Is the Seresto Flea and Tick Collar Safe for Dogs?
With every flea and tick control product out there, you will unfortunately come across people who have had bad experiences with their dogs using it.
Like all flea products, Seresto does go to every length possible to ensure the safety of these products.
The EPA has to approve all ingredients that are used in flea and tick control products, including those in Seresto collars.
To get approval, the ingredients need to meet strict safety standards. The ingredients in Seresto collars have been used in various flea control products for a long time and are not unique to this collars. However, the dual combination of Imidacloprid and Flumethrin working together is only found in Seresto dog flea collars, and no other flea control products currently.
As with any type of medical product most users will have no complications using the Seresto collars on their dogs. The collars have been, and continue to be used by hundreds of thousands of dog owners.
A 2021 media report about pet deaths potentially relating to flea collars was published. Veterinary toxicologists stated that the link between flea collars and deaths was not clear, and that the potential that deaths were not at all related to flea collars is a position these experts continue to hold due to there being no evidence of a clear link. Vets continue to be adamant that they are not seeing a notable number of issues relating to flea collars.
The director of veterinary services and senior veterinary toxicologist for Pet Poison Helpline Dr. Ahna Brutlag states that based on their helpline data, the collars are not causing notable issues with dogs. She notes that most of the calls that come into the helpline with people concerned about the effects of the collars have been a result of dogs chewing on the collars, or even swallowing part of it.
A well fitted collar should not be able to chewed on, and dogs should not have access to the collar before it’s fitted. Even among those calls to the helpline, no dog deaths were recorded.
In the end, it comes down to your own personal comfort and confidence in using a Seresto dog flea collar or any other flea control product. There are no flea control products out there which have no user complaints or rare side effects being reported. It is important to keep in mind that the vast majority of dog owners who use Seresto collars have no negative experiences.
The FDA acknowledges that while most flea products will cause no complications in most pets, side effects can sometimes occur. The FDA provides information on how to report and problems or adverse reactions with your Seresto flea collar (or any other flea control products) on its website.
Firstly, it’s important to choose the right collar for your dog’s size. Seresto flea collars for large dogs not only won’t fit smaller dogs properly, but contain a higher concentration of the active ingredients to be effective for the weight of larger dogs.
The collars need to fit snugly but not tightly around your dog’s neck.
Since most dogs are accustomed to wearing a collar of some sort, the Seresto collar should not cause any discomfort to your dog when it’s fitted properly according to the instructions.
While Seresto flea and tick collars are designed to be safe for dogs to use, they are not safe to put on a cat. Use only cat specific flea and tick control products on your felines.
