I am posting this because yesterday I had to put my 7 year old cat
fluffy to sleep because he had a severe reaction to sergeants brand
flea and tick medication he had severe seizers and tremors there was
no way he would have made it so I was forced to make the decision no
pet owner wants to make …. my heart is broken but now I feel I need
to do this for Fluffy so hopefully maybe I can save another pet from
being taken this way !
here are some other peoples stories i found on a web site

All flea meds,shampoos, powders have this chemical permmethrin its a
pestiside and its in all of them beware !

I am writing in alarm and concern about the Sergeant’s Pet Care
products for cats that are being sold on the market. I recently used
a brand new bottle of Sergeant’s® Skip-Flea® & Tick Shampoo for Cats.
Within about 11 hours of using it, my cat was having seizures, and
then went into some sort of coma. Her pupils were so big that her
eyes were completely black. I took her to the vet hospital where I
learned that the shampoo contained this chemical called Permethrin.
This is a known PESTICIDE that is lethal and toxic to cats. This
isn’t the first case the hospital has had of cats coming in affected
by this. Nine hours after getting her to the hospital she died. My
cat was perfectly healthy until this moment. I have contacted the
company and they are not quite willing to cooperate. I am looking for
help in bringing awareness to other pet owners about these harmful
products. I’ve done a lot of research and I found out that these
following products are also hurting and killing pets (cats and dogs).
To read each story of what each animal went through is heartbreaking:
Bio Spot, Advantage, Frontline, Sergeant’s Nature’s Guardian flea and
tick products. I have emailed several people whose pets have died and
become injured. There an amazing amount of people that need help.
I’ve contacted the Department of Consumer Affairs and Department of
Pesticide Regulation so far and have not gotten very far. Sara
Paredesscr@aol. com Sacramento, CA:

Frontline:
“The day that ur 8 year old Tibetan Spaniel received the frontline
plus on his back, he seem very unhappy, like he knew he had received
something bad for him. The following days he refused to walk - he had
to be carried to his favorite tree. He was extremely lethargic. He
only moved to eat and drink. He seemed depressed - he did not wag his
tail, or show any affection as he usually does. IT was as if his
personality was changed - he became a depressed, sad dog. In the last
two weeks (after 3 weeks of this) he started to ‘improve’ and while
he started scratching a bit more as the flea poison wore off, he
started seeming to feeel better, to walk, to ’smile’, to be happy to
see his dog friends on the street. He now seems just about fine -
although still not walking quite as much as he was 5 weeks ago before
the frontline” Lily lily0278@gmail. com

Alert! “Farnam’s Bio Spot Flea and Tick Almost Killed our Dog.”
One day while shopping, we cameacross an over-the-counter product,
called Bio Spot Flea and Tick Control (by Farnam Pet Products). It
looked similar to the Frontline product, but it was much cheaper, so
we decided to try it. The Bio Spot seemed to work just as well as
Frontline, so we used it again six weeks later. An hour after
applying the Bio Spot, we found Hamish thrashing about on the
ground. His body was completely stiff. His head was raised in the
air, and his jaws were opened wide. A thick foamy saliva was spewing
from his mouth. Horrified, I tried to determine if something was
stuck in his throat. His windpipe was clear, but he was not
breathing. His eyes began to roll back in his head. He was dying
and we did not know what to do to save him! We made a desperate call
to our veterinarian …. more — Here are some of the e-mail
messages that I have received from others whose dogs and cats have
experienced adverse reactions to flea control products. (after
clicking on a date message board, scroll down a little to view the
message)

Alert Zodiac flea control killed 2 cats
” We have just lost 2 cats because of Zodiac flea trol drops. They
died one after another , 2 healthy pets, we used this Zodiac drops
for about 2 moths as instructed on the package. The vet said it went
through the skin and damaged the liver. We will e-mail the company as
well.” Andrei in Canada : andreikraev@ yahoo.ca

I shampooed my dog with Zodiac Flea and Tick Shampoo on sunday the
20th. The dog seems to be fine but I have extreme pain in the hand
I used to rub the shampoo in. It took me a few days to realize
what had happened. The pain starts in my fingers and goes all the
way to my shoulder. Unless you like pain or want to kill your pet,
DO NOT USE THIS SHAMPOO! Carol Dunn lcd @ briskweb.net

