is likely that we are all inadvertently consuming small amounts of diatomaceous earth, either through it reaching our food via processing/packaging, or from natural sources (silicates of various types are ubiquitous in the environment).* I cited potential hazards from consuming diatomaceous earth deliberately as a dietary supplement.

*for the kind of person who fears "toxins" regardless of dose, the only solution here would be to stop eating entirely. :)

Eric gave a good answer.

HerbDoctor