Have you tried Advantix (for fleas and ticks)?
That is supposed to work much better than Frontline.

Yes, food grade DE is very effective and costs a fraction of the above mentioned! Just dust the dog every month and also add it to her food whenever you feed her something wet. (I try to get about 2 Tbs. in her once a week.) I find it deters fleas, ticks and also internal parasites for pennies.

Same for cats --- I give my outdoor cats tuna mixed with DE, kelp meal and water once a week and we just don't see fleas.

Those of you who mention the advertised meds have money I don't and I have to wonder how healthy those meds are for your pets.

I am about to try this since three weeks after applying Frontline Plus to dog and five indoor cats, they still have fleas, and the dog will get his third Sentinel tablet tomorrow. I have to wait another week to reapply the Frontline. All was fine till the humidity hit and the fleas are on the dog a day after his bath. I'm sick of it.

This year is really bad for fleas, I have used frontline and advantix and still found the occasional flea on my dog.

DE should be applied to AN AREA not the dog. The fact is as long as your dog is on a topical flea treatment the fleas you see on your dog will die once they make contact with your dog. Technically the park needs to be treated and you should contact the owner of the park.
Putting DE on your dog will only kill the fleas it comes in contact with. most applications are for treatment of a specific area, there are beneficial nematodes for this problem as well.
Note-in years when it is cooler and wetter, fleas will be more abundant. Dont panic, the topical is probably doing its job, unless you got it overseas - in which case it is probably a fraudulent product.
Also worth noting is although DE can be safely ingested, steps should be taken to absolutely prevent anyone from inhaling it as it WILL premanently and IRREVOCABLY damage lungs of any creature which breathes it in.

Good luck

I just hope my Frontline isn't fraudulent. I DID get it overseas but I got in there last year with good results. I am by nature suspicious but I know Merial makes it in France and distributes it world wide and the place I got it is a well known on -line vet shop. I will give them all another dose this week as then it will be a month. I usually wait a few more weeks but not this year. I comb all of them every day and still get fleas. And the cats never ever go out, just the dog who is on Sentinel and Frontline Plus..

mazer-When we moved to Florida, we were shocked at the fleas! We had never been around a place where they were 'abundant'. our vet in Florida advised us to use DE ON the dog besides in the house, as the dog really preferred to be outside. It had to be food grade, and we were to dust the dog lightly. That was the first time I had ever heard of DE, because we had lived in Phoenix, where there are no fleas. DE caused no problems to the dogs coat.

I might move to Phoenix.

Also worth noting is although DE can be safely ingested, steps should be taken to absolutely prevent anyone from inhaling it as it WILL premanently and IRREVOCABLY damage lungs of any creature which breathes it in.

This is not accurate. Pool grade is dangerous, food grade or garden grade is not. It still makes sense to wear a mask, just as you would in any dusty situation, but the right kind of DE will not do damage to your lungs. Also, according to the World Health Organization, only DE with less than 3% silica should be ingested.

The Bio-integral Resource Center (BIRC), a non-profit organization dedicated to education about the least toxic methods of pest control explains why it is very important to note the type of diatomaceous earth used:

"Both swimming pool grade and natural diatomaceous earth come from the same fossil sources but they are processed differently. The natural grades are mined, dried, ground, sled and bagged. The pool grade is chemically treated and partially melted and consequently contains crystalline silica which can be a respiratory hazard. Thus, it is imperative that only natural diatomaceous earth be used for insect control. This noncrystalline silica is not a hazard as the human body apparently can dissolve it. Silicosis refers to lung contamination and irritation by crystalline of free silica (Si02). Crystalline describes the orientation of the Si02 molecules which occur in a fixed pattern in contrast to the non periodic, random molecular arrangement defined as amorphous. Exposure to free silica is an occupational hazard to workers."

A university researcher who studies DE (I forget his name) said that the common road dust we inhale every day is far more dangerous to our lungs than noncrystalline DE.

In addition to being dangerous to inhale, pool grade DE is not effective against fleas, so there's definitely no point in using it. Food grade/garden grade DE is effective against fleas and safe for pets and humans.

As for applying it to the dog, this is only somewhat effective, because fleas can escape the dog and the DE won't stay on for long. It is much more effective to apply it to the living area, where the fleas hang out when they're not on the dog.

If you really want to conquer your flea problem, it is very important to do a thorough application. I live in Florida (probably the worst state for fleas) and I haven't had a real flea problem for about 20 years. Any new infestation is quickly eliminated by a new application of DE. Here's a link where I explain the process I use to apply DE...

Here is a link that might be useful: my DE application procedures

I agree with above and add this: "Long-term inhalation of the crystalline form is associated with silicosis, chronic bronchitis, and other respiratory problems. The bulk of diatomaceous earth is amorphous, not crystalline. The amorphous form is only associated with mild, reversible lung inflammation."