STEP #37

Buy Petroleum-free Pet Products

The pet industry is really not very green. It’s getting better, but its standards are much lower than for products sold to us. For that reason, pet products, especially flea and tick killers, are really toxic and strongly petroleum-based. We can do better for the health of our pets and the health of our nation. After all, what happens to pets also happens to us. For example, one of the early signs of toxicity of lawn and grass herbicides such as 2,4-D is that studies show they also cause cancer in our dogs. Why? Well who’s first to go back on the grass after it has been sprayed? Now think about when you are giving your puppy a flea and tick killing spray or bath and what you are also inhaling and absorbing.

We advise owners not to use standard flea collars utilizing chemical pesticides. Many such collars continuously expose pets to compounds that are toxic to mammals as well as insects, and some petrochemicals such as carbaryl have been linked to birth defects in dogs. Be especially sure to avoid standard flea collars if you have young children who are in close contact with pets, since chemicals like propoxur, which most contain, are not only associated with cell damage but with learning problems as well!

Flea and tick dip, spray, and dust pose hazards not only to owners, but also to their pets.

Carcinogens: Bladder cancer in dogs is associated with lifetime exposure to tick and flea dips. Each time a pet is treated with tick and flea dip, substantial human exposure is likely to occur, primarily by absorption through the skin while handling the pet.

Neurotoxins: Dipping pets is likely to cause muscle weakness and tingling of the extremities. Dusting is associated with increased frequency of nausea and headaches. Sponging is associated with increased frequency of convulsions and mental confusion. Caution is recommended.

Foggers and bombs, particularly those that contain more potent petroleum-based insecticides, unnecessarily expose everyone and everything in the house to the chemical residues. Some contain flammable propellants or solvents, making their use around appliances with pilot lights dangerous—while others contain chemicals that can cause fatal heart arrhythmias in humans. Never use!

RECOMMENDED ALTERNATIVES

• Herbal-based flea collars might help.
• If you want to further help eradicate fleas, consider use of pyrethrum and pyrethrin powders or shampoos; these are among the most effective, safest pesticides for pets.
• For fleas in your home, hire professional exterminators, such as Flea Busters, that use nontoxic flea eradication methods. This works extremely well.

SAFE USE TIPS

• Shampooing is not associated with acute symptoms of irritation or neurotoxicity and works extremely well for controlling fleas.
• Workers who use protective clothing and equipment and follow protective work practices probably are not at increased risk for acute and chronic health hazards.
• Always wear a respirator, nonpermeable gloves, and apron.
• After dipping, dusting, or spraying, wash your hands thoroughly, shower immediately, and change your clothing.
• Store products in childproof, vapor-tight areas.
• Always choose the least toxic brands.

RECOMMENDED ALTERNATIVES

Several excellent brands of flea products are available at supermarkets, health food stores, and pet shops. See your safe shopping charts and seek these out. But also use the following strategies to enhance their effectiveness.

