As the debate rages on, the choices for preventives increase. The newest popular active ingredient is amitraz - a chemical found in Preventic collars for flea and tick control. But these chemicals have potentially dangerous side effects and - in increasing numbers many spot-on popular chemical treatments are having less effect in protecting your dog and you from being infected with ticks.
Many people turn to more natural formulas that can include garlic, geranium oil, citronella, lavender oil, dandelion, red clover, burdock root, and - yes - dried chrysanthemum.
And just as you think - great - I'll try that - some helpful "expert" tells you: "you know, garlic is toxic." And, in certain circumstances, it is true. So here is the guide: "eating more than 1 tablespoon of garlic per 10 pounds of the dog's body weight can destroy red blood cells," advises Dr. Betsey Brevitz, D.V.M. My dogs love the taste and smell of garlic and I have used it for years because in my area of the country I have found that if my dogs ingest it in their food it helps to repel ticks and fleas - provided of course that it is used in combination with other helpful remedies like controlling infestations in the yard, in the house and avoiding having your dogs be off leash in dense woodland areas.
Fleas are annoying and do carry disease, but the worst and most fearsome (not to your dog but to humans) is the spectre of getting Lyme disease when your dogs attract ticks. So you certainly want to do everything possible to prevent this from happening.
On the website: http://www.pettogethers.com/PowerReports/LymeDisease.aspx, Dr. Shawn Messonnier, D.V.M., broadly examines aspects of Lyme disease, methods of tick control, and many of the current conventional methods of tick control. And bless the man, he also discusses how he integrates antibiotic therapy (in the event your dog or you succumb to the effects of Lyme disease) with other supplements that can boost the immune system while exhibiting antibacterial properties.
Dr. Messonnier (who practices veterinary medicine in Scottsdale, Arizona) also provides the recipe for an herbal tick repellant that he obtained from well known herbalists, Greg and Mary Tilford. In their book, "All You Ever Wanted to Know About Herbs for Pets (Bow Tie Press," they offer the following recipe:
Mix 300 millileters of olive or almond oil, 500 millileters of essential oil of terebith, 100 millileters of St. John's wort infused oil, and 100 milliliters of essential oil of lavender. The oil can be massaged on affected areas to aid in tick removal, can be massaged on areas of the pet most likely to come into contact with ticks, or brushed onto the dog's coat prior to tick exposure.
Don't worry - should you try this recipe (which works beautifully and smells delicious) these ingredients are widely available in any health food store, or - of course - on the internet.
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