Other testimonials about dangerous pet products

The answer is provided by :
Jasmine :
I WILL NOT use those flea drops products from grocery store. I did it once on my cat. He got a hold of it, guess he licked it. He was running around like a mad cat and started foaming at the mouth. Fortunately he was fine. I immediately threw out the cheap crap. He’s on Advantage Multi now and perfectly happy.
My 2 dogs were on Advantage Multi and have been fine. Yesterday I changed them to Revolution. It smells like rubbing alcohol. Jasmine showed mild discomfort. Maggie started flipping out. She tried so hard to rub her back on the floor and sofa to get it off. I will ask the vet today about that. She really didn’t like Revolution on her.

I was at the car wash with my sister a few nights ago and I found a kitty peaking out from beside a dumpster looking very thin, very young (probably 3 months old) and VERY sad. It seems obvious that this cat has always been homeless. I got down on my knees and the kitty took about three minutes to inch over to me. When it finally got to me, I just fell in love- the kitty was purring and nuzzling me. I took him back to my house and brought him into my room. I gave him some dog food, because my step mom owns two Shih Tzus. The kitty’s eyes had black dirt in the corners, which I have since wiped off, and the kitty also has fleas, but we have Frontline Plus for him. I’m assuming this cat is a male, because there is a small set of what appears to be testicles beneath the tail. I could be wrong. He sat for about ten straight minutes drinking bottled water from a dish I set out for him, and ate a ton of dog food very quickly. Luckily, my best friend brought over a ton of cat food for the cause and he has since been eating that. The kitty had probably gone days without food, I mean, I found him crying by a dumpster, and he is VERY thin. But he has been eating well, his stools are solid, and he caught on to the litter box very quickly. He isn’t reacting very well to the dogs so far, but I read off of another answer that they will get used to each other. He’s getting playful and appears to be in good health as far as that goes. We’ve scheduled an appointment for my kitty at the vet. My questions are: First of all, although I am almost 100% sure this cat was always homeless, will the vet be able to tell me if he’s been neutered or received shots in case it was once a pet? The kitty wasn’t found in a neighborhood, he was found by a dumpster behind a car wash within five minutes of a very poor, ghetto neighborhood where a lot of stray cats probably run around and have stray litters in random places. It isn’t the kind of neighborhood where people are known for having healthy pets because they are so poor, they probably don’t take the cats to the vet, either. My second question is, do you have any advice regarding the cat and the dogs getting used to each other? The dogs are generally very nice, but they bark a LOT and they are very obnoxious… I can’t stand them, they’re always pooping all over the house and barking at all hours of the night, but they are very nice dogs in general. I’d love any advice you have to give about stray cats, just remember that we are a very loving household, we take great care of our animals. I’m not going to neglect this cat’s health, we’re getting him to the vet and have purchased CAT food, toys, litter, and all the other necessities.

The following reply is by : ♥♥Lizzy Kitty♥♥ :
First of all, Feeding dog food to a cat can in the long run, give the cat liver, bladder, and other problems. Once is fine. TO get the to used to each other, but the cat in one room and let it live there for a while. Give it attention. Let the dog sniff the cat under the dog and visa versa. When about 3 days past and the dog and cat know there is another animal in the house, let the dog see the cat, but have the dog on a leash so you can stop if they attack. Do it for longer periods until up to a week. Then they can both be let out around the house no restrictions. The vet can check to see if the cat is micro chipped, maybe they will reconize it.
Some other info
Preventing Bad Habits
A little training when your cat first comes home will help to prevent any bad habits from becoming established. If you try to “think like a cat” to discover why they perform a certain unwanted behavior, you can help to establish more acceptable routines. Here are some tips on the three most common bad habits:

Scratching. Scratching is a normal cat behavior to leave it’s scent on it’s territory, get exercise, and groom it’s nails. Most cats will leave your expensive furniture alone if you redirect their scratching instincts to an acceptable spot. Invest in a kitty condo big enough for your cat to stretch out on, and if you see him scratching, take him to the post. Rub a little catnip on the condo to enhance it’s appeal. You can also put strips of aluminum foil down the edges of your sofa during the training period as a deterrent. And have a spray water bottle handy to spray your cat while firmly saying “NO” if he scratches the couch. PLEASE DO NOT DECLAW YOUR CAT. Declawing is equivalent to amputating your own fingers at the first knuckle. It’s painful, leaves your cat defenseless, and often causes emotional problems that arise from the suppression of this very natural activity.

