Did you know that flea and tick treatments for dogs can be fatal for river wildlife?
We all love our dogs and want to keep them safe and healthy, and sometimes this means giving them flea, tick and worm treatments.
However, this well-intentioned approach has unintended consequences because we pet owners are, perhaps unknowingly, polluting our rivers with chemicals that are toxic to aquatic life.
New analysis of Environment Agency data by The Rivers Trust and the Wildlife and Countryside Link, shows that three insecticides used widely in tick, flea and worm treatments (fipronil, permethrin and the controversial neonicotinoid imidacloprid) – are present in English rivers in concentrations that exceed accepted safe limits for wildlife. This is despite the fact that these chemicals are deemed to be too toxic to be used in agriculture.
In our rivers, insect larvae, such as mayflies and dragonflies, are particularly vulnerable to the toxic effects of these veterinary chemicals. These species and many others serve as essential food sources for fish, birds, and bats. Therefore, when these pesticides enter our rivers, they disrupt the balance of the entire ecosystem, causing ripple effects that impact the wider environment.
A single flea treatment of a medium-sized dog with imidacloprid contains enough pesticide to kill 60 million bees.
It's a shocking revelation that should give every pet owner pause.
Recent studies indicate that these chemicals are finding their way into rivers from various routes, including contaminated household wastewater from washing treated pets and their clothes and bedding, urinary and faecal excretions, and allowing treated dogs to swim in rivers. The result is a steady flow of harmful pesticides into our rivers, endangering the delicate balance of life within them.
One of the main ways you can help protect river wildlife from these harmful toxins is to keep your dog out of rivers, especially if they have recently received tick, flea or worm treatments.
How to keep my dog flea-free without chemicals:
Don’t treat unless there is a flea problem.
Hot wash your dog’s bed and hoover under it to kill larval fleas.
Use a flea comb once a week.
There are treatments available which are less toxic for marine life - please speak to your vet for professional advice on these.
For more detail and other ideas for keeping your dog flea-free visit: theriverstrust.org/about-us/news/flea-mergency-pet-treatments-taking-a-bite-out-of-the-health-of-englands-rivers
