Your dog has fleas, and I do not think that you are dirty.

It is shaping up to be a terrible flea season.  In the last two weeks alone, I have seen more flea infestations than I have seen all summer.  This isn't a surprise to me, after thirteen years in practice, I know that fall is the worst time of year for fleas, but it seems particularly bad this fall.  The frustrating thing is that owners make it hard for me to fix their problem.  I think that it is because they are in denial, lots of people think that they can't possibly have fleas, or if they do, it can't be that many so they don't have to worry.  They must feel this way because they think that if they have fleas, they are dirty.  Nobody wants to think of themselves as dirty.  Here's the deal: having a pet with fleas does not make you dirty.

Maybe knowing this story will help make you feel better.  In January, 2004 I was at home with my second infant on maternity leave.  While  we were snuggled up in a rocking chair with one of the cats on a snowy afternoon, I saw a flea run across her perfect little peach fuzzy scalp.  Yes, it is true.  I had a dog and two cats that had received the usual flea treatments throughout the summer and like most people, I got lazy in November or so as the temperatures dropped and the holidays began.  I was able to fix the problem, but that is because I didn't say to myself..."Hmmm, that couldn't have been a flea, it is January and my house is clean, I just washed the sheets and vacuumed like I do every week." 

I had a flea on my head when I was a baby, do I look dirty?


Fleas are a pretty clever parasite, they have been around for centuries.  Don't forget, they are responsible for spreading the plague all over Europe in the 14th century, so while you are not dirty, fleas are and you don't want them around.  Some animals are a great host for fleas, they don't even get itchy with literally hundreds of fleas infesting their coats.  Others are allergic to the bite and will be furiously itchy with even one flea bite.  Those are the animals that it is hard to find the proof on because they fastidiously groom the fleas away, swallowing them while licking and biting at themselves.  If your animal is itchy and you and your vet cannot find the fleas or flea dirt, please just listen to the vet and apply some Frontline Plus or whatever  the vet recommended.  We are not making this up. 

Here is what I use to keep fleas from ever becoming a problem on my own pets:
On my dog Ozzie, I apply Certifect topically to treat adult fleas and ticks every month and I give him a Sentinel tablet every month for heartworm, intestinal parasites and prevention of fleas.  Sentinel has a chemical specific to an insect system in it that doesn't allow a flea to lay a viable egg, pretty cool.  On my cats, Peggy and Teddy, I apply Revolution every month.  If anybody stops mid stride to turn around and bite at their skin with their front teeth, I am suspicious despite our great preventative plan and they all get some Capstar orally a few times a week for 3 weeks, just in case.  The only thing that I don't do is use over the counter products, those can be very toxic, especially to cats.

Check out this website for some flea facts: www.sentinelpet.com.  One adult flea can lay 50 eggs a day, in 30 days, with 10 fleas to start you could have 250,000 fleas in the house.  Pretty gross.

My dog is miserable

Whose idea was it to take me to the dermatologist?

I have always been proud of the fact that I never judge an owner for over-reacting or under-reacting about the condition of their pet.  After all, I am not living in their home experiencing what they are experiencing.  Sometimes though, I have an eye opening personal experience, that helps me to remember that it can be very upsetting when your dog doesn't feel good. 

Ozzie has been itchy for about two years.  I have treated him exactly like I would have told any owner to treat one of my patients.  He has had antibiotics for skin infections, flea and tick treatments religiously, treatments for possible mites, hypoallergenic diets...the works.  He still scratches.  After all of those treatments failed, just like I would have told my clients, I decided that he has atopy.  That is the term for environmental allergies.  I blood tested him with the hope of formulating an allergy shot, but the blood test came up with nothing.  That left us scheduling a trip to the veterinary dermatologist for skin testing, something that I cannot do myself in general practice.  We saw Dr. Brian Palmeiro, a board certified veterinary dermatologist, who, by the way, is fantastic.  Ozzie was a great candidate for skin testing, as he really only had a rash on his belly, and his sides where allergy testing is done still had perfectly beautiful, healthy skin.  As Dr. Palmeiro injected 66 allergens under the skin of my sleepy little dog, I was happy and excited when I saw hive after hive appear at most of the locations.  Finally, I would be able to start allergy shots with the hope of making him eventually comfortable.  Once he was awake, I comforted him and told him that all would be well,  slathered a little hydrocortisone on the skin test site (his entire left side)  and we went home with three vials of hope in a bottle.



I hope that these work!

 Well, he hasn't stopped scratching what I can only imagine feels like the world's largest mosquito bite for three and a half days now.  He yelps, he runs under chairs trying to get away from his skin, he cries, he trembles.  His side is bruised, swollen, hot and horrible.  There is nothing that I have given him that seems to help, and believe me, I have given him plenty of tablets, sprays, lotions, shampoos and creams.  The only thing that I haven't given, which would probably work but would mess with our allergy shots and what I have already given, is a steroid.  So, now all I can do is feel terrible for him.  I think that my feeling terrible is a good part of the treatment plan.  Maybe it will help.

My rash hurts.

None of this is helping.

These are the experiences that I hope make me a better veterinarian.