How Does Frontline Kill Ticks?

It is high summer, you and your dog are back from running through the woods. You also may have just have spent time in your backyard which has high grass. You sit down in your easy chair and reach down to pet your dog. You feel a hard bump on his skin about the size of you fingernail. You look further and see a roundish brown insect on your dog. It is attached to the skin. Your dog has a tick. You know you must get rid of it. Ticks can carry bacterial diseases such as the debilitating Lyme disease. You call your veterinarian. The veterinarian recommends Frontline Plus for dogs. You may wonder how this product works and how it will kill the tick.

Frontline and Frontline Plus can be used on dogs off all sizes and there is also a version for cats. Make sure you get the proper one for you pet. They come in distinctive colors on the packaging. It is safe to use to treat puppies and kittens as young as 8 weeks old. Lactating, breading, and pregnant dogs and cats can also be treated.

Frontline is manufactured by Merial. Merial also makes well known medicines to treat heartworm. They are a reputable company. Frontline is part of a newer type of insecticides called synthetic insecticides. They are known to be very effective. The type of insecticide used in Frontline is called an artheterocycles.

Fipronil is the most common ingredient in these synthetic insecticides. The artheterocycles prevent the passing of chlorine through cells in the nervous system of the insect. This results in the paralyzing of the tick. Paralysis means the tick is unable to move. The tick is unable feed. If they cannot feed on blood, they die. The fipronil in Frontline Plus will kill the ticks in their younger stages, like the nymph stage, as well as when they are adults.

In Frontline and Frontline Plus the fipronil is dispersed by the sebaceous oil glands. It becomes spread efficiently and relatively shortly throughout the fur of the pet. This will kill ticks quite effectively. It is reputed to kill all the ticks within 12 hours of treatment.

The treatment is applied by a supplied applicator to the base of the neck. It does not need to be spread manually all over the animal to kill the ticks. It is recommended to wear gloves. The tick does not have to be attached to feel its effects.

After treatment, you will want to check for dead but attached ticks. They may be removed using tweezers. Be careful to not crush the body and release any infected fluids onto yourself or the animal. Drop it and any ticks you suspect are still alive into rubbing alcohol to insure you have killed them.

Frontline Plus will continue to kill ticks for up to one month of application. You can then safely treat them again for another month of protection. This gives a pet owner piece of mind.