Sergeants Gold Flea Medication Almost Kills Dogsters Lucky and Nala
Lucky and Nala’s Mom barked this terrible report in to Dog Park and Pawty Playground Place Group today. I haven’t heard anything this product but if you have, please bark in.
hi everyone i have not had time to log into the group but since it has been a EXTRA long night for me… i wanted to share with all of you dog and cat lovers what took place for me last night….i have not slept in 24 hours…
what i thought would be a normal trip to walmart… became a night mare…
to make the long story short… i had to wait on my order of REVOLUTION for Lucky and Nala… so since i live in a area that has many fleas and ticks outside… i decided to buy them something in walmart just in the meanwhile…
it was the 1st time i ever tried it…. BUT NEVER AGAIN….
i bought them SERGEANTS GOLD for small dogs (9-20 lbs) and both my poms are like 14lbsso anyway i gave them the flea medication at midnight when i got back from the store… 2 hours later.. they are both walking around my bedroom like 2 crazy dogs… and they kept on licking their nose, drooling &… NEXT i noticed they were both FOAMING at the mouth!
NATURALLY i freaked out…. and called Emergency VET… they told me to bathe them with dishwashing liquid (so i did twice)…. BECAUSE my DOGS HAVE BEEN POISONED…. and they TOLD me that they’ve had some FATALITIES with that medication….
well with the whole bath thing… and since i got them to drink water, and take some honey… and they stopped foaming…. i called the vet back and they said to just let them go to sleep for now because they seem to be fine for now… unless they start having seizures…
so they are both resting… they just get up to go to the pee pee pad , and go back to sleep… i tried to make them eat but they only ate a little… the vet said that’s normal since this just happen hours ago….
I PRAY that all will be well and tomorrow this will be forgotten about for both Lucky and Nala
so PLEASE if you are considering buying this product …. DON’T ….. it may harm your pet
thanks everyone
Lucky & Nala’s MOM
i’m glad that others can read what happen to my poor babies… i was in total shock but working on bathing them as fast as i could… i knew it… when they were acting really funny and not snuggling with me trying to sleep…. with my husbands help we gave them 2 baths each…. i was crying at the same time as i was bathing them they were drooling repulsively… it was so SCARY… i don’t wish this upon any pet lover
PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD, i also found many internet sites that posted the same symptoms and fatalities from this medication i will re post them here
God bless u all
Thank you for the advice. I hope your little ones will recover completely. How terrible for you (and your fuzzy kids) to have to go through this.
here’s some more peoples stories on the same medication
http://www.dealcatcher.com/forums/m_497932/tm.htm
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/43242/flea_and_tick_treatments_are_you_poisoning.html
http://www.wenwen.ws/pet/Dog/WARNINGHas-your-Dog-been-poisoned-by-Sergeants-Gold-FleaTick-Squeeze-ON-solution-fsaf07.htm
no way poor babys and mom I am so thankful for they are doing better,I use there flea shampoo so i am wandering what is it that in the medicine that got them sick? I will let everyone know cuz I know that must be heart breaking. So thanks for the input and good to hear they are fine.
lala,
You don’t need a flea shampoo to kill fleas. There are some good shampoos with aloe vera that kill fleas by breaking the air barrier on fleas and drowning them, the natural way.
I just visited the Dogster pages of your fur family. They are all adorable! I am so very glad your Poms are doing better. I will pray that they continue to improve and that soon they will be back to their normal selves. .
I used the Sargeant’s Gold Carpet Spray about 2 years ago, and everyone of my cats came down ill. Bad reaction to this. I followed all instructions such as open windows, letting dry before allowing any pet on the floor. My cats acted the same as Nala and Lucky. Staggering, vomiting….took 2 days for them to get back to normal. Needless to say I never used it again.
I generally try to avoid Sergants products. I have tried them on several occasions in the past, and I even have a bottle of shampoo of theirs in the bathroom right now. Problem is, most of the time, their products don’t work very well, if at all, and I have had a couple of cases of my dogs getting ill after using a Sergants product. Not saying they don’t make any good products, just that I have never seen one myself.
