Hartz Flea Shampoo For Dogs

[starrytrekchic]

Anyone know if it's gluten free? I can't find a list of the ingredients anywhere (not the inactive ones.)

Gave the dog a bath earlier--didn't even think to check if the shampoo was gluten free-and within in an hour or so I was feeling the sort of digestive problems that comes with cc'ing. Can't say I was particularly careful with the shampoo, so if it does have gluten in it, I almost certainly would have ended up cc'ing myself.

I'll call Hartz tomorrow if no one knows. Thanks!

[kareng]

I stood in a big pet store and tried to read the ingredients on dog shampoos. Many only list the active medical chemicals. We have been using one with oats as it lists all the ingredients and helps his very dry skin. I know they aren't gluten-free oats but I'm thinking the possible amount of wheat in the shampoo is small. Hub washes him so that lessens the exposure.

[psawyer]

Flea products for veterinary use are only required to list the active ingredients.

Shampoos for pets which do not claim to treat a condition (such as fleas) are not required to list ingredients.

Oats, or wheat germ oil, are sometimes included for their value to the animal's overall skin and coat, but are unlikely to be found in a flea treatment.

As a pet specialty retailer, I sell Hartz flea shampoos, but other than the general observations above, I cannot tell you definitively whether they are, in fact, gluten-free.

[Reba32]

I had a heckuva time finding a pet shampoo that didn't have wheat in the ingredients, or that had ingredients listed. We finally did find one at Pet Valu, it's called Tearless Shampoo for Puppies, Kittens and Sensitive Pets.

It smells good too. Of course the dog promptly went outside to try and find something dead to roll in...

[Takala]

One of the secrets of killing fleas on a pet, is that if you can find a decent shampoo that you can tolerate on yourself, it will probably kill the fleas just as well.

Those old fashioned anti dandruff blue shampoos are particularly good at this. But other regular human shampoos will work. This is what pet groomers will tell you if you have a small dog with allergies to those chemicals, you have allergies to many of the chemicals, too, and otherwise are at your wit's end.

Have pet jump into the tub, wet her down, and then lather around the neck carefully, first, to trap the little buggers. Then lather the rest of the pet, working towards the back end and undersides, where the fleas are lurking. Let pet luxuriate in suds for a few minutes.

RINSE WELL. You will be amazed at how many dead fleas you've got going down the drain.

Pet may be final rinsed with small amount of apple cider vinegar in a big pint of water, to correct pH, if it's tending towards dry skin, but that is more likely a diet issue. Good pet food = great hair and skin.

VACUUM THE HOUSE. If you are getting fleas, chances are it is from a cat that has inside/outside privileges and dragged them in from the yard or another cat or from vermin. Cats eat infested mice and there you go again. They jump onto the cat from the rodents. Don't wash the cat, but do treat it for fleas, and VACUUM. You can comb it with a flea egg comb first, if you want to try to remove them. If you can break the fleas' life cycle, getting on top of this in the spring, you can purge them from your house. Be VERY careful of what you use on a cat, only use formulas specifically MADE FOR CATS.

WASH THE PET'S BEDDING. Poor fleas. They can't stand laundry soap and hot water, either. Buh- bye !

Oh, and those enzyme deodorizer laundry sprays that you spritz around on carpets ? Guess what, they work on insects, too. When the ants try to come inside in the fall, if you find a trail and you can't spray bugspray because you're afraid your pet might come in contact with it, you can zap them with this, and then wipe it up. Don't let the pet come in contact with wet spray, let it dry, but at least this isn't like Death In A Can with neurotoxins. You see where I'm going here, you may want to spritz the dirty bedding before dropping it into the washer, then wipe down the floor underneath with this, then with water.

Oh, and if the cat sleeps on the bed, wash the bedspread blanket cover. I am NOT into housework and am not even particularly tidy, but I give the indoor pets blankies to use, and run them thru the washer/dryer/sunshine frequently, because I hate fleas and we're all sensitive here with allergies.

I have only had to treat the indoor cat maybe once a year with real flea products, and didn't even have to do her this past spring.

Wait a day for the skin to re oil itself, on the washed pet, then use a high quality pet flea spot on treatment that you put on their shoulder blades or in a line down the back, carefully parting the hair, and wearing disposable gloves. The newer spot on formulas, with the stuff that inhibits flea eggs from hatching is great.

Be careful to dispose of the packaging properly. Mark you calendars, and if you do this for few months, you should be a no - flea zone.