Modern parasite control has become extremely big business. The biggest names; such as Frontline and Advantage are flea drops. But how do these topical flea treatments work?

Topical cat flea treatments have become increasingly popular over the last few decades. With cats often unhappy to be sprayed with anything, including a flea killer it is not difficult to see that many pet owners would be tempted by simple flea drops. Especially when these forms of flea control last such a long time. But, we all know they are much more expensive than the older methods of flea control so why are so many consumers using them?

How Are Flea Drops Used?

Flea drops are given as a 'topical flea treatment'. So both hold the active flea killing ingredients in an oil based carrier. The pet owner simply places the contents of one tube of medicine onto the skin of the animal. Ideally this should be between the shoulder blades simply so the pet is unable to remove it before it has time to work. The ingredients then soak into the skin and are carried across the whole body via the sebaceous glands. The fur must be parted well to allow all the liquid to reach the surface of the skin as that is the only way to ensure the active ingredients are spread across the whole body of the animal.

It is important to ensure the volume of liquid is correct for your size of pet so make sure to weigh your animal before using. Large pets may need two vials of flea drops to ensure their entire body is provided with flea protection.

Being oil based, the products are completely water-proof. Animals can be bathed, swim (perhaps more of an advantage with dogs) or allowed out in the rain with no change in the potency of the product.

How Flea Drops Work

Older methods of flea control used insecticides which were poisons killing fleas and other parasites. There are two problems with this.

Firstly, poisons tend to have adverse effects on other life-forms too. Problems with side-effects, allergies and poisoning for our pets were much more common with traditional insecticide use.

Secondly, any parasites able to survive the onslaught of an insecticide were likely to pass on resistance to it, to the next generation. In this way, products which were used with great success during one decade become obsolete in the next.

Modern flea drops are different, relying not on old-fashioned organo-phosphate or pyrethrin insecticides. Instead insect development inhibitors and nerve cell disruptor's are used. All are very specifically targeted to invertebrate nervous systems. So, while insect pests are destroyed, the nervous systems of more advanced animals are completely unresponsive to the products. This means the action killing insects will not harm your pet.

Because the active ingredients are designed not to be general poisons, but to have rather more specific effects. To over-stimulate parasites into nervous collapse. To stop the progression from one stage to another (egg to larvae or larvae to adult) they do not promote resistance to the drugs. Or to render females unable to lay viable eggs. If an insect is affected it is unable to reproduce so drug-resistant offspring should not be a problem.

Longer Lasting Flea Control

With most flea killing products there is little opportunity for a residual effect. Because flea drops are actually absorbed in the animal's oil gland network the active ingredients remain at the surface of the skin for a relatively long time. All the leading topical cat flea treatments will remain effective for at least a month. In practice some such as Frontline will actually carry on providing complete flea protection for six weeks.

Safety of Flea Drops

As mentioned above because topical flea treatments utilise modern drugs targeting insect nervous system or growth hormones they are much safer for you pet than older flea poisons. There are cases of side-effects but they are few and far between and usually extremely mild. The most common form of side effect is an allergy to the non-active components in the flea drops. These are usually very mild vomiting or temporary hair loss at the site of administering the product. Animals with such allergies are obviously better treated with a different form of flea control in future.

The widespread fear of flea drops comes primarily from incorrect use of the products. For example giving a small animal a dose specified for a much larger one, or even more dangerous, giving dog medicine to a cat. Cat's are highly sensitive to an ingredient often used in dog flea control products so should never be given anything other than a cat flea treatment.

For more information about discount flea drops and other cat flea treatments visit the Dog and Cat Flea Medicine site.

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