I went online and found that many others had this same problems with Seargeants Gold for a long time now along with Hartz squeeze on. WHY IS THIS PRODUCT STILL ON THE MARKET? You can see other dogs and cats that also have been poisoned by this product at
http://www.dealcatcher.com/forums/m_497932/tm.htm
I contacted Sergeants Gold and Walmart on their website about the problem. I will let you know if I hear from them.
My mom used this on two of her cats, and they both were dead within days afterwards. She didn’t realize it was the product with the first cat; she thought he’d been hit by a car. But when the second one was found in the road dead with no trauma, she put it together. I don’t know why it’s still on the market, either.
I don’t know why these products are still around. They are known to kill cats. Bio Spot, anything that is not issued by your Vet. Flea collars are a waste of money and end up giving your dog a rash. I guess someone will have to sue these companies to get them to stop selling them. There are no limitations to them because they are not considered controlled medicines. They look attractive because they sell them for a fraction of the price of Advantage or Frontline. These also should only be used when needed. We have seen animals allergic to these also.
People try to side line the Vet. Figuring in a once yearly check up, it’s not a big cost. Shame on Walmart and other stores if they don’t pull the product. K Mart sells these products too. But nothing will be done until a class action suit by users is put into action.
These companies think that 1% death rate is nothing. What is 1% of 100,000 dogs?Even 50,000 dogs? Until people do something about it, the products continue to be available on the shelves for some unknowing person.
So glad you noticed the reactions and found the culprit and that Nala and Lucky are fine.
Sergeant’s used to be a respectable company. I guess with the threat of these other products, they try to compete but they don’t look at the full story, or don’t want to. These companies should be held accountable.
I sure hope that these 2 dogs will be alright after their ordeal. I only use K-9 Advantex on my doggy. Thankfully she has never had a reaction to her flea medication.
To Lucky & Nala’s MOM , I am so glad to hear that your story had a happy ending, I know what it means to lose a loved family member due to the negligence of corporate mistakes not taken care of by retailers. I lost my beloved Shadow from feeding her Alpo last year and I am now in the middle of a class action law suit. Of course that won’t bring her back or make up for the trauma that I had to go through. She is my Angel in Heaven now. I keep up on all of the new entries in the suspect foods now since I have 3 other dogs and a new kitten. I a so sorry you had to go through all that, but you saved your cats. Bravo to you.
Mary
Hello im soo glad to hear your dogs are ok!!! i had the same thing happen to me! just yesterday! (4-23-08) i put some of the same stuff on my dog pookie who weighs 16pounds..hours later she started pacing the house & breathing heavy!! & then she would stop & bite at her tail like something was on her! i rushed her to the vet & they said it was a reaction to the seargents gold! i bathed her 3 times & they gave her a shot of benadryl & a valume to calm her down! she is doing fine today thank god!!! NEVER AGAIN!! i called the company & told them about it & will be getting my money back & maybe the vet bill also!!
thanks all…..Cindy & Pookie
I am so glad you babies are ok. I’ve had a similar experience this evening. I bought the Sergeants Gold and applied it to my min. Schnauzer and Shiz Tzu. About an hour later I noticed the Shiz Tzu was drooling. I immediately got on line and discovered the poison Sergeants is marketing to unsupecting dog lovers. I’ve given her several baths and she is resting now. I pray she will be ok. Strange this is..the Shiz Tzu is fine.
I am so mad that I have found all of this information about this product and it is still on the shelves of stores everywhere. Family loved ones are dieing and suffering. I used the product on my mini dachsund and she is now in serious condition. She was kept at the emergency animal clinic for IV fluids and medication to get her through the seizures and meds to try to flush it out of her system. I used it exactly as directed and she could die. Something is wrong here! Extremely hurt and angry that this is allowed to continue to happen to others.
I have a 1 yr old Puggle boy who is also suffering through this God aweful burn from this product. I have bathed him 3x’s. He is calm and hasn’t had any foaming spells. He seems fine but the rash looks horible. He is such a little trooper!
