How to Make a Natural Flea Remedy for Dogs

Intro: How to Make a Natural Flea Remedy for Dogs

Hey guys!
In this Instructable, I'm going to show you how to make a completely natural flea collar out of dried mint and a bandana.

The mint actually repels the fleas (and is also known to help repel ticks!), plus it smells good. It has no known toxicity to dogs or cats.

Fleas are annoying and unhealthy, but believe it or not, flea collars and chemical remedies are even worse sometimes! Many name brand flea collars contain chemicals that can harm pets or their owners! A natural remedy is better, and as an added bonus, mint smells good!

I'm making mine for my dog, but this could be adjusted for a cat too.

STEP 1: What You Need

For this Instructable, you will need:
• a bandana
• dried mint
• a sewing machine OR a needle and thread
• a dog or cat (I'm assuming your making this for your pet...)

STEP 2: The Bandana

To prepare the bandana, you will need to cut it in half (so it's a triangle). Turn the bandana so that the tip of the triangle is pointing towards you. Then you will need to fold down about an inch or two from the top (the straight side).

STEP 3: Sew It Up!

Next, you need to sew along the edge, creating a hollow tube (sew on the dotted line). Leave one side of the tube open, so you can stuff the mint in. Make sure the stitches are small and tight, or the dried mint will spill out through the cracks.

STEP 4: Stuff That Mint in There

Take your dried mint and stuff it into the opening you left in the tube. When you've done that, sew up the opening.

STEP 5: Put It on Your Dog!

That's it! You did it!
You could find a way to adjust this for a cat if you want, or if you have a smaller dog you may need to find a smaller bandana, or trim a normal sized one.
Cats can't tolerate essential oils, but if you have a dog you could make a variation using mint oil.
I hope you enjoyed this Instructable, and would really appreciate it if you voted for me in the contests I entered.
Thank you for reading! :)

Comments

[Rawr_1]

Did you know you can also use catnip instead of dried mint?

[artfulann]

I love your ideas!! Have you considered changing your instructable to say natural flea repellant for dogs? I only ask this because of my journey with fleas in a multiple pet household in a really flea/tick dominant part of the country (Houston) where we don't have much winter usually. I've not had a problem with fleas before this year for about 5 years. I like to use natural elements as much as possible. However this year there was no winter cold and suddenly even though doggies and kitties are mostly indoors, I had fleas BIG TIME. When I noticed, I did the natural route for several weeks (your solution and a few others) and learned quickly that cats are VERY different as far as dogs and are more sensitive to essential oils. However when most of my furry friends started pulling out their hair (dogs and cats) and the cats were sitting on the highest perch possible even though it meant they would fall off of their perch over and over again, I did the responsible thing and went to my vet and got the best topical/oral flea medication I could get- in my case both as I have a Great Dane who the topical doesn't fit so well and a semi-feral cat whose only option is topical on the sneak. I think your flea collar idea is a flea repellant? for my area. It will work for most populations but the mostly tropical areas like Houston. I wish there were a natural flea collar for these areas. (And by the way growing mint is one of the easiest gardening things ever, it will usually take over!! You could grow your mint !)

[ranwithjesus]

Thank you for taking the time to comment! I will change the title, that's a good idea. I do have some mint growing in my garden, just not enough yet for the project :)

[PinchOfChili]

Please remeber that cats cannot tolerate essential oils, f.x. mint oil. I am saying this because some commenters have mentioned using mint oil, and that is fine for dogs, but not cats. :)

[ranwithjesus]

Thank you for pointing this out! I didn't know that, (I don't have cats) but that's a good point! I'll add that to the Instructable.

[GGinNJ]

does it matter if it's peppermint or spearmint? how long do the leaves need to dry for?

Thanks

[ranwithjesus]

It doesn't matter, the only thing to watch out for is putting catnip in a cat's collar :). The reason my leaves look so weird is because I accidentally bought fresh leaves, and had to dry them myself. You can just buy a container of them at the store. They should be able to crumble between your fingers.

[GGinNJ]

I went the easy way - picked up some dried peppermint and spearmint leaves at the health food store (in the spice section) - about $4.50US / 1/4lb - Also bought the essential oils as well (to mix with water) to spray the area as well - We seem to have have fleas that are quite resistant. Even if it doesn't work - at least the house will smell nice!

[ranwithjesus]

That's a good idea! True, it will smell nice! I'm not sure if the mint will kill the fleas or just encourage them to leave, but you should certainly try!

[Slippery arm]

I would make a pocket and dip a sponge in mint oil ten put it in the pocket with a zipper so I could replace the stuff

[ranwithjesus]

That's a great idea! You should try that!

[tallgrl94]

Odd question perhaps, but can you put mint extract on their collar if they hate wearing bandannas?

[ranwithjesus]

Good question! I'm sure it would work to repel the fleas and ticks, but I know some dogs and cats have sensitive skin, so I'm not sure if it would irritate their skin. If you just put a few drops on the outside (not touching their skin) I'm sure it would be fine. Someone correct me if I'm wrong though.