Flea drops: types, principle of action and method of application

Flea drops for cats are an indispensable means of destroying cat fleas - Ctenocephalides felis, and flea drops for dogs help get rid of dog fleas - Ctenocephalus canis.

These arthropod blood-sucking insects-parasites of domestic animals are representatives of 2086 existing species of fleas. And when your Pushok or Mukhtar begin to scratch intensively and bite into the fur with their teeth, this is a signal that the animal has been "attacked by an enemy", and you, as a caring owner, will have to use drops on the withers from fleas. Such antiparasitic agents are widely used in veterinary medicine, and their range is very large.

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Main active ingredients

Flea drops, as well as flea and tick drops for pets, contain chemicals and compounds that have a common principle of action. They are applied externally and penetrate only the skin of animals, hair follicles of wool and subcutaneous sebaceous glands, without entering the blood. These substances act as neurotoxins on invertebrate parasitic insects: they block the transmission of nerve impulses and put the parasites' bodies into a state of paralysis, after which they quickly die.

The list of active substances of insectoacaricidal preparations in the form of drops includes:

• permethrin, phenothrin, etofenprox - 2nd generation pyrethroid insecticides, derivatives of dimethyl cyclopropane carboxylic acid;
• imidacloprid is an insecticide belonging to the group of neonicotinoid compounds (it acts exclusively on fleas);
• fipronil and pyriprole are insecticides of the phenylpyrazole group;
• Diazinon is a phosphorus-containing insecticide.

The active substances S-methoprene and pyriproxyfen, which some products contain, differ in their pharmacodynamics. These are juvenoid insecticides - synthetic analogues of a special juvenile hormone of insects, which regulates their development stages. When these substances enter the body of a parasitic insect, a failure of its normal development at the larval stage occurs, leading to death.

How to use flea drops?

The process is not complicated, and regardless of the name and manufacturer of the drug, any instructions for flea drops describe in sufficient detail its composition, method of application, and dosage.

Most manufacturers produce drops on the withers against these arthropods in a convenient and completely ready-to-use form - in soft polymer dropper pipettes of the appropriate dosage, which depends on the age and body weight of the animal.

Flea drops are applied once dropwise (spot-on), necessarily to the most inaccessible place of the animal's body (so that it is impossible for it to lick the drug off), that is, to the withers. In order for the medicine to get on the skin, you need to carefully part the fur. If the dog is large, then the product is applied at several points from the withers along the spine. The solution must dry, and then it begins to do its job.

The instructions also warn that two days before applying the remedy against these arthropods and for the same period of time after that, the animal should not be exposed to water (washing, swimming in water, getting caught in the rain or snow). The drops against fleas used in veterinary practice for humans (as well as for all other vertebrate mammals) are not toxins for external use: it is enough to thoroughly wash your hands after treating the animal. However, you cannot drink or eat during the procedure, and if the drug somehow gets on the skin or mucous membranes, you should wash everything off without delay.

By the way, you will not find flea drops for humans (for human Pulex irritans - the so-called common flea) in pharmacies because they are not available. Although the bites of this carrier of various microbes are very unpleasant and very dangerous: it can cause damage to the skin and mucous membranes of the mouth and throat, called pulicosis.

But let's get back to our pets...

Flea drops - for cats and dogs

Many owners of four-legged pets ask themselves: what is more appropriate to use to remove parasites - special shampoos or a flea collar? Of course, drops, because you won’t be able to remove fleas with a collar, since a flea collar is a preventive measure for an animal that is not infected with fleas.

Veterinarians recommend that to get rid of arthropods, first wash the animal with a special shampoo, and then apply the product. And only after that, after 12-15 days, you can put on a flea collar.

Today, manufacturers of veterinary drugs offer a variety of flea drops for cats and flea drops for dogs. We have compiled a list of them, grouping the drugs depending on their active ingredients (as is done in human pharmacology).

The insecticide phenothrin in its pure form is included only in Bars for dogs and cats (produced in the Russian Federation). And the combination of phenothrin + S-methoprene is used by the American company Hartz Mountain Corporation, which produces Hartz intended for both cats and dogs. The preparation also contains oils that prevent the preparation from being washed off.

A similar pyrethroid insecticide - permethrin - in combination with imidacloprit (see above - main active ingredients) includes Advantix for dogs weighing up to 40 kg (manufacturer - Bayer Health Care, Germany). And pure imidacloprit contains Advantage for cats and small dogs (up to 8 kg) from the same German manufacturer.

Fipronil (or pyriprole) is the active ingredient in the following drugs:

• Prac-tic for dogs, manufacturer - German company Klocke Verpackungs-Service GmbH;
• Frontline, produced in France; there are series for cats and dogs (weight up to 40 kg);
• Rolf Club (Russia) - for cats and dogs (up to 60 kg);
• Barrier (Russia) for dogs and cats.