I believe my dog had a reaction to Sergeant’s Gold. Within a couple of hours of applying it, she was extremely restless and anxious. A little later, she started panting and drooling. I didn’t make the connection with the flea product until she started rolling on the floor, trying to scratch the spot where I applied the product. At this point, it was at least 4 hours since I had applied it. I immediately put her into the tub and washed her, and by the time I finished drying her, she was starting to improve. Since it was 1:30 Sunday morning, and she seemed to be doing a little better, I didn’t take her to the vet. But I’m convinced it was the flea product that caused the problem, and I’m very thankful that I washed her off when I did. It may have saved her life.
OMG I WANNA KILL SERGEANT’S GOLD PRODUCERS!!!!!!! HOW ABOUT WE PUT SOME ON THEIR SKIN AND SEE HOW THEY LIKE IT?
IT’S 430 AM..OUR DOG HAS BEEN ACTING WEIRD ALL NIGHT, AND I FINALLY NOW KNOW WHY. IT IS SO PAINFUL EMOTIONALLY TO SEE OUR DOG LIKE THIS.
THANK GOD N U GUYS FOR UR REVIEWS
I am the administrator of a website concerning adverse reactions that were caused by flea and tick control products.
I have received MANY reports (which are posted on my website) of serious adverse reactions to Sergeant’s Gold Squeeze-On, Sentry Pro XFC, and TriForce Canine Squeeze-On, which are all the SAME product made by Sergeants Pet Care. My website is:
http://www.elversonpuzzle.com/biospot.html
I have urged the U.S. EPA to investigate these incidents and to remove these Sergeant’s products from the marketplace, effective immediately.
Thank you so much! I bought Sergeant’s gold today at Walmart. I put it on my three Bichons. Aspen became very agitated about an hour after application. I noticed that he had a large red spot on his back, as if the product had spread and burned his skin.
I immediately rinsed off the product, and searched the internet for what to do. Even though my other dogs have no symptoms, my husband and I have washed our dogs three times with dish detergent. Aspen is now very uncomfortable, and crying on my lap, he wants to scratch his red spot. He only gets relief if I rub it for him. What can I do?
Thanks for everything,
Barb,
Please call your vet and ask if they can recommend some kind of colling salve. Also, the more we tell our vets about these problems, the more they can help or warn other dog parents.
Same here..last night was terrible. I used Seargeant’s Gold and my dog went crazy. He was whimpering, dry heaving, unable to rest…I called the medical help line and used their advice of washing him with dish soap…thereby getting it all over myself in the bathtub. Somehow it got into my eyes. I now know how my lil’ pup felt…it burns…tingling like menthol all throughout a significant portion of my face. This company is selling junk..I consider this an act of animal cruelty…how has this not been recalled??
I purchased Sergeant’s Gold flea and tick squeeze on and applied to my Boston Terrier last nite shortly before bed. This morning I awoke to find he had vomited numerous times. He was not acting right, was shaking, and vomited some more. Then he fell over, lost his balance. I put him in the shower and rinsed off the flea product. As I towel dried him, he vomited again. Then he fell over down the hall. I took him to the vet and he is still there being treated. He had seizures, vomiting, accelerated heart rate. I have read too many horror stories about this product on the internet today. I can’t believe they still have it on the market. The vet believes my dog will be ok, but there is no telling how much the vet bill will be. I intend to try to get a reimbursement from Sergeant’s Gold.
I applied Sergeant’s Gold to our dachshund this morning and by lunch she had thrown up, started drooling and foaming at the mouth and shaking her head (like after a bath) over and over again. Took her to the emergency hospital this afternoon and the vet confirmed it was an adverse / allergic reaction to the flea and tick liquid. She received 2 injections, then a 3rd of subcutaneous fluids. It has been 7 hours since she received treatment and through her drooling has diminished, she still can’t rest because her head is still convulsing. I am very angry because I have searched every inch of the box for warning of possible adverse reactions and none are listed. I am contacting both Sergeant’s Pet Care Products in Nebraska and the EPA, and will gladly contribute medical records for anyone submitting a suit against this irresponsible company.
