Fleas, Dogs and Collars: Part 3

   

     Though it was three months ago, the last days of Minsky's life I remember like yesterday. Painful goodbyes have a way of etching themselves deeply in both heart and cells and when it's your co-pilot, your baby, your best friend of 15 1/2 years...well, some things take longer to heal, and the mental reliving of the ordeal is not something I've been eager to embrace.
     That said, I choose to share her story here in the off chance it might somehow help someone else (and especially now that I have watched another baby of mine suffer from the toxins in a flea-killing ointment).
     I begin with this disclaimer: these are my observations. I did not have Minsky autopsied, though a flurry of google searches has shown me that I am not alone for having concerns.
     The product: Seresto Flea and Tick collar by Bayer.
     The tragedy: my beloved Minsky.
     The background is this:
     I first heard of Seresto collars a year and a half ago. With four huge outside dogs (one going back and forth daily), fleas go with the territory. But when I overheard a groomer swear by this collar, I immediately set out to find not one, but four, as the fur /hair combination of the Pyrenees breed, can make for a matted mess if you don't stay on top of these things.
     And I must say, I was totally impressed. The good news: they last for 8 months, so there's no monthly mess of drops and dips that do not cut it for dogs of this size romping in the great outdoors. The bad news: they're expensive as heck, and (little did I know at the time) they are controversial, and can even be deadly.
     Let the record reflect, my big dogs love their collars, as Rosebud, here will attest: (Note: this is the day she got her new one:http://karlensgarden.blogspot.com/2015/05/blog-post_4.html ... Not sure if they grasp the flea repelling concept or if they simply like feeling as if they belong, but as you can from their glee, it's a big day when we break out the new collars. I had to make special adjustments to get one to fit TJ as his head is so big, but with a little ingenuity, we managed.)

Hix and Rosebud

     This year, I did myself one better. Because these things are so costly, I went online to look for specials. ($70 at the vet; $50 online--It pays to shop around.) Given their success the year before, I decided this year to buy a small one for Minks as well (who weighed 18 lbs; they also make them for cats; though I did not purchase one for Boo.)
     One week prior to Minsky's passing I had taken her to the vet to check out a horrendous hacking cough that had worsened over the past few weeks. $125 worth of x-rays later and I was told her trachea was collapsing, which I attributed to the many meds that had extended her life thus far, (steroids and pain pills being amongst them). Per this examination, the doctors upped her steroids. We knew we were on borrowed time, and I in no way blame the collar entirely. But I am convinced it contributed. And here's why...
     Minka's last day on earth was pure hell for us both. Her cough had worsened and the increase in meds had her throwing up repeatedly, (roughly every 7 minutes at the end). After 22 rounds in 3 hours, I made the call every pet owner dreads, for there was nothing left in her to throw up anymore...Her little body was giving out.
     Keep in mind (for those who follow these things) I had an extra dog on my hands during this ordeal: Layla-- recovering from leg surgery, was back and forth from outside to in, as was Rosey. Given we were in peak flea season, and given Minka's expensive collar was fairly new, I popped in on Boo as a preventive measure. (For the record, Boo weighs 15 pounds...3 pounds less than Minka, but with twice the hair. Per the packaging, ingredients in the small dog collar were identical to that for grown cats, not that it mattered. We didn't get that far.)
     No sooner had I placed the collar on Boo, did I numbly begin going about my day, picking up Minka's bowl, her toys, her bedding...Then suddenly, I heard that God-forsaken sound, now forever etched in my memory--the sound I had heard incessantly over the past week from Minka...The sound I heard throughout her last hours, every seven minutes...There was no denying this sound.  Only this time, it was coming from Boo!  Boo had not had the collar on for one hour when he launched into the identical hacking sound of an irritated trachea.

     In an instant, I grabbed him and snapped the collar off. He ran for water. I ran for my laptop whereupon googling, I found a series of complaints about these collars, particularly on smaller animals. Symptoms ranged from hacking coughs to seizures, to yes, even deaths. Oddly enough, there's very little gray area here. People either love these collars or they hate them. (When you put this kind of money in a collar, I guess you're gonna have strong opinions.)
     As for me, I still keep them on the big dogs. Then again, Pyrs have an undercoat of fur beneath their top coat of hair --2 layers of protection between collar and neck, as opposed to Minka, whose summer cut left precious little fur around her precious little neck. (Boo's fur would've been more akin to the Pyrs by way of thickness, but it mattered not. The sound alone was enough for me. I cringed to hear the familiar hack. So for Boo, it's flea combs and herbal formulas from now on.)

     Again, I reiterate, Minks had several problems in her latter days. I in no way blame the collar entirely. But I am convinced it contributed. And I am sufficiently convinced it has done harm to other smaller breeds of dog, so if you're considering one, please do your homework.

     Meanwhile, I share Minka's memory once again...May her little life serve as a reminder to us all to cherish every moment of every day...Not a day goes by that I don't think of her with love and gratitude for the time we had. Here's to you Minka girl...I'm praying there are no fleas in heaven.

http://karlensgarden.blogspot.com/2015/06/love-of-all-time.html