Brewers yeast vs. ticks - Page 1

My mother recently told me about people eating brewers yeast to repel ticks. Does anyone know or has heard anything about this with dogs? Is there anything better than frontline? Ive found 3 ticks on my boy in the past 2 weeks as well as a fully engorged american dog tick which was laying on the floor where he usually hangs out, at the top of the stairs.

i don't use brewers yeast, but cider vinegar. I put 1/4 cup vinegar in 2 gallons of water. I started out with 1 tablespoon and gradually up to the 1/4 cup. My dogs readily drink it, I as well give them garlic oil in their satin balls and this helps as well and we have no trouble with ticks. My grandfather did this and passed this on to my father and I. Kari

There have been no scientific studies which conclusively show that brewers yeast with garlic repells ticks or mosquitos or anything else. All so-called evidence is anecdotal. The few small studies there have been have tended to support the position that it has no affect whatsoever. Nonetheless brewers yeast with b-complex vits & garlic is not bad for dogs and they seem to like it. Of the various products on the market, Frontline is among the best. Generally considered the safest. We are in the woods nearly every day and the past few years have been especially bad for ticks. I know of people who after one hour have brought their dog back with over 100 ticks! When I had 8 on one dog and 7 on another that was enough for me. I also use an all natural product called Tick Guard which is made from peppermint oils, which seems to reduce the number of ticks that want to jump on to my dogs but with the woods being so tick infested, I am not going to take any chances with my dogs so I use Frontline. Of course, I am sure you will hear lots of stories (i.e. anecdotal evidence)...generally they go like this: "I use Dr Caveat Canus' Tick Vaporisor which only uses all natural cucumber oils and I have never had a tick on my dog in the last 20 years even though I leave him out in the forest all night long...

I have never know any of those things to work.. Frontline, when used properly is the most effective, in my opinion... have a friend who swears by K9 Advantix.. How long has Frontline been on your dog?? were the ticks attached?? dead or alive?? any batheing before or after the Frontline was applied??

I use Frontline, and have for years, with great results.

Brewers yeast is high in B-12 which is actually what, so called "repels" fleas, ticks, mosquitos etc. The problem is that dogs do not sweat (perspire), so the B-12 is never released on the skin. Also B-12, it does not kill them so they would still be harbored in the dog's coat, if the perspired. In order for high doses of ingested B-12 (brewers yeast) to work you have to be sweaty, wet and stinky to let the sweat with the B-12 come out of your pores. B-12 makes your skin unappetizing and if you are in heavy mosquito country, they will land on you just the same, just not bite you. You take a shower and step out into mosquito country, even if taking B-12 and they will eat you alive. This is one of the products that works for us in the woods. So people over the years felt, if it worked on humans, it'll work on the dogs. Wishful thinking, dogs do not sweat, so you do not get any of the stink / repellent properties from the perspiration. Natural Sources of B-12 are comfrey leaves, kelp, bananas, peanuts, concord grapes, sunflower seeds, brewers yeast, wheat germ, bee pollen, liver, beef, eggs, pork, milk, cheese, and kidney. For frontline and others to kill ticks, fleas etc, it has to actually bite the dog. As for repelling, if you just let your dog run in a wooded area, you have to give frontline and others time to "repel" them. Just walking in some mowed lawns is enough to find ticks hitching a ride in some areas. Hope this helps, Brian

DKiah I, also, have successfully used Frontline for years. Not even three days after application my boy covered himself in mud, which meant a full, soapy scrub in the bathtub. The Frontline was still effective. A couple of times, I have found a tiny spec of a dead, shriveled tick attached to his coat. Also, I once came home from a wooded area and a tick fell off--- it was moving and died two seconds later. Frontline was applied, like clockwork, on a monthly schedule. Recently, I waited two months to see if it would still work. It did. I live in NY and the days are getting warmer (more ticks). I would like to keep him on a two month schedule, if possible. Honestly, the product works beautifully, but I'm beginning to worry about the long term effects on his health.

According to the manufacturer, protection against ticks is only 1 month so be careful..... spring and fall are the most typical tick seasons in most areas.. you can get up to 3 months protection against fleas and we do here in Georgia, one of the flea capitals of this country.... Frontline does not go into the dogs system thru the bloodstream - it is carried from hair follicle to hair follicle by the oils in the coat thus the need to keep the coat naturally oily while it is translocating.... shampooing strips the oils I have been using Frontline since it came out and to be honest I worry much more about Lyme dz, Rocky Mtn Spotted fever and Erlichia.....

DKiah, Thanks for the info about the hair follicles vs the bloodstream transmission. I had become uneasy about putting it on lately. Maybe you can explain my concerns about Lyme, etc. When the tick bites the dog the poison is released into the dog. Frontline works because the tick bites the dog and dies. Therefore, how does Frontline stop Lyme? I'm confused. Does the bite not go deep enough to penetrate the bloodstream, or is it because the tick has to get a good hold and gorge itself to interchange fluids? I would really like to understand how these products work. Thanks again, L

It is my understanding that the tick doesn't get to bite the dog because it comes into contact with the product in the hair follicles first ...and it gets dead before a bite happens. A tick has to attach fro at least 24 hours before it can transmit.. hope i have that number right. That's not to say a tick might not get thru, they do develop resistances to all the products we develop to get rid of them just like bacteria and viruses develop resistance to common drugs... In all honesty, I've hardly ever found ticks on our dogs.. we did have one get Lyme disease many many years ago and it was before Frontline.. Advantage is one of the products that the flea has to ingest to become affected (in this case sterile but it lives it's normal life cycle)and this product is not marketed for tick prevention.... Hope this helps