I almost lost my two dogs to Sergeant’s Gold Flea Medication. I cannot stand the thought of another person unknowingly making their pet sick. I thought I was doing the right thing by putting this product on my two Fur Babies and instead, I made them very sick. We have to get this stuff off the shelves. I trusted this company, now I know all they are concerned with is making money.
Yes my two babies have been acting crazy too, they got irritated skin all over and I washed them again and treated there irritation with Iodine and Neosporen, I gave them antibiotics I hope all will be okay. I will never use there products again. And here I am thinking my children have gone mad
I just happened across this entry and I HAVE this in my cabinet but have not used it!! I have always used Frontline until recently when I decided to try the Sergeants Nature’s Gurdian. I thought it might be better as it is made of plant oils. My Weim has had no adverse reaction to it THANK GOD! I will throw the Sergeants Gold in the trash right away. I have one more tube of the Nature’s Guardian and I guess I’ll use it since I’ve heard nothing bad. After that I’m going back to Frontline! So sorry about those of you with sick babies. Hope they will all be o.k.
I put this stuff on my 11 month Chihuahua and last night and it’s been hideous ever since.
She started drooling, shaking her head and even peed on a couple of chairs which she’s never done before [and tried to hid by laying in the wet spot].
It’s been just under 24 hours, I’ve washed her with her regular dog shampoo. She’s still itchy, still shakes her head around and keeps trying to scratch her ear which seems to be causing her pain.
Any advice would be appreciated. She’s been eating and drinking water, fortunately.
Zoe,
Please call your vet and ask about giving your furbaby something like Benadryl. It sounds like she is still having an allergic reaction to the stuff.
Here’s wishing her and all the other dogs affected are well soon and this nasty concoction is taken off the market.
First of all, THANK GOD & GOD BLESS YOU FOR POSTING YOUR EXPERIENCE – I truly think you may have saved my dog’s life tonight.
I purchased Sergeants Gold this afternoon only because – marketing-wise, it looked as though they had improved their product so it might actually work!
I applied a tube on both my chihuahuas about 6 hours ago. My boy, who is getting very old, began drinking water and spewing it up with complimentary foam all over the house. He was also very listless. My girl began hacking non-stop. Initially it sounded like the hiccups and then choking. I thought something might be stuck in her throat and panicked. I turned her upside down and patted her back. I put a finger down her throat to check for a blockage. Talk about trauma for these poor little fellas.
Anyway, at 1:30 a.m. I was getting ready to take them to the emergency vet and thought to quickly look to see if the Sergeants had anything to do with their conditions. Yours was the first thing that popped up. THANK GOD THANK GOD THANK GOD!!!
They’ve now both had double baths and everyone is calm and quiet and resting. I am printing these posts and taking them to the stores locally that carry this crap and begging them to remove it from their shelves. I will also let Sergeants know of said plan. I cannot believe they package and market a product that is nothing short of poison. To think I could have lost my dogs because of something I did to them unknowingly sets me ablaze with anger and horror.