Jumping on the kitchen counter and table. Cats love high places, so the kitchen counter strikes them as a great place to watch the world go by. If your cat also finds food up there, they’ve just had major reinforcement for this bad habit. Best solution: find another spot in the kitchen where it’s ok for your cat to hang out from on high, like the top of the refrigerator. Then persistently move your kitty there every time she jumps on the counter. Repetition and consistency are key here, but eventually your cat will get the idea.

Not using the litter box.First, have your cat checked by your vet to rule out a urinary tract infection. Next, try changing the type of litter, for many cats are very sensitive to particular litters. Try unscented litters, removing hoods from boxes, moving the box to a more private location, or cleaning the box more often. Provide multiple boxes in multiple cat households. Also, if you have a kitten, be sure it actually remembers where the litter box is! Sometimes in a big house a small kitten can get lost, in which case it will look for the nearest unobtrusive corner to go!
Food Recommendations
Many people ask us what we consider “the best” brand of cat food. Most of us have different preferences (usually dictated by the whims of our own cats), but there are some universals we have discovered through experience and consultations with our vets.

The key in choosing a good type of food is to read the ingredients. With wet food, you should avoid meat by- products. With dry food, you should not only avoid by-products, but consider how much of the protein comes from meat and how much from grain, as cats cannot process grain protein nearly as well. In general, for both wet and dry, the more meat ingredients in the first few positions in the ingredients list, the better the food. In addition, many dry foods use corn to bind the food, and corn can lead to obesity as well as trigger allergies in your cat. The best dry foods have no corn in them at all, and ideally no soy or wheat.

What you may have heard about “supermarket” cat foods being the equivalent of “junk food” for cats is not just a ploy to get you to buy the more expensive brands. Just as there is a range of how people food is made, different brands of cat food are made with different standards. Relying on supermarket brands of cat food is analogous to feeding your children fast food for every meal. These foods may be fine for an occasional treat but should not be fed every day. The best bargain wet food is Trader Joe’s Premium cat food, as it has no meat by-products and is priced similar to grocery store pet food.

Most food you buy at a Petco, Petsmart, Centinela Feed or a similar local pet store is a superior brand. We recommend the following based on our experience; there are also other excellent premium brands: Premium High Quality
Wellness Avo Derm
Natural Balance Royal Canin
Felidae Nutro Natural Choice & Nutro Max
Nature’s Variety Prairie Pro Plan
California Natural Advanced Pet Diets’ Select Choice
Artemis Innova Regular (red bag)
Innova Evo

Kittens should be fed kitten food, both wet and dry, until they are at least eight months old, then they can move to adult food. Always have plenty of fresh water, changed at least once a day.

Recent studies suggest that cats that are only fed dry food can develop urinary and kidney problems due to insufficient water in the diet. In addition, dry food is high in carbohydrates so if your cat is overweight, feed more wet and less dry. Many vets now recommend always feeding wet food.

Current research from vets also suggests changing your cat’s brand or flavor of food at least every 6 months, or feeding it a few varieties of food. This is in case your cat ever needs to go on a veterinary special diet. If it has only eaten one kind of food for 10 years it will resist the new food.

Is It Okay To Let A Cat Go Outside?
Some people say it’s cruel not to let a cat go outside. Based on our experience at Kitten Rescue, we’ve put together this list of all the things an indoor-only cat misses:

Being hit by a car
Being eaten by a coyote
Being attacked by a bird
Exposure to FIV (Feline AIDS)
Exposure to Feline Leukemia
Exposure to Feline Infectious Peritonitis
Exposure to upper respiratory infections
Fleas, Ticks, Worms
Fights
Abscesses
Dog attacks
Becoming lost
Being stolen for profit or research facilities.
Tortured by cruel people
Poisoning by food, pesticides, or anti-freeze.
And here are just a few of things you gain by loving your cat enough to keep it indoors: fewer fleas - cleaner furniture - lower vet bills - a pet that’s more closely bonded to you - peace of mind knowing your cat is safe and happy.

