Vinegar for Puppy Fleas

Is a 6 week old puppy too young to use vinegar to wipe him down to kill fleas from the lawn?

Vet Comments on Using Vinegar for Puppy Fleas


Hi there,

I doubt that topically applied vinegar would harm your puppy, but I don’t think it is going to have much of an effect on the flea population in his environment either. Keep in mind that the great majority of fleas are not living on dogs at any given point in time. To effectively eradicate fleas, you need a product that kills adult fleas and disrupts the maturation of juvenile fleas, and you must continue treatment for a long enough period of time (6-9 months) so that all the fleas in the environment (including those currently in egg form) die off before they have a chance to reproduce.

Even then, continued preventative treatment is necessary since fleas can reenter the environment either on you, your dog, or on other animals. All of this is beyond the scope of what vinegar can do.

I generally recommend two flea products for puppies 6 weeks of age and older. Revolution protects pets against fleas; heartworms;and some types of ticks, mange mites, and intestinal parasites.Capstar is a pill that kills adult fleas. It is often used in conjunction with Program, a monthly pill that kills immature fleas.



Regards,

Jennifer Coates, DVM