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Spot on flea and tick treatment is a topical medicine that you apply directly to the back of your dog’s skin between his or her shoulders. Spot on flea and tick treatment will protect your dog from fleas and ticks for one month after applying. It is important to use Frontline flea and tick spot on treatment for dogs to keep them safe and protected from the many health implications that can come from fleas and ticks.
Why Protect Your Dog from Fleas and Ticks?
Fleas and ticks are external parasites, and this means that they affect the blood of the host by biting or attaching themselves to the outside of the host. Because they are parasites, fleas and ticks can transmit many dangerous and potentially deadly diseases.
Diseases and Health Issues Caused by Fleas
When fleas infest an animal, they bite the skin of the animal to gain access to the blood vessels. The mouthpiece of a flea has three needle-sharp stylets that pierce the animal when biting. The animal will feel the bite of the flea, which will likely cause them to jump and immediately bite or scratch the area of the body that was just bitten. Once bitten, the animal may be subjected to diseases or health issues that are caused by fleas.
Tapeworms
If your dog ingests a flea carrying a disease, it can cause a tapeworm. Tapeworms are intestinal parasites that develop from ingesting an infected flea. They will grow within the intestinal tract of your dog and cause serious issues.
Tapeworms cause vomiting, diarrhea, weight loss, and abdominal pain. If you suspect your dog has a tapeworm, you should let your veterinarian know immediately so that your dog can be treated with medication to kill the tapeworm to allow it to pass through your dog’s body naturally.
Flea Allergy Dermatitis (FAD)
Flea allergy dermatitis is not deadly to dogs, but it can cause them to be extremely uncomfortable and lose areas of fur on their body. Flea allergy dermatitis occurs when a dog has been bitten by a flea and become infected by the flea’s saliva. It causes the skin to develop an allergic reaction resulting in red skin, loss of fur, and scabs. Fleas will need to be removed from the dog immediately, and the dog will need a gentle bath to calm the areas that have been affected.
Diseases and Health Issues Caused by Ticks
While fleas and ticks are both external parasites, they have one main difference: ticks have an anesthetic in their saliva that prevents the host from feeling the bite, and this is what makes ticks so dangerous. They can quickly infect an animal without the animal feeling the bite. It allows the tick to feed on the blood of the host for hours or days before being noticed. At that time, the host can be infected with any of the diseases that a tick commonly carries.
Lyme Disease
Lyme disease is transmitted through deer ticks that have fed on an infected animal and passed the disease to your dog. Lyme disease causes difficulty breathing, joint and neck stiffness, lack of appetite, fever, and swelling. If your dog has become infected by a tick that you suspect was carrying Lyme disease, you will need to contact your veterinarian so that your dog can be treated with antibiotics and anti-inflammatories.
Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever
Unlike Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever can be transmitted through all types of ticks, rather than just deer ticks. Dog ticks and wood ticks are the common carriers of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, and the symptoms include vomiting, diarrhea, joint pain and stiffness, fever, confusion, and neurological changes. Your dog will require antibiotics to treat Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.
How to Apply Frontline Spot On Treatment for Dogs
Flea and tick treatments that are spot on applications like Frontline have to be applied directly to the dog’s skin between the shoulders. Frontline should be applied once a month to keep fleas and ticks from infecting your dog. Frontline will repel the fleas and ticks or kill them as soon as they bite your dog.
1. Make Sure Your Dog is Calm
Trying to apply a topical spot on treatment to a dog is impossible if the dog is in a playful mood. For this reason, you will need to make sure your dog is calm. The best time is at night when your dog is resting.
2. Have Everything Ready to Apply
If your dog is asleep and in the perfect position to apply the spot-on treatment, the last thing you want to do is wake the dog up by trying to open a package and prepare the treatment. For this reason, we suggest having everything ready to make the application. The box should be open, and the tube should be ready to apply.
3. Apply Between the Shoulders
As your dog is lying with you, apply the spot-on treatment to the back of your dog at the base of the hair between the shoulders. For larger dogs, follow the dog’s spine while applying additional medication.
4. Do Not Touch the Area
Once the medication has been applied, try to avoid touching the area for 24 hours. This will give the medication time to activate and dry.
5. Keep Other Pets Away
If there are additional pets in the home, you should keep the pets apart during the same 24 hour period. This applies to both dogs and cats, as cats are likely to lick the medication that was applied to the dog, which can make them sick.
6. Monitor Your Pet
For the next 24 to 48 hours, monitor your pet to make sure that he or she is not having an adverse reaction to the medication. Additionally, you will want to make sure that your dog does not try to rub off the medication. Also, try to avoid petting your dog where the medication was applied so that you do not inadvertently remove the medication.
Conclusion
Your dog needs to be protected from fleas and ticks to ensure they stay as safe, comfortable, and healthy as possible. Flea and tick spot on treatment for dogs like Frontline will keep fleas and ticks from infesting your pet every month that the treatment is applied.