The fact is, outdoor cats live an average of 6 years, while indoor cats live an average of almost 20. Isn’t that the dealmaker right there?

SO IN SORT! KEEP YOUR CATS INSIDE!!!

About a month ago, I had 4 kittens and their momma show up. I have a roommate that is allergic to cats so I had to keep them remaining outside. I have tried to call the shelters around my area and they were all kill shelters. I have been taking care of these kittens and momma since they showed up at my door step one night. I made them a bed and a little room outside….

I went on Vacation, for a week, and my mom was here and when that happened all the kitties disappeared and the neighbors said there was a bob cat in the area. and that one got hit by a car. I broke down crying they were so adorable….

Anyway only the momma cat is left and I want to keep her. I just got back in town tonight so tomorrow afternoon i’m going to the pet store to get necessary supplies….

However the main question is as follows:
I feed the cat all the time and have been for the past month however she has not gained any weight she is still very skinny…. Could there be something wrong with her? If so what? I know she did just give birth to 4 kittens like a month and a half ago..

Someone Please Help! I have called every where!!!!!

*Also* Does the regular FRONTLINE Flea Medication at WALMART work just as good as Frontline plus prescription???

*Momma cat eats all the time, But doesn't gain any weight, What could possibly be wrong? I have given her wet food, treats, kitten chow, adult food with proteins, i've mixed everything together, nothing seems to work.

Is it just because she is outside and is probably very active?

The best answer is by :
messy_beast :
You need to get her checked by a vet. if she’s been outside she has probably picked up parasites such as roundworms and tapeworms. Any food she eats nourishes the parasites instead of nourishing her. You need to get a wormer (it needs to be one that tackles roundworms and tapeworms).

Hyperthyroid is another reason. It makes cats ravenously hungry, but they burn it off as fast as they eat it and end up very skinny. This needs a vet to treat it. He can prescribe tablets to stabilise the condition followed by surgery to remove abnormal thyroid tissue.

Food intolerance can also prevent weight gain. Does she have diarrhoea or vomiting? Food intolerances can mean the food passes through them too quickly (due to the bowel upset) without being properly digested.

Get her checked out by the vet. She needs to be spayed ASAP and you can get the worm treatments and her thyroid checked at the same time. If she’s not spayed, she’ll be ready to mate again within a couple of weeks of not being suckled by kittens and it sounds like she’s not in a good state to have more kittens.

We are having a very heavy flea infestation. After applying Frontline Plus continuously every month since a puppy (she is now 20 months old) it did not take care of the problem. Switched to K-9 Advantix three days ago and dog is having bad side effects; hyperventilating, not sleeping during the night, not eating all food, scratching producing hot spots. I plan on removing the product today with Dawn Liquid Detergent as suggested by manufacturer. After removing product what can I do to keep fleas off pet. Vet’s office said not to apply anything for two weeks. In the meantime, if I do that I will have a flea infestation in the house. Advantix vet tech said I could apply another product immediately will have no adverse effect. Any suggestions on what I can do? I don’t want the dog to suffer from fleas and don’t want to infest my house. And, I am afraid to wait two weeks without the dog having any protection. She is a Bichon Frise (white) and can see fleas jump on her. Treated lawn twice in a month and still have fleas.

The following reply is by : chetco :
After many years of trying nearly all of the products, I find Revolution works the best. My dogs (breed)are super sensitive to chemicals, but have had no problems with Revolution. Call around your vet clinics and ask them if they carry it. The first treatment is often given for free as a promotion.
Where has it been all my life! Great product.

Hello,

Last weekend I bought Zodiac Spot On for my dogs and it did not work (I was planning on buying Frontline Plus but the girl at the pet store told me Zodiac was just as good). Well it wasn't and now my dogs are scratching like crazy and still covered with fleas!

But anyways, I have the Frontline Plus now and want to know how long do I have to wait til' I can retreat my dogs w/ the Frontline Plus. Alos if I have to wait awhile is there any safe remedies I can use until then?

Thank you
Calvin

The answer is provided by :
Johanna J :
I work at a pet store and we sell that Zodiac crap, but if people ask I still tell them that the Frontline, Advantage and Revolution (or other vet brands) are better (unless my boss is listening… haha). Anyway, I *think* that you'd have to wait a month until the Zodiac wears off before you start with Frontline. However, since you have to get the Fronline from the vet, that would be a perfect opportunity to call them and check for sure. Good luck on getting a wonderfully flea-free dog!