Unfortunetly I found this website a little to late. On June 8th I gave my 10 month old Chihuahua Tator a bath just like usual with the Sergeant’s Gold Flea and Tick shampoo. It wasn’t until about 5 days later that the signs started showing up. He began to shake and jerk excessively and couldn’t drink water unless I held his head up. He could not walk or hold his head up. I washed him off with cool water and then I just held him. I tried to feed him but he refused to eat. A few hours later I made an emergency Vet visit. My Vet asked me if he had gotten into anything around the house and I told her know and then I got ready to tell her about sometimes he is very touchy after his flea and tick bath (we just assumed he hated baths so he was throwing a fit) that is when my vet was like what product did you use? What was the active ingredients? Well I called home and found out that it had 10% of PERMETHRIN which is apparently toxic. The vet said once something like that has entered the body there is not a lot you can do. She gave me some medicine and sent us home to celebrate Father’s Day. I had to syringe feed and water him. The next day was Monday and I took him into the vet so that I could go to work. He stayed there and the vet watched him for seizures which he never ended up having (which is a good thing). I picked him up and she gave me more medicine to help him keep the food down that they had given us the day before. The next day was Tuesday. I dropped Tator off at the Vet and when to work. My mom picked him up that night so when I went to get him from my mom, she showed me the other medicines the Vet had given us. One was a diereaha medicine and the other was to control his jerks and twitches (he was doing that so much that his paws started to bleed from rubbing up against the blanket he had been in) then my mom told me what the vet had told her. Tator was blind. Because of the toxins going through the brain it was causing nuerological damage which included his sight. That was so hard for me. She said that the first two weeks are crucial and after that, then the dog should be ok but he might not be fully back to normal for up to 6 months. After I left my mom’s house that night Tator was doing about the same. He ate a little and pottied on his potty pad which I had to hold him up on. He was trying to hard to walk and he cried because he couldn’t see nor could he understand why he couldn’t walk. I wrapped him back up and held him and that’s when he took a turn for the worse. I felt him jerking and went to calm him down and realized that his gums were white and his tounge was hanging out of his mouth. I tried to water him with the syringe and it just ran out the other side. His body was in a vegitable state. I called the vet and she sd that it didn’t sound good. She sd to keep trying to wake him up and water him. It never worked. The next morning she called to check on him, when I told her that he was doing the same she told me to bring him in. I dropped him off at about 9 am and was on my way to pick him up around 4 when I got the call. My 2 lbs 5 oz baby boy had passed on. I was so upset. Earlier that day I had called Sergeant’s to complain and they sd to have my vet call and they would give her some tips to try and help with the situation. I told the guy my $400 dog is dying and that’s all you have to say. What are you going to be able to tell her that she doesn’t already know. She went to school to be a vet and you sell crappy shampoo! I called back again after Tator had passed and talked to a lady who was very apoligetic but of course i was in tears so she kinda had to be. She said that they would send me some paperwork and get an investigation underway. I went to the vet to pick Tator’s remains up to burry at my house with my other lost ones. The vet then informed me that because the shampoo had caused nuerological damge, the state of Missouri required a brain test. The vet said I could still take him home but she begged me to please not open the box after she got what she needed from him. Well I just couldn’t deal with the thought of him being torn apart and left without a brain so I decided to have him cremated. Sergeant’s sent me the paperwork on Saturday along with a pre-typed sympathy card that came in a seperate envelope. How rediculous. Their product does this to soo many animals that they have a pre-typed sympathy card. Anyways I don’t know what I am supposed to do next. I work for a law firm and have talked to several of the lawyers at work about it but I work for debt collection lawyers. I have sent complaints to the Animal Poison Control, Better Business Beurau of Nebraska (since that’s where it was manufactored), wrote a letter to Wal-Mart (who could really care less, because their still making money off of it), the United States Environmental Protection Agency, The Attorney General of Missouri, and now I don’t know what else to do. Does anyone have any advice? I do know that the company is just going to try to write me off with a check but I had only had the dog for 8 months and had bought several clothes, collars, and designer handbags for him to travel with me in. He was my best friend and no amount of money will be able to replace that. If they want to shut me up then they better offer a huge amount of $ I am asking them for the price of him, the gas it took to Springfield and back to pick him up, the two days of work I missed, the gas it took rushing him back and forth to the vet, all of my vet bills since day one when he was in my care, the cost of his potty pads, kennel and food bowls, the cost of his microchip, and since he wasn’t fixed I am asking for them to give me $300 x 3 for the amount of times I would have used him for stud service purposes. I know they won’t give all of that to me so more than likely I’ll be taking them to Court. I don’t really want money. Nothing