Why doesn't Frontline PLUS work on my pets?

Question

I have 3 cats and 1 dog and they all have been treated with Frontline Plus. It seemed to work after a few hours, some fleas appeared to die and fall off. However only a few days I noticed that all of the animals are covered again in fleas! Any suggestions? Frontline Plus isn't cheap and I don't know why it isn't working.

Answer 1

I tried many things too that did not work.
The other poster is right, get the pills from your vet, I think mine cost like $7 each. Then go on EBay and order Advantage (not Advantix). After many many years of trying everything Advantage is the only thing that works. We have had NO fleas since using this. When you give them the pills, have the Advantage ready to put on them 24 hours later. You can get Advantage from your vet, however, it is half the price on EBay. I have two dogs and two cats that I use this on.
Also, remember to treat your house. I use the Raid in the purple can-I have not found anything that works better. Get everyone outside and give your house a spray. The fumes dissapate quickly and the fleas will be gone. I would do this at the same time you treat them.
If you have a big yard and they spend a lot of time outside you may want to treat your yard. My pups live inside, only the cats go out, so I didn't bother, but you may want to. I used the granules when I did my yard-you can get it at Wal Mart.
I know fleas suck. I remember this battle all too well.. Advantage is worth every penny. Good luck!

Answer 2

It isn't working because you need to spray your home.

95% of the flea population lives in your home. Sound like you have a serious problem there. Frontline Plus kills the adult fleas ad eggs on your animal, but if you haven't sprayed in your home it can't help there.

You need to get a spray from a VETS - NOT pet shop. You probably need to spray, vacuum a few hours later, then repeat this a few days later to get the rest of the eggs and pupae that have hatched in the home. Or you could try to get hold of Skoosh, which kills adult fleas, eggs and pupae. www.skooshthefleas.com.

Chalice

EDIT: The pills people are talking about are capstar, which are fab, but unless you treat your environment the animal will quickly get reinfested. The injection is called Program, it sterilises fleas on your dog for up to 6 months. Again, you will still sees fleas if you don't treat the environment! Program is a preventative rather than a cure. By all means try alternating between Advantage and Revolution, it's not disproved that an animal can become resistant to one drug. There's no reason for Frontline Plus not to work as well as regular Frontline - it's the exact same thing just with an added ingredient.

Answer 3

Frontline Plus Not Working

Answer 4

We've seen several vets at the local practise over the last 3 years and all say the same. If you use 1 product every time, the fleas build up a resistance to it. We alternate between using Advantage, Frontline and Stronghold. There is also an injection out there: I cannot remember its name but it is very effective and lasts for 3 months. In the UK it works out slightly cheaper than 3 months' supply of the spot-on treatments.

Are you also treating your animals' environment? If not, I'd recommend you start doing so as you don't know whether the new fleas are hatching on your pets or being acquired from elsewhere.

Answer 5

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
Why doesn't Frontline PLUS work on my pets?
I have 3 cats and 1 dog and they all have been treated with Frontline Plus. It seemed to work after a few hours, some fleas appeared to die and fall off. However only a few days I noticed that all of the animals are covered again in fleas! Any suggestions? Frontline Plus isn't cheap and I...

Answer 6

Cats and dogs are like people. Somethings work for some but not for others. There are other spot on treatments you can try. There are also pills, sprays, rinses and the old collars.

I use frontline and it works fine on my animals, but on my sisters cat it doesn't work at all. Years ago I had a cat I couldn't use spot on treatments at all, she would vomit. She was very sensitive to them.

So I'd put frontline in the doesn't work list. Check to see if you have a particulary bad infestation, that might be some of your problem. However try one of the other spot on's. Or the tabs, a spray. I'd stay away from flea rinses, they don't have as long an activation period. They are good for instant killing of adult fleas, but not for long term.
Talk to your local vet or pet supply store for the options.

Good Luck.

Answer 7

Frontline Not Working

Answer 8

And I thought it was just my cats being awkward! I have used Frontline and Frontline Plus on my cats too. I found that it just didn't work! I have sprayed the whole house numerous times, washed all the cat bedding, you name it, we've tried it. I live in Hungary, and our animal pharmacy is a bit limited in what's available for de-fleaing cats! Things like that are quite expensive here, most cats here (unlike my own cats) are feral / farm cats that never go inside a house! I tried locally-produced flea collars which should have worked for 'up to 3 months' - technically they did, 2 days before total re-infestation, is 'up to 3 months', I suppose! I've also tried pills, I think they were called '4 Fleas' from the UK. They were VERY expensive, they worked initially, but didn't stop re-infestation within a week. We certainly can't get any medication like that from the vet here! The cats are picking up the fleas from outside, some of our cats are inside/outside cats and go hunting, bringing home fleas! Even the 'strictly indoor only' cats get infested! Every time I visit the UK, I look for something else to try, thanks for those who've said 'Advantage' - I'm now going to look on eBay!! Have to go, 4 sets of eyes on me waiting for the cat food cupboard to open!

Answer 9

There are a lot of counterfit flea meds on the shelves. Vets get their supply direct from the manufacturer not from a warehouse, so they have the good stuff.

Advantage works wonderfully. I've never tried frontline.

IF your pets were just dosed, you need to talk to the vet on the phone asking when it's safe to treat them again. These are pesticides and can do organ damage if you pile more and more on the animals.

Answer 10

I'm having the same problem. The Vet I went to didn't carry regular Frontline, only Frontline Plus. I put it on my animals, and although it did seem to kill the bulk of the fleas- there are still some there. This NEVER happened with the original Frontline.