Broken Hartz

Broken Hart Logo

A grassroots organization called Broken Hartz is making news.  This organization works to spread the word about the harmful effects of Hartz products to your pets. Hartz makes commercial flea and tic products for cats and dogs.  Hartz adds ingredients to their products that have been reported to cause harmful side effects, even fatalities, to cats and dogs.  The mission of Broken Hartz began in January 2012 and serves to provide direct protest to the actions of Hartz Mountain Corporation.  After being in business only eight months, Broken Hartz's message has reached 85 countries.  They claim to tell you everything that Hartz does not want you to know. 

Symptoms of Chemical Poisoning in Your Dog

Symptoms of chemical poisoning in your dog can range from very mild to severe. The mild symptoms can be difficult to detect and are often extremely subtle.  The can include sleepiness and decrease in appetite. Once your dog recovers from the chemical poisoning, his symptoms will disappear, but it can take several days before the poisoning works its way through your pet's system. 

More severe symptoms include loss of coordination,  muscle tremors or shakes, and increased salivation or drooling.  

Highly toxic chemicals can be very harmful to your dog and can even cause death.   If your dog exhibits any of these symptoms, call the Animal Poison Control Center at 1-800-548-2423.  Be sure to have the bottle with toxic substance with you when you call so you can supply the needed information.  Read the Montana State University article by Cecil Tharp, Pesticide Education Specialist, titled Chemicals and Animal Safety.

Lawn Care

If you have fleas coming into your home from your dog bringing them in from the outside, spend sometime working on lawn care. This includes mowing your lawn on a very regular basis to keep the flea population down. Fleas and other animals will hide in grassy areas around your house, so cutting your grass will eliminate their hiding places.  Trimming your weeds, shrubbery and garden and raking all of your leaves off your lawn.  Fleas love to hide in areas of your yard which receive little or no sunlight.  So expose all areas of your yard to sunlight as this will kill fleas hiding in your lawn, waiting for the opportunity to hitch a ride on your pet's body into your home.

Lemony Scent

Try combating fleas with lemon. Fleas do not like the scent of lemon or any citrus flavored odor.  Buy some standard size lemons and cut a few into thin slices and boil them in water over a hot stove and then let the lemon mixture sit overnight.   In the morning, take some of the lemon mixture and pour it into an empty spray bottle. Spray areas of the house where fleas are suspected to hang out. Also, you can spray your pet lightly with the mixture, but not too much, as it could hurt your pet if you douse them with the lemon mixture. Be sure to gently rub the lemon mixture into your pet's fur, being careful not to overdo it. 

Brewer's Yeast

Brewer's Yeast

Another way to kill fleas naturally on your dog is by using yeast.  Brewer's yeast is considered a safe natural remedy for getting rid of fleas on your pet and home.   Fleas do not like the taste of yeast. They have a strong aversion to it. One way to use this natural remedy is your to feed a small amount of yeast to your dog by gently sprinkling a small amount of yeast over their food and mixing it in.  It does not take much to do the trick, so use it sparingly. You can also rub some nutritional or brewer's yeast in your dog's skin.  If they lick it off, that is fine, as it will give a “yeast” flavored taste to your dog's skin and breath which will scare away fleas. As for the dosage, it is recommended you use approximately 1 teaspoon small breed dogs, 2 teaspoons for medium-size pooches, and 1 tablespoon for large dogs. Again, use it sparingly, as a little goes a long way. The reason why fleas have an aversion to yeast is the thiamine that is used abundantly in yeast. Fleas cannot survive in areas that have thiamine in them. Brewer's yeast can be found in grocery stores, pet stores and feed stores. 

What is the Life Cycle of a Flea?

The life cycle of a flea is very complex, but if you have a basic idea of the cycle of a flea, you will be in better shape to know how to combat them in a natural way.  The first stage is called the Definitive Host which is your dog.  The flea has three pairs of legs which aid in the flea's ability to jump from one part of your dog to another part and eats off the blood of your dog.  A female flea lays up to 50 eggs per day on your dog.  The eggs will fall off your dog and on to the carpeting, bedding, soil and floorboards. Next, the Larva stage is where semi-transparent parasites move along eating flea feces.  Pupa is the last stage before the flea adult.  The adult flea can emerge from the cocoon in three to five days or sometimes, it can stay in the cocoon for a year or more.

Electric Flea Traps

Electric flea traps or plug-in lighted flea traps can be very effective in nuking the fleas. Electric flea traps are great for reducing the flea population in the particular area in which they are used. It is highly recommended to use electric flea traps next to where your dog lies his fury head to rest at night. The great thing about these flea traps is that you can visibly see how many fleas you are capturing and killing. Most electric flea traps will drastically reduce the flea population in just one or two weeks. However, it is recommended that unless you have only a small flea problem that you combine flea traps with other effective natural methods for flea control.