will ever replace Tator. I just want other consumers to know the danger of this product. The toxins absorb through their skin and the bottle says leave on for five minutes. But I’ve learned that if a bottle has more precautions for a owner and how they should wear gloves when applying, then it probably isn’t good for a dog. More than likely with stuff like this, if it is harmful to a human, then it is harmful to a dog. If I do get a huge settlement I honestly plan on donating some of it to a organization that helps animals and people in situations like this or maybe I’ll even start up a group that advertises awareness about this product. Does anyone know of any Class Action Suits I could join or does anyone have any better ideas of how I should handle this? I have lost endless amounts of sleep and when I can sleep I usually have to cry myself asleep. My college classes are dropping also and it’s all because some idiots care more about making money than protecting animals. This product killed my animal and I hope that none of you have to experience what I did. If anyone wants to share their story with me or has advice please email me at Tiffan5988@aol.com
I, too, am amazed these products by Sargeant are on the market. I bought the Sargeant’s Gold as I couldn’t find Bio-Spot that has worked just fine. I used it on my Collie/Hound mix and my Schnoodle at around 11 p.m. The next morning about 6:00 the Schnoodle, Rowdy, was itching but didn’t have any other reaction. The 60 pound dog, Benjamin, was leaving great hunks of black fur all over the carpet and I even found it outside. I could pull hunks of fur out of his back. He has a double coat and sheds just the underlying grey coat, so I knew something was up. I called Sargeant’s and they said to wash the area with dish/hand detergent like Dawn two times. Then apply Vitamin E oil. I also gave them both Benadryl. I gave them a little more than a normal dose. They’re fine now, but Ben’s fur still can be pulled out very easily.
I too have had a horrible experience with Sargeants Gold Flea Medication. I purchased 2 seperate packages lastnight for my Daschund Foley who is 25lbs and my Chihuhua Mickey who is 9lbs.
Within an hour of applying the medication both of my dogs became ill. Both started droolilng and foaming at the mouth. Followed by violent vomiting episodes and dreadful Diareaha. Both dogs were panting and definately had high fevers. At that point I still didn’t realize that it was the flea medication.
I came online and did a search for “Sargeants Gold” and was shocked to see what I came up with for search results. I cannot belive this product is still on the market.
The Daschund came out of it within a few hours but the chihuhaha is severely poisoned. He is still suffering from horrible leg cramps and cannot stand. He acts as if he has restless leg syndrome and cannot sit still either..He has been running around in circles trying to get some sort of relief. Which is impossible since he cannot stand either. I have washed him using the dish detergent 2 times since lastnight and he is still yelping and crying. It is so sad to see my dogs in this shape and I am angry that the product is still being sold.
At this point, I feel incredibly guilty for trying to save money and purchase something other than the Frontline that we usually use. I would never have purchased this product had I done a search on it before hand. But of course, I was in the grocery store and grabbed it because it was right there and much cheaper than the Frontline.
My heart goes out to everyone else who has used this terrible product and weren’t as lucky as I have been. We need to have this product removed from the market before more pets have to suffer. It is cruel to continue to sell a product that has been proven to take the lives of our innocent pets.
Thank You
Amy Lamanuzzi
I just gave Sargeants Gold Flea to all three of my babies (all under 20lbs) and 1 is doing horribly. She was pacing and “flipping” out. No drooling, but spazzing so to speak. I gave her two baths and now at 1:45 am PST she is doing much better and resting. Not sure if this stuff could have killed her or any of my dogs for that matter, but there is no way i’m going to find out obviously. A good remedy is to bathe the dog in dish washing soap, NOT dish washer soap. Also, honey seems to have a anticeptic quality and naturally calms down nerves. Too much honey could have an adverse affect, so be careful not to give too much (tsp should be fine). Everyone needs to talk with their markets managers and tell them what they are selling is SHIT!
I put this stuff on my 3 dogs(chihuahua, pekingese and maltese) on july 4 at noon time by about 10 pm that night i had to rush my dogs to the Emergency Animal hospital! They were poisoned by this stuff. My poor lil babies couldnt sit still and were drooling and twitching all over the place and couldn’t breath right, it was like there were on speed! Thier skin was burned and their eyes and ears were extremely red. They were exhausted because they couldn’t sit still. The vet said it attacks their central nervous system. I bathed them several times with dish washing soap and the vet gave them a shot of muscle relaxer and sent them home with meds. Also i had to give them alot of water to drink to try and flush the toxins out of their bodies. If anybody reading this knows of any class action suit …..please let me know………. this stuff needs to be taken off the market……..janiceg007gmail.com
We used Sergenats gold on our two pups tonight and they started having eye trouble and then started drooling everywhere. There was nothing wrong with them before we put the drops on them, other than some fleas. We quickly gave them each a bath with two kinds of soap, then let them eat some snacks. I hope by morning they will be ok again. I would not recomend this product for small dogs.
