Pet owners are scared of fleas and if presented with a flea infestation they can be terribly confused. The biggest question these days is how to get rid of fleas naturally.

Pet supply stores will sell various flea collars. It is virtually impossible to know which one to use and nearly impossible to know all of the active chemicals in these collars. When I was young, our pets used to wear an off-white plastic flea collar. We had no idea what the active flea ingredients were! These days we would not consider hanging a “chemical belt” around the neck of our beloved pets nor would we consider letting children near such a thing. Today, the chemicals used in many of these top popular brands may be poisoning our pets while marginalizing our own health. So what kind of home remedies for fleas are there?

More and more people are looking for natural or homeopathic alternatives to the problem of fleas in dogs. In many cases, you can create homemade flea remedies with ingredients you already have around the house. Listed below are some of the most commonly used natural dog flea remedies:

1. For adult dogs, you can try an olive oil bath. Anecdotal evidence suggests that fleas will drown in olive oil. Start from the head and work your way back so the fleas don’t move to the face, where they’re very hard to pull off. Then you simply wash the oil off with shampoo and the dog fleas are washed down the drain. It will take a few shampoos before your dog’s coat feels oil free.
2. Other people say that garlic works wonders for preventing fleas on dogs. Some users of this solution suggest using a garlic supplement, while others use a fresh clove of garlic and mix it into their food. Garlic is controversial, so check with your vet.
3. Another solution is the use of household salt. Sprinkle it all over the house and let it sit for a week or more. Apparently fleas don’t seem to like salt. Your dog will lay on the carpet and in the process the salt will stain his fur. This seems to keep the fleas away, as proponents claim that the fleas will be gone soon after.
4. Talcum powder has long been known as a natural remedy for treating fleas on dogs. Using baby powder for fleas is a simple process…just cover your dog or cat with baby powder and it will suffocate the fleas. This remedy is often recommended for puppies or kittens who are too young to be treated with any flea chemicals. A similar remedy uses baking soda. As before, start at the head so the fleas will move to the rear of your pet and eventually leave.

There are many natural alternatives to treat/prevent fleas on dogs. However, with all matters related to the health of our dogs and cats, consult with your doctor about possible side effects.

This article was abridged from an article previously written by the author and can be found at: How To Get Rid Of Fleas On Dogs Naturally, where you can find more information on pet flea solutions as well as other pet flea problems. pet health.