The "explosive" combination of fipronil + permethrin can explain the fact that Celandine (produced in the Russian Federation) is recommended only for adult animals.

The product Dana (RF) for cats and dogs, as well as Beaphar for dogs (manufacturer - Beaphar BV, Netherlands) have the same chemical base - highly toxic organic thiophosphate diazinon, which acts on fleas, ticks, ants and cockroaches.

The French-made Combo medicine (Frontline Combo) uses the interaction of insecticidal substances S-methoprene + fipronil. They destroy both arthropods and all other blood-sucking parasites, but they can only be used for adult cats and dogs.

And Combo (Insektal Combo Rolf Club), produced by a Russian manufacturer, has the same S-methoprene as active ingredients, but in combination with a similar insecticide mechanism of action pyriproxyfen. This drug is also used to destroy arthropods.

Delix (Natura Delix Bio), produced in the Russian Federation, does not belong to any of these groups. These drops are veterinary herbal preparations based on natural components of plant origin. The drug contains essential oils of eucalyptus, tea tree and citronella, as well as alcohol extracts of red pyrethrum flowers (Pyrethrum coccineum), balsam tansy (calufera), aloe and ginseng. As stated in the instructions for Delix Natura Bio, these components are "valuable, useful, safe and necessary for health and beauty", effective against almost all ectoparasites (up to one month), have a repellent (insect-repelling) effect and are capable of exerting a slight antiseptic and antifungal effect.

Drops against fleas and worms - a complex antiparasitic agent

The Advocate product (for cats weighing up to 8 kg) is produced by the German company Bayer Health Care. The active ingredients of the product are imidacloprid (see above) and moxidectin. While the first substance acts on arthropods, moxidectin is effective against gastrointestinal nematoses (in case of infection with round and tapeworms). Moxidectin (cidectin) is an anthelmintic from the macrolide group; when applied to the skin, it penetrates the body and is adsorbed in the gastrointestinal tract. Its mechanism of action is based on the disruption of the transmission of nerve impulses in parasitic worms, which results in complete paralysis of their muscle tissue. The Advocate product is used in the same way as other insectoacaricidal drugs in the form of drops.

The medicine Inspector (Inspector TOTAL K) is produced in the Russian Federation. The active ingredients are fipronil and moxidectin. The drug Bars Spot-On (also Russian-made) is intended for dogs and cats over two months old. The active ingredients of these anthelmintic drops are praziquantel and ivermectin. These are antimicrobial and antiparasitic drugs with the same pharmacological mechanism as drugs with moxidectin. Through the skin, the active substances enter the bloodstream, and with the blood - into all organs of the animal, including the stomach and intestines. Due to this, the duration of action on helminths is at least 8-12 days.

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Overdose of flea drops

If the dosages specified in the instructions are not followed or the preparations are applied incorrectly (and the animal licks it), an overdose is possible. If this happens, dogs and cats may behave restlessly, breathe frequently, salivate, tremble slightly throughout the body; vomiting and diarrhea are possible.

Particularly dangerous are pyrethroid insecticides and preparations based on insecticides of the phenylpyrazole group, which can cause poisoning by these drugs.

In such situations, veterinarians advise washing the animal, and then within a day or two the signs of overdose or poisoning should disappear.

You should be more careful when using combined drops against arthropods and worms, in particular those containing moxidectin, since exceeding the doses of which can cause problems with the central nervous system of animals.

Reviews of flea drops

According to the reviews of flea drops most often posted by dog and cat owners on Internet forums that are relevant to their interests, different animals react to flea drops differently. And the effectiveness of these drugs is also assessed differently.

Most dog owners and some caring cat lovers use such drops because they are convenient to use. And, disappointed in one remedy, they continue their persistent search for more effective and safe antiparasitic drugs.

Price of flea drops

You yourself understand that the price of flea drops largely depends on their manufacturer (the popularity of a particular brand).

For example, the drug Advantage costs 180 UAH per package and 46-50 UAH per dropper (with a monthly dose).

One dose (one dropper) of Rolf Club, as well as Frontline costs 80 UAH; Beaphar - 62-63 UAH. And a package for three doses of the drug Bars (for cats) can be purchased for 50-53 UAH. or pay 16-17 UAH. for one pipette; the price of the drug Barrier is approximately the same.

Drops against fleas and worms will cost more: the German medicine Advocate costs from 390 to 410 UAH per package and at least 133 UAH per dropper; Inspector - 90 UAH per dose.

It should be borne in mind that fleas are carriers of many dangerous infections (plague, salmonella, brucella, infectious hepatitis, etc.). Therefore, these parasitic insects must be mercilessly fought, in particular, by using flea drops.