I am the proud owner of two minature dauschaunds. Jake and elwood. although we try very hard we couldn’t come up with the money to buy advantix or something similar.wheni saw the seargents product i thought this is a reputable company. oh my good ness. with in two hours of putting this crap on my babies. they had squinty eyes that were burning, foaming and drooling out of their mouthsshaking thier heads, lethargic, moving rubbing their faces into the carpets..IF ANYONE WANTS TO START A CLASS ACTION SUIT AGAINST THIS COMPANY COUNT ME IN,,,dojo2244@comcast.net..Merrell and Lisa George…
I am in the process of looking into a class action lawsuit against Sergeants. I, too, experienced the same results on July 9th, 2008, after applying the Sergeants Gold Flea and Tick product to my dog. After 48 hours of suffering and almost $250 worth of emergency vet fees, I feel that something MUST be done to get this product off the market. Please feel free to contact me if you are interested in joining in. gretch231974@yahoo.com
On July 11th, 2008, I purchased Sergeant’s Gold Flea & Tick treatment from Wal-Mart to treat a beginning flea issue with my 13 month old Chihuahua Weezy. Weezy is the sweetest, most submissive dog ever. Within an hour and a half of applying the solution per the manufacturer directions, Weezy became extremely distressed. He began to run around maniacal, whimpering and yelping. He would drop at my feet rolling in the carpets, rubbing against anything he could drop his backside against. I immediately called the 800# on the back of the box to report and seek aid. The operator suggested he “may” be suffering a reaction to the treatment and advised to give him a bath with Dawn, Joy or Palmolive dish detergent. Weezy’s right ear and eye were extremely swollen, red and feverish. The Sergeant’s agent said ”usually” removal of the product with the dish detergent would relieve symptoms and proceeded to give me a claim number regarding the complaint/call. The CSR (Customer Service Rep) also suggested that if symptoms persisted to have my pet see his vet immediately.
My daughter and I washed Weezy 3 times in a head to toe bath of Palmolive, in which during that time he stood unusually tolerant in the sink as if to say “Thank You” while his glazed over, sad eyes looked into mine.
My heart beat in sheer panic and heavily affected in his distress. After bathing, drying and attempting to comfort Weezy, I applied a drop of milk into his eye in hopes of neutralizing the irritation. I suppose that in addition to the excessive bathing and rinsing helped and the ear and eye irritation went down a little. By this time it was 11pm, approximately 4 hours since the initial application and Weezy was still extremely agitated and anxious due to constant twitching, trembling, scratching, and crying. All through the night, he tossed and turned never able to rest for more than 5 minute increments. I did not sleep at all that night. After hours of both of us tossing and turning, him trying to find comfort, and me in duress of trying to comfort him, Weezy finally jumped off the bed and went into the bathroom to sleep which was totally out of his nature. He stayed there for over 2 hours. My heart just ached for him.
At 6:30 am the next morning, I continued to call for him and he just looked at me with his still glazed over eyes. He would not come. When I left from the same room he came and sat between my feet, still twitching in agonizing distress. At this point I called Sargeant’s Customer Service back to rage further complaint. I was in tears. They again told me that his reaction was “unusual” and should be seen by a Vet.
http://www.elversonpuzzle.com/biospotlettersv20.html
I wish I had read these posts before trying to save a penny. Though my dog is priceless in value to me, I was simply trying to save a few dollars from the high cost of Frontline, Advantage, etc. I cannot express the immense guilt I felt that in trying to save money, I expended this ridiculous pain and suffering onto my sweet baby. He had done nothing but love me unconditionally and without any reservation, and here I was being cheap!
