Using Plants as a Natural Flea Repellant

My friend, Paula, lives in the country in middle-America, and is a long-time dog show breeder and trainer. One of her friends told her about these plants, and at first she dismissed it, but then when her friend gave her starts of the plants, what did she have to lose? Turns out that the plants with built-in insect repellants provide an excellent barrier for your home, as well. Once she planted these around the perimeter of her property, she hasn't had any more problems with fleas. And, she points out, that if you plant especially the mints where the dogs can roll in them, then they will self-treat when necessary!

Here are some of the plants she recommends:

artemesia
perilla
mums
marigolds
bergamot
all types of mint (lemon, chocolate, apple, peppermint, catnip)

Artemisia (wormwood):
Artemisia absinthium
Botanical info on different varieties


Perilla:
Wild basil


Mums:


Marigolds:


Bergamot (bee balm):
wild bergamot
how to propogate


Catnip:


Peppermint:


The fleas have become progressively worse the past 3 years and this year I had to break down and use chemicals on the lawn. So I'm clearing out some areas to plant some of these plants next year and I can't wait to see how well they do!

EPA issues warnings for chemical flea preventatives

After receiving over 44,000 complaints from side-effects from chemical flea preventatives ranging from mild to death, the EPA has issued a warning. Evidently there is also a class-action lawsuit in the works.

I can say that personally, I had a pug puppy who was old enough to safely use Frontline per the instructions, and at half the recommended dose, the puppy exhibited a negative neurological response, losing control of normal motor skills. I immediately washed off the chemicals and he immediately improved with no apparent permanent ill effects. This was not reported to the EPA - how many others are there out there that have never been reported?

After a friend lost her cat to a flea treatment last night, I felt compelled to research things a bit more and to share the information. Here is a page that addresses the EPA's warning along with some alternative solutions to chemical flea preventatives.

http://www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/pestcontrol.htm

We primarily use garlic internally to repel, along with diatomaceous earth and essential oils externally. Based on a high quality diet, with these preventative, there are few situations in which a chemical alternative is necessary.

P.S. - A common natural solution for grubs and fleas is the use of nematodes in the lawn. Although this is definitely a viable alternative for fleas, it also negatively affects beetles. And in areas with fireflies, that means them, too. So if you would like to preserve the beetles and fireflies, please be judiscious regarding the areas on which you choose to use nematodes!

September Fun - Mum Festival!

September has been a very busy month! We started off with a bang by going to the Dog Splash at the recently closed water park. At the same time, we were battling fleas. Yes, the fleas this year were horrendous. Last year we made it through our first flea season holistically with a bit of diatomaceous earth and some garlic tablets. This year, we knew by the way the summer started it was going to be harsh, so we added essential oils but ran out of garlic tablets. Right around the end of August, beginning of September, I knew we were in trouble. I located some more garlic tablets and added them to their diet. They worked wonderfully, but the problem was that the fleas were jumping off the dogs and onto me! That first night I found a flea in bed, off to the vet we went. The first vet we visited had actually sold out of Frontline (does that tell you how bad it was?) and so we got a bottle of bulk spray at the second stop. Now we've got them back under control, but it was touch and go there for a while! Bet I won't run out of garlic tablets again... Especially since Petunia had a horrible reaction to Frontline (like a chemical burn) and I only sprayed her 4 times (according to the bottle, she could have anywhere from 20 - 40 sprays per her weight). I wish they had remained with their original flea-inhibitor formula instead of going to a pesticide.



This is a 3 generation picture. Daisy, on the right with Rizzo, her daughter, on the left and Kentucky Lilly, the spoiled and headstrong granddaughter in the middle. They had tons of fun wresting every day. Lilly went to her new home two evenings ago and she is terribly missed, no matter how much trouble she caused :) She is busy trying to figure out what she can take over in her new home, I'm sure. She has lots of people there to give her undivided attention and slather lots of love on her! She and Rizzo are products of what we've been breeding for in our lines, with the combinations we've chosen and we're very, very proud of both of them, and of the rest of our crew. Not only is Lilly beautiful and strong, but she also has a strong immune system. She showed symptoms of parvo at 4 weeks old and recovered from it beautifully in very short order with the help of parvaid and colloidal silver. I will always have these products on hand for my litters now that I know exactly how effective they can be, especially when given at the onset of any symptoms.

We also got out for a day of sunshine and fun when delivering a quad runner to my friend's sister. It was a beautiful day, and we ran the quad runner up into an area where he hunts. I got to see beautiful land and dream of living out in the hills and forest. At the end of the day, a storm ripped through while we were driving back (hauling a trailer, no less). It was Hurricane Ike running into a fiercely set high pressure system. The meeting of the two caused a funnel-like reaction bringing hurricane like winds to the Miami Valley. We saw road signs bent over in half. There was actually a tree down on I-70 itself. We saw everything blow across the road in front of us except a cow. The damage was widespread. Even as it was happening, we saw a convoy of 17 Ohio Edison trucks on the highway off to try to repair the damage. In trying to get gas, we had to watch for any signs of electricity at the exits to even pull off. When I finally saw a lit sign, only 2 of the 8 gas stations were operating and they had long lines. And half their pumps were empty already. On returning home, it was shocking the amount of damage. I'm not sure there was anyone that didn't lose limbs from their trees, even if they didn't lose whole trees. In one yard alone, I counted 7 downed adult trees. The wind came through on Sunday, but the main roads in town were still without electricity till Friday and Saturday. Thanks to the help of some neighbors and Tony's ingenuity, the freezers full of meat were saved. With the cost of gas, maybe at an expense close to what was in them!! We have mostly recovered from the event, but there is still a tree in my mom's yard that needs to be cut up and removed. What we suffered was nothing in comparison to the folks in Texas. Our prayers are still with those who are battling the ravages of the hurricane!



Normally I don't post if we've had a visitor or not, but we did have the lovely miss Buzka visiting last week and she was delightful. I couldn't resist posting this picture of her (left) with Fabio. And if you're wondering, she really was giving him a dressing down. Buzka's mom was on her way to pick her up when we learned about a Mum Festival in her area, so we packed up and went there, instead.

Representing Pugville were Petunia and Ellie Mae. They had the most energy to burn that day and boy did they get their money's worth. We walked the vendor's booths for 3 hours! We had a blast. I forgot how many steps you can take between people wanting to pet the dogs. I think it's 3. Sometimes 5. But that's ok. We had fun and the dogs LOVED all the attention they were getting. They had just had baths that morning and were all spruced up and ready for a day out! And, yes, they slept very soundly that night!