Below is an email sent to clients to bring to their attention a natural product that seems to be effective. I don’t benefit financially from this company in any way.
This email is a follow-up to my previous tick email. As some owners have become more aware of than others – the ticks are out in a relatively high number right now, and are about as numerous as I have seen in the last 10 years.
Though it seems that the chances of a dog or owner contracting a disease, like Lyme disease, are relatively low, they can still be a nuisance. There are two layers of the tick problem, as I see it:
- Ticks once they have attached to a dog.
- Ticks on/in the coat of a dog, before they have attached.
Regarding the first part of the problem, I believe myself and other owners have found an effective solution for. From what I’ve gathered from owners, my veterinarian, and what I’m seeing – oral medications like Bravecto and Nexgard are very effective at killing ticks once they bite a dog, and begin to suck the blood. Because those medications get into the dog’s bloodstream, and are toxic to ticks, the ticks will die relatively quickly after they begin to ingest the dog’s blood. My understanding is that topical medications, like K9 Advantix II, only penetrate the subcutaneous layer of the dog, and do not get into the bloodstream, and so may be slightly less effective, but also could be a good option for killing ticks once they bite the dog. But oral medications, or topical medications, like K9 Advantix II, still don’t seem to repel the ticks from climbing on/in the dog’s coat, so a dog on One of these medications may still come home with ticks in the coat, which I perceive as a separate problem.
The second layer of the problem – having a large number of ticks on a dog’s coat – is still not pleasant to deal with. While I am seeing more ticks on some trails than others, trying to avoid them seems somewhat difficult, and I would prefer not to make any promises as to my ability to be able to avoid them. But, something that I tried today and that seems to work well as a repellent , is a natural spray called Wondercide. I’ve posted the link below, which includes a list of ingredients. This email is to notify owners about the possible solution, and also to get feedback about preferences.
I sprayed this lightly over the bodies of several dogs today that have had problems with coming home with ticks, and I was not able to find any on them after the hike. (Whereas last week that was not the case, and I used the same trail.) So it seems like it could be a good solution to the problem of having dogs come home with ticks in their coat.
My plan is to keep a bottle of this in my van, and spray it over dogs that I have seen as being especially prone to getting ticks, and I would like to run this by owners to see about their preferences. If you would prefer I not use this on your dog, would you mind letting me know? I think this would be an easy way to create a list. It does leave a light cedar sent, as cedar oil is an active ingredient, that I actually find to be very pleasant. I’m hoping that combining the natural spray with a topical or oral tick medication, (given at home), can address both layers of the tick problem, and keep them off of the dogs’ coats, as well as kill the ones that may slip through.
I am very sorry for the trouble, as it has definitely been unpleasant for some owners, and I hope that this may be an effective solution. Please feel free to let me know your preferences, or, if you have any other ideas/solutions, I would love to potentially hear them if you’re willing to share. (My knowledge of this natural spray actually came from feedback from an owner, which I appreciate.) I hope to hear back, and thank you so much for being part of the pack.
Thanks,
Colin