Without further hesitation I took Weezy to his Vet. Upon examination, she assured me I had done the right thing (as I couldn’t’t help but feel I basically applied a poison to kill fleas and damn near killed my own lovable dog). She explained these OTC Flea Treatments are nothing but ‘’chemicals” and are designed to seize the central nervous system of the flea killing it on contact, but at the same time can cause severe reaction and complications in the animal. Weezy was suffering from chemical toxicity due to the single application of Sergeant’s Gold Flea & Tick Treatment. Weezy had a temperature of over 103 degrees, he was dehydrated, and in distress. The good news: his heart rate was slow/normal and his gums were still pink, which according to the Vet were good signs. Weezy was given a shot of corticosteroids and subcutaneous fluids to help re-hydrate and bring the fever down. About 3 hours after treatment we finally got a pee-pee and bowel movement from him after almost 12 hours of nothing. He also ate and took some water as the Vet said the steroids would cause him to be hungry and thirsty.
It is now almost 48 hours since the initial application of this blasphemous poison, and Weezy is for the most part back to his active normal, loving self. He is still suffering from twitching and is still scratching ridiculously. I am also observing him to be chewing and biting at his paws incessantly and am now concerned this may cause Hot Spots. I will be following up with the Vet tomorrow regarding these lingering issues. My only hope is Weezy will not suffer permanent issues from this poisonous crap, as I will be devastated.
After taking Weezy to the Vet, I did follow up with Sergeant’s Customer Service. I submitted a claim that I wanted to be reimbursed for Vet costs. The CSR asked me a series of questions and told me a list of things I would have to submit by mail to the company for a claim to be considered for reimbursement. I will follow up actively, without hesitation, and will not cease to spread the word on the effects of this product. I am without words in how I feel violated as a consumer, as well as the risk I subjected my beloved dog too, The ability of Companies to manufacture such product’s that have factual and detrimental health risks to animals.
This is without a doubt, considered to be, by me; inhuman and unlawful!
Should Sergeant’s decide not to compensate reimbursement for my Vet’s bill, as there is no price on my dog’s suffering, I will seek further action. I would love to see a Class Action Lawsuit brought upon this company; with the least action being removal of these harmful products from the shelves.
I cannot even began to express how utterly shocked I was to Google this product’s adverse reactions and witness how many stories read just like Weezy’s. My Sweet dog has no voice but through me, and I shall not rest without speaking mine for him.
Sent with compassion…
A caring dog mom…
Consider me “IN” as far as supporting any class action lawsuit
my email is thompsonaiga@aol.com
Stop em selling poison!
thank u all for the wonderful response on this product, i’m so terribly sorry for all of you that had to go through this…
i just wanted to update everyone … both my babies are doing good now… but i don’t wish this upon anyone
i sent a letter to both walmart and sergents gold…. and walmart wrote me a apology letter, as well as they offered a refund for the product…. i started to laugh… because no 15$ will take back what happen! ever! as for sergents gold… they should be ashamed…. they had nothing to say but…
“some pets may be sensitive and react different”
wow
from now on i tell everyone i know …. that has a pet!! DO NOT USE IT!!!
if any one wants to know what i give my babies now for fleas you can paw mail me…
http://www.dogster.com/dogs/474716
HELL FIRE….why did I trust Wal-Mart to have a safe product? My 14 pound Poodle have been acting like a Mexican jumping bean: scratching, licking, & unable to get comfortable. After a bath to get the damn Sargeant crap off the back of his neck, I treated with Benadryl and later Claritin & Prednisone & Ativan. I’m ready to join in any action against these companies!!!
I just found this thread while googling this issue… I was up all night with my 2 maltese, same reaction. I just got back from the vet with my tiny one. DO NOT GIVE THIS TO YOUR DOGS!!!!
Hi, folks! I wrote earlier in regards to the Sergeant’s Gold Flea and Tick Drops. I had purchased the product at my local Walmart which is lacated in Davenport, Iowa. Instead of calling in a complaint, I went directly to