Comb Your Pet's Fur

Combing your pooch's fur daily with a flea comb is an effective and critical part of flea control.  Using a fine toothed flea comb is the most efficient way to maintain flea control. You can also check for fleas as you comb your dog's fur.   The best area on your dog to check for fleas is on his lower back near the base of his tail. That is one of the areas most commonly known for flea infestation on dogs.   By combing your dog's fur, you will pick up adult fleas or black, pepper-like residue, which is known as flea dirt.  Flea dirt is basically flea feces.

Bath Your Dog

Bath Your Dog

Bathing your faithful companion on a regular basis is one of the best ways to eradicate fleas. There is no need to use harmful chemical-based flea shampoo. Again, stick with natural remedies, no chemical products. It is recommended you use a gentle soap or baby shampoo when giving Fido his bath. Baby shampoos are inexpensive and very safe to use on your dog's fur. If Fido is a long-haired pooch, be sure to spend extra time lathering his body with the non-toxic baby shampoo. This will help get to those stubborn evil fleas at the very scalp of your dog's skin.  Fleas will drown in the soapy water suffocating them.  Depending on your dog's temperament when it comes to bath time, you may need to bath him outside using a large tin dog bathtub in an enclosed dog pen.

Vacuum Carpeting

The more you vacuum your carpeting, the more fleas you will undoubtedly remove from your flooring. Fleas hide deep in the fibers of your carpets. Vacuuming your carpets, however, will help you.   Borax is highly recommended as it is a strong remedy against fleas.  Sprinkle borax powder on your carpets and use a broom to thoroughly coat the area with it. Wait approximately two to three hours for the borax powder to take effect and then vacuum.  It is recommended you vacuum at least twice a week until the flea problem has been completely eliminated. A cautionary note is make sure your dog does not walk in the area where you have sprinkled the borax powder over your carpets. Your dog could easily pick up some of the borax powder on his paws and lick it off, ingesting it, causing serious illnesses and other health problems. You want to keep your dog safe from toxins, as that is the point of killing fleas naturally.

Clean Your Dog's Bedding

 One of the best ways to combat the flea problem naturally is to thoroughly wash all pet bedding frequently. Fleas are reported to lay up to sixty eggs per day, so the more you wash your dog's bedding area, the better. We recommend washing the dog's bedding at least once a week. When washing and drying your dog's bedding, use the hot water temperature setting on your washing machine and set the dryer to hot. It is recommended to pour borax powder in your washing machine detergent. Borax is a very effective and common natural remedy for fleas. Depending on the size of your dog and the size of his bedding, you may not be able to fit the bedding in the washing machine. If this is the case, take the bedding outside and soak it thoroughly with a garden hose and soap. Fleas will drown in the water because they are unable breath in soapy water. No matter what technique you use to clean your beloved canine's bedding, you are certain to eliminate some or most of the fleas in that particular area.

Pesticide Products are Harmful

If you ever went to the grocery or pet store and picked up a bottle of flea and tic treatment and read the label to the chemically-based flea treatment, you will read statements such as, “Avoid contact with eyes, skin or clothing.”   While these products may be effective at killing fleas, what are their effects on your dog's health as well as yourself and your family's health? The chemicals used in common flea and tick control products are highly toxic to both canine and human health. We strongly recommend before you reach for those harmful pesticide to first try the following tips for naturally eliminating fleas from your home, yard and dog.  Your dog will be eternally grateful to you for doing so. 

For more information about the health and safety of pesticides, consult the Environmental Protection Agency position on the safe use of these products.

Best & Safest Way to Kill Fleas

As the responsible pet parent you are, you know you need to spend some time killing those fleas. However, you are not sure the best techniques to undergo to nuke those irritating fleas. You have heard about the numerous insect and flea repellant products on the market and have seen the massive amount of commercials on television claiming that their flea product works better than the other guys. But you just don't know. 

Actually, the best and absolute safest way to protect your beloved Fido is through natural flea elimination. The most proven safest way and what we genuinely recommend is to kill the fleas naturally.  This blog has many different ways of eliminating the flea problem naturally to begin with vacuuming your carpeting and cleaning your dog's bedding.

Does your dog have fleas?

You love your pooch but you hate to see him with fleas and worse yet, you hate to see those pooping, egg-laying, blood-sucking creatures in your home and yard. How can you tell if your dog is suffering from fleas? There are some definite ways to detect if you have a flea problem. Is Fido scratching and itching excessively? Is Fido biting or chewing on his skin, especially near the tail area and inside his thigh area? Does Fido have hair loss? Does Fideo have skin lesions? Are there red, raised bumps on Fido's skin and stomach area? If you have answered “yes” to any or all of these questions, chances are poor Fido is suffering from fleas. Review the Pet MD Symptom Checker to determine if your dog has fleas.