15 year old Brownie has F.A.D.

So Brownie has been diagnosed with F.A.D. I always remove his flea collar in winter (no point in having it on him if he doesn't need it) but this year, the winter has been like spring and unfortunately he got fleas. This is how I had to find out the hard way that he has the allergy that causes F.A.D. He's never had fleas in his life of course or I would have noticed this before. He got red, raw rashes on his legs, tail, and tummy and began chewing on them like crazy after a while. He wasn't scratching until the fleas got really bad apparently. They also caused anemia (the lethargy which made me take him to the vet) as well.

SO! He was treated for tapeworm by the vet, though none were found in his stool. The vet said since he had fleas, it was a good idea as tapeworm apparently come from fleas. I didn't really want to do this, but I went ahead. Last thing he needs right now is worms.

He's being treated for fleas with natural homeopathic remedies. The reason for this is because I've never used fleas drops or flea shampoos and all the boxes advise not to use on old dogs. No way I'm putting strong chemicals like FrontLine on my baby that might make him sick. I've already gotten some great results and I thought I'd share them with everyone and see what people think.

So I'm adding garlic and brewers yeast to his food daily. He likes both so this is very easy. He's also getting apple cider vinegar added to his water. Doesn't like this so much, but since it's the only water he has, he drinks it. He also got a flea bath using rosemary and a tiny bit of weak Adams flea shampoo. The bath got rid of a LOT of fleas. They were just floating in his bathwater (Ew!) We're planting rosemary in the yard as soon as it gets warm to help keep down fleas. He went from an anemia-inducing amount of fleas, to combing just two fleas off of him yesterday! This happened in less than a week. His fur is growing back in the affected areas and the rashes and thickened skin are healing pretty well.

He has a really bad, dark rash on his tummy. It is being treated with a spray consisting of: Hydrogen peroxide, witch hazel, sage/chamomile leaves, tea tree oil, water, apple cider vinegar, and aloe vera. His skin is looking much better as well. I'll post some photos as soon as I take some.

Wish us luck! Also, please add anything that might help if you've the inclination.

OH NO.........poor Brownie

It sounds as if your remedies are working, and like you I very much dislike the strong spot ons (as does Jimmi) so try to avoid them if at all possible.

I too feed garlic capsules, and also give Jimmi a spoonful of Billy No Mates every day.........so far, apart from one episode when actually the fleas leapt off him pdq which meant dealing with the whole house, he has been both flea and tick free.

I certainly wish you all the luck in the world, and hope that the lovely boy is back to being itch and rash free very soon.

Poor Brownie - hope the rashes etc all clear up soon so that he is comfortable again. Sounds like you are doing everything possible to help him. Good luck with the treatment.