Fleas

• Controlling fleas requires treating the pet and the pet’s environment to kill eggs and larvae. Nontoxic experts recommend a two-step approach: (1) Remove fleas from pet without poison by using a flea comb. (2) Treat the indoor environment with Flea Busters.
• Least toxic soaps, powders, and dips contain diatomaceous earth, silica gel or insecticidal fatty acid soaps, or pyrethrum/pyrethrins.
• To get rid of larvae and adult fleas around the pet—in bedding, furniture, carpets, and anything else likely to be flea-ridden—vacuum the areas thoroughly and wash the pet’s bedding, then apply pyrethrum powder.
• Any substances used safely on pets can be used safely in the surrounding environment. Other useful, relatively nontoxic weapons for ridding areas of flea larvae include insect growth regulators such as methoprene (Precor) and hydroprene. They work by preventing larvae from turning into adults. The best time to use insect growth regulators is before flea season, sometime in the spring. Most recently, methoprene has been under suspicion for causing extreme birth defects in aquatic creatures such as frogs when it is used in widespread outdoor applications; therefore, while its use may be safe in homes and for humans, there is growing concern over its long-term ecological effects. Diatomaceous earth, made from pre-historic shells, is an abrasive crystal that cuts insects. It is another safe alternative. Dust areas of your house and garden where fleas are likely to hide— carpets, floors, cracks, bookcases, and under kitchen appliances. As this powder may be irritating to the lungs, be sure to wear a particle mask. Pyrethrum/ pyrethrins with piperonyl butoxide are highly effective; these should not be confused with the synthetic pyrethroids, such as allethrin, cyfluthrin, fenvalerate, permethrin, phenothrin, resmethrin, and tetramethrin, all of which are far more neurotoxic.
• One of your first strategies for eliminating fleas in the home should be frequent vacuuming using a vacuum with strong suction and easily removable inner container. After vacuuming, immediately remove and seal the bag. Dispose of it or wrap it in a plastic bag and place it in the sun. The extreme heat will kill all the fleas. If this doesn’t work, call in a service that uses nontoxic dusts to kill fleas, such as Flea Busters, which has franchises nationwide. Also place a nontoxic herbal flea collar on your pet to repel fleas. They end up jumping on the carpet or floor where they are eventually killed by the nontoxic sodium polyborate powder used by Flea Busters. Call Flea Busters at 800-765-FLEA (3532). Visit www.fleabuster.com.
• Regularly groom your pet with a flea comb, a fine-toothed metal device available at pet stores. Put petroleum or plant-based jelly on the base of the comb’s teeth to make the fleas stick and flick any you find into alcohol or soapy water, or dip the whole comb.
• Fleas are attracted to dry, chapped skin. Maintain optimal skin condition by using a formula such as Dr. Bronner’s Almond Oil Castile Soap, which reportedly acts as a repellent, to shampoo your pet. Lemon skin tonic also reportedly works well. The recipe includes thinly slicing one whole lemon and adding it to 1 pint of near-boiling water. Steep overnight. Sponge the solution the next day on the pet’s skin and let it dry, repeating daily for severe skin problems. Other skin therapies include rubbing in pure aloe vera gel a few times a day until the irritation is gone. Supplements containing primrose oil work well to cure canine dermatitis.
• Herbal repellents used in shampoos, dips, sprays, and flea collars rely on plant oils such as pennyroyal, mint, eucalyptus, citronella, and rosemary. They can be used on animals, carpets, furniture, and yards. They are somewhat effective, but you should not expect them to work against a serious infestation.
• One of the best nontoxic shampoos is known as insecticidal pet soap. Its active ingredients include fatty acid salts and potassium oleate that are completely nontoxic to humans and work on fleas through suffocation. If you leave some soap residue in your pet’s coat, it should be effective several days following the initial shampoo. You can also use insecticidal soaps on pet bedding, baseboards, and outdoor areas. The concentrate should be diluted to 1 part soap to 10 parts water.

Ticks

• A flea comb can remove unattached large ticks. The sticky portion of a lint roller can remove small ticks. Remove attached ticks by carefully pulling them out with tweezers or small forceps. If the tick pops or tears, you expose yourself to any disease-carrying organisms in its blood. Consumer Reports advises that to prevent tearing the tick, you grasp it as close to its mouth parts as possible, then pull it upward steadily, without jerking. After removing the tick, disinfect the bite with rubbing alcohol or povidone iodine. Don’t handle the tick—dispose of it in alcohol or flush it down the drain.
• Ingredients that are effective against fleas— diatomaceous earth, silica gel, insecticidal soap, citrus oils, and pyrethrum/pyrethrins—can be used to repel and kill ticks.
• “The best tick medicine is prevention,” says Consumer Reports. “Try to avoid tick habitats, especially in peak tick season. If your pet suffers repeatedly from ticks, try to keep it indoors. Clean up brush, wood piles, and other places that harbor rodents, the major source of meals for larval and nymphal ticks.”
• While Lyme disease has been reported in all but four states, the disease is concentrated in just eight states—Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Delaware, Wisconsin, Maryland, and Pennsylvania.

Ear Mites

If your pet is shaking its head frequently, or scratching and pawing its ears, it may be suffering from an ear mite infestation. The best antidote for light or moderate infestations is mineral oil, which suffocates the mites. Use an eyedropper and massage the outside of the ear to work it down into the canal. Repeat at four- to five-day intervals for two weeks to eliminate new generations that may have hatched.