New! Merck’s Flea and Tick Pill

There’s been a lot of trepidation about the safety of flea and tick collars and spot type skin applications for pets and the toxic exposures to dogs, cats and the people in their families. The EPA continues to look at this problem. In the meantime, many people are looking into natural products to see what works in our geographical areas, in some cases hoping they don’t end up having to “bomb” the house.

Merck Research Laboratories, in the form of Peter Meinke and colleagues, have also been looking at this problem given the continued increase in pets in homes nationally, now over 150 million. One way to bypass the issue of people exposure to unsafe levels of cancer-causing pesticides is to build a better delivery system, like a pill. And now there is one that has tested as 100% effective for 30 days for both fleas and ticks, in cats and dogs, and that’s a first. I am always concerned about side effects and any dangers of administering internal medication that travels throughout all the body’s organs, but reportedly no toxic effects have been noted.

The flea and tick pill is based on a substance found in a type of fungus. I’ll probably wait until it’s clear what else is in it and it’s in widespread use before I consider giving it to my dog.  But that’s just me:) Read on…