jla@inuxd.UUCP (Joyce Andrews) (03/17/86)
Sometime in the summer of '84 someone posted a flea message to
this group about Fenthion, a potent flea killer. It was supposed
to be the end-all answer to flea problems, wiping out all stages
of the population on your animal, in your home, in your yard, and
in low-flying aircraft--with one application!
I saved the posting. In August of '85 I moved into a new house
that had a flea problem in the house or yard (probably the yard).
The dog, the cat, and the ferret became loaded. I have a lot of
experience fighting the critters, but I tried *EVERYTHING* I
knew (including professional exterminators) and didn't solve the
problem for longer than a week.
I pulled out the posting from the previous summer and asked my
vet here in Indiana about it. She had never heard of it. I
asked my previous vet in Ohio. He said that he saved it for a
"last resort" because of the danger of fleas becoming resistant
to it to the one thing that will REALLY work in all cases. I, of
course, felt like I had reached the last resort.
I bought Fenthion at a farm-supply house in swine dilution.
(Farmers use it for lice and other parasites). I weighed my dog
(dachsund/beagle mix) and calibrated the dosage. It came out to
5 cc for her weight. I carefully laid down a little path of the
liquid down her midline (spine) and sent her outside (the stuff
smells a bit). I did not treat the cat or ferret. My next-door
neighbors, who had a similar problem (which is why I figured they
were in the yard--we live on a lake and the moisture seems to be
healthy for them) have a poodle mix who had a dreadful flea
allergy and was losing all her hair, in spite of weekly trips to
the vet. We applied the stuff to her and she started hair
regrowth immediately. In other words--one application wiped out
the flea population in both our homes!
Since then I have talked to vets about it. One said that it
could cause liver problems. Another said that was preposterous.
One told me there was a special dog dilution called SPOTTON. One
vet dispenses the bovine dilution, which is 8% in water. I used
the swine dilution, which is 3% in water.
I figured I was taking a chance using farm stuff in the home, but
I was pretty much against the wall. I don't see how this stuff
could be worse than fogging the house and yard and living in that
pesticide over and over, when one small application on the dog
worked so well. Since the stuff is used on food animals (there
is a time limit--not within 14 days, or 30 days of slaughter, or
something like that), is obviously isn't one of those pesticides
that has a half life of 10,000 years.
I don't know. I know I spent $8 for a bottle that will last me
until January, 2016. And that my dog seems to be fine. She
didn't even miss a meal, and some flea stuff would make her sick.
Has anyone else tried it? I figure I will have to apply again
this Spring--and maybe again in the summer. I can't get two vets
to agree, unless you buy the very expensive SPOTTON for dogs from
them. Does anyone have any experience with this stuff?
Joyce Andrews (AT&T Indianapolis)
(ihnp4!inuxd!jla)