I have an indoor / outdoor cat that I am having a hard time keeping fleas off of. I use Capstar pills and Frontline Plus, but it only seems to work for just a few days. Any suggestions?

The answer is provided by :
Kat :
Capstar is only effective for 24 hours and only kills adult fleas. But you can use that as often as you need.

But if the frontline isn't working the fleas in your area may be used to it. Try another topical like Advantage or the new Promeris and see if that doens't do them in.

I just wanted to see how many people use ProMeris. My vet switched to it in April.

I found a tick on my dog that never died. Kept it in a plastic bag for a day past the 3 days it claimed it took to work, and it was still alive. I did some research online and found that there were complaints from ineffectiveness to reactions like skin irritation, vomiting, nausea, drooling and more.

Called to complain to my vet and they said they had a file of complaints mostly from owners whose pets had physical reactions… and were switching back to frontline plus.

Called ProMeris, they were LESS than helpful and almost defensive about it like it was my fault.

I started with Frontline Plus again last month, Found a tick on my dog today… Dead.

and it could have only been there for no longer than 24 hours because I had checked my dog over after his walk the day before I found the tick and he was clean.

So My luck goes with Frontline Plus.

Any other ProMeris users having issues?
Also, yes the tick I found with Promeris had fed, because it was hard to remove, it was slightly gorged and left a blood spot on his ear when I finally did detach him.

Promeris told me it would take 72 hours to become effective. 96 hours and it was still kicking.

With frontline, the thing couldn't have even been on him for a full 24 hours and it was already dead.

I'm just curious if my vet's office is in a rare group, or if others are having issues with ProMeris.

The answer is provided by :
Teri :
I've heard nothing but bad stories from ProMeris users. Frontline doesn't seem to work on my dogs so I just use Advantage. I know its suppose to be a monthly thing but it lasts longer than that so I only use it once every 2 months on them.

I have a two year old female cat. She goes outside on a leash while she is supervised and it is flea season now. I used to use Frontline Plus and it seemed like every other time she had an allergic reaction. Her skin would be a little red and flaky and it healed in a few days. I don't want to do that to her again but this stuff worked wonders.

Does anybody have a better experience with Advantage? I do not want to try Revolution as I have heard many bad outbreak stories about it.

Also, I phoned Banfield and their single doses of Advantage are $13.95 a dose (I do not want to get the 4-pack right now because I want to see if it will be okay)…can I just go and get it? He took my pet's information so he knows that I take my pets to that vet. I shouldn't have to bring her in, should I? The only reason that I am going to bring her in is to weigh her because she is on a diet right now and I gotta make sure I get the right weight for the Advantage doses.

Sorry this is long.
She doesn't currently have fleas but I don't want her to get them. When I rescued her she had fleas AND tapeworm so no more of that! And no, I do not currently have a dog.

The following reply is by : Brandi R :
I use to work for Banfield (they are overpriced!) Frontline seemed to be the best selling because it worked. However, if you cat has had a reaction to it, you can always try Advantage. You don't have to bring your pet in but you do need to have an approximate weight b/c it can make your pet sick if you give them too much.

I bought advantage 2 weeks ago and I saw a flea on my dog today. I'm planning to buy fronline next time. But is frontline the same exact product vets give you the same one they sell at pet stores? Is frontline good according to most people?

This is was answered by :
Alexandra R :
It's the same, although you'l probably find it cheaper online like on websites ike 1800 petmeds.com. Success really varies, works with 1 of my dogs, but not with the other 2. Have had much better results with advantix (or advantage). If the dog has a ot of fleas, it might take more than 1 mo. to realy get rid of them.

I want to buy Frontline Plus for dogs. Is Joe's Pet Meds a good source compared to CanadaVet?

The question was answered by :
D P :
I placed an order w/them on 04/24/08. I wrote them and asked for a tracking number, which they did not provide. (FYI, they are in Australia; I am in the US.) I wrote and asked them by when I should receive my order. Answer? 05/05/08. Today is 05/05/08 and the order has not been recd. Based upon this experience, I would not do business w/them and will file a cc chargeback. You make your own decision.