# Anyone use pennyroyal for fleas?



## ginnie5 (Jul 15, 2003)

Frontline doesn't work anymore here and what we bought last year hasn't done much better. Revolution I think. So I've been reading about alternatives. Money has been really tight recently and I just haven't had $100 or so to spare to try something else that may or may not work. and yes by the time I buy the big size for dogs and get it for cats for 3 months that's the price I found. 
Anyway I got pennyroyal essential oil the other day after reading about it. We hauled all 3 dogs and bathed them in Dawn. Then I mixed up the pennyroyal in a spray bottle with water and we coated down the dogs and the cats. They're still itching from the bites they had but we are noticing a remarkable decrease in scratching. I need to wrestle one down and actually look to see if I see any fleas. So far with doing 2 cats and 3 dogs and making up a spray bottle for the house I haven't even used 1/4 bottle yet. If this keeps on working I may have found an affordable alternative! I also put a salt/borax mixture around the baseboards and on the furniture last night even though we haven't seen fleas in the house. Oh and the pennyroyal smells good too! Much better than frontline and I"m not worried about the kids getting it on them.


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## NickieL (Jun 15, 2007)

I grow pennyroyal in my lawn, sure smells good to mow and lay down on. Don't know if it repeals the fleas any. Jack only had fleas once and I used a new pill out from my vet to be rid of them (killed everything withen 2 hours) and not a flea since last year.


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## Katskitten (Aug 5, 2010)

2 comments..
Ever wonder if the drug companies are dropping the potency of the older drugs in order to push the newer more expensive drugs?
What is this pennyroyal? I would like more info on it. sounds like a better alternative than having to medicate 8 kitties with flea drops.


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## Wolf Flower (Dec 21, 2005)

I have tried several different herbal preparations, some containing Pennyroyal. My experience has been that herbal flea stuff does NOT work very well. The sprays can repel insects for a few hours, I used them as fly spray for my horse and it worked pretty well for that. But as a flea remedy I have to say I'm nonplussed.

I have a client who is adamantly against all "chemical" flea stuff, so she makes me use this neem herbal shampoo on her cats. Her cats are always crawling with fleas and the shampoo doesn't really help. ANY shampoo will kill fleas if you leave it on long enough--15-20 minutes--but after it's rinsed off, the fleas will hop right back on the animal if they're still in the environment.

As a groomer, I've tried just about flea remedy made, and I can say that Advantage works the best. Frontline isn't as effective for fleas (but it does kill ticks). The cheaper spot-on treatments you get at the drugstore don't work worth beans--total waste of money. 

The herbal sprays do smell nice and I make one for grooming. It's a mixture of lanolin & jojoba oil, water, alcohol, cedar and lavender essential oil, and a touch of citronella. This spray will knock down fleas it touches, but doesn't have much residual--I just use it to condition the coat and make it smell nice.


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## NickieL (Jun 15, 2007)

Katskitten said:


> 2 comments..
> Ever wonder if the drug companies are dropping the potency of the older drugs in order to push the newer more expensive drugs?
> What is this pennyroyal? I would like more info on it. sounds like a better alternative than having to medicate 8 kitties with flea drops.


The fleas are getting resistant. Just like germs get resistant or weeds. It's called evelution. Mother Nature is fascinating like that.


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## Maura (Jun 6, 2004)

Pennyroyal is a plant that often grows in the lawn, but it will get taller than you like. I think it is pretty. I suggest getting some Lavender e.o. and using a Q-tip to dab on the flea bites. If the coats aren't thick, you can mix it in water with witch hazel and rinse them with it. I found 1/4 c witch hazel, 1/4 c water, and 1 teaspoon lavender e.o. soothes the skin like nothing else. I used it on a horrible case of mange and was amazed. I use lavender on mosquito bites. Lavender is also used to lesson anxiety.

As an alternative, grow lavender plants where the dogs and cats will rub against them. It will take a couple of years for the plants to mature to where they will be useful, in the meantime keep spraying with the penny royal or penny royal and lavender mixture.


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## Prickle (May 9, 2009)

If you're not opposed to bug killer, treating your yard helps a lot. Just make sure what you get includes fleas. 

Like this: http://www.scotts.com/smg/catalog/productTemplate.jsp?proId=prod180004&itemId=cat50078

I also remember someone saying they sprayed around the outside of the house with diluted citronella oil.


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