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Seresto Collars

I do not normally post things like this, and I do not use these collars, but I know a lot of posters do.

I just want to make sure everyone saw this: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/seresto-collar-deaths-symptoms-collar-should-be-recalled-fleas-ticks-report-says/

There has been a lot of other news and I did not want this to get overlooked.

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I’ve been using these collars for several years now with zero problems. They are the most cost effective means of flea and tick control for me. The active ingredients, Flumethrin and Imidacloprid are used in other topical flea and tick meds. Currently I have 4 dogs and 1 cat wearing Seresto collars. When I put them one a pet for the 1st time I monitor behavior closely and check for irritation around the neck. I have had a couple of dogs with tick borne diseases so I need effective tick control. The Cat that is wearing one is a flea magnet. He was covered in fleas and flea dirt. After a couple of days of wearing the collar, no fleas. I plan to get at least 2 more cat collars for my floofy cats. The topicals don’t seem to be able to penetrate their coats.

I think most of the deaths attributed to the collars are anecdotal and may also involve counterfeits. I wouldn’t use them on a very young animal or a severely debilitated one but I have no qualms about using them on a healthy animal.

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I agree with @Sandysmom! The problems are from the counterfeit collars, not the real collars.

My barn cat, we tried all kinds of treatments for ticks, all from the vet. He kept showing up with ticks on him. (Was not worried about the cat, because cats have very few tick borne disease issues per my vet, I was worried about the cat bringing ticks into the barn and the horses or dogs getting them.) We put a Seresto collar on him and no more ticks.

I asked my vet about the fear posts on the internet about this subject. She said her dog wears one and she would not use it or recommend it if she thought there was anymore risk with this collar than any of the other treatments she recommends. Clearly, all drugs/chemicals come with a risk.

I have a horse that had a severe allergic reaction to a standard vaccine. Laminitis and all. That does not mean no other horse should get that vaccine.

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I also use these collars with no issues (rotating with other methods – my vet warns that fleas have a very short lifecycle and if you use the same chemical for too long you just end up breeding a resistant population.)

However a family member’s tiny Yorkie had a reaction to the collar and they no longer use it. Come to think of it though… I bet they bought it on Amazon… I only get mine from the vet.

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I don’t doubt that there are rare problems with real, actual seresto collars. These are pesticides we’re putting on our animals, and there are risks.

Those risks apply to all of the flea and tick stuff, though.

But (using the numbers from the linked article) 2500 deaths & 100000 incidents, across 34 MILLION collars? Even if those are all actually attributable to bonafide seresto collars, which they are not, that’s an incredible safety profile.

0.007% risk of death

0.29% risk of “incident” which is reported to be mainly skin irritation

Given how counterfeit product and reporting issues are inflating those numbers, I’m very confident in using seresto, and feel very comfortable with the very reasonable risk profile.

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I was just sharing information. :v:

I don’t need to be ganged up on.

My dog can’t use Trifexus due to the active ingredients, and I did not want someone else’s dog or cat having an adverse reaction to something and not understand what could be causing the issue. Had I known I was going to get run over I would not have posted.

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Not run over. Just another opinion.

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It’s not ganging up; this has also gone around social media 3x in the last month or so, so a lot of people have already commented on this issue multiple times (I know I have).

The biggest issue is that it’s impossible to know whether the issues are from counterfeit collars, so it could be significant, or not.

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Wow, did I miss some deleted posts? No one here is ganging up or running over you. :open_mouth:

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That is how I felt.

I did a search, did not see a posting about the article I linked so I thought I was helping people out.

or perhaps I am just being overly sensitive and need a hug.

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Glad you posted it, it lead to a discussion for us, and gave people things to think about.

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A couple years ago, on a Black Friday sale on Amazon, I got sold counterfeit collars from Amazon directly. I didn’t realize, until a couple months later when I saw an article and checked the collars, that they were counterfeit. They had not been used and were still in the cellophane wrapper in the tin. I had to tussle with Amazon a bit about the refund, but since they were the actual seller, I finally did get a full refund.

That being said, I now get the collars from either my vets office or Chewy for our two dogs plus my neighbor’s dog. We have never had any issues with them not working. I had used Frontline Plus for years, but started finding ticks and fleas on the dogs.

But, this thread is a great reminder- anytime you use any sort of chemical, drug, vaccine, etc. there is a risk involved. Bodies can have reactions. Sometimes they can be extreme, and sometimes even fatal.

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@MunchingonHay, sending virtual (((((HUGS)))))!

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THANKS Cutter !!! ((((((((((((((((((((hugs))))))))))))))))))

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I always bought mine from the vet clinic. The purebred Black Lab and the purebred Weimaraner were fine, wearing them.

BOTH of my Catahoula/mixes were not fine at all. They developed a slight fever and listlessness; both of which disappeared within 12 hours of removing the Seresto collars.

I stopped buying them and found other things that work just as well.

Well again, they are chemicals. Many dogs are sensitive to various chemicals, as well as foods, and other environmental substances like grass and pollen. What works for one dog won’t work for them all, but that doesn’t mean the product is faulty.

Seresto collars are designed to work for months, so clearly the delivery method is different from a feed through or topical flea/tick product. Two of my dogs could not tolerate Advantix, one requiring an emergency midnight bath the day of application because it was as if I poured acid on his neck. My other two were perfectly fine. They are related, too - same breed. Go figure.

Everyone should monitor their pets whenever they use a new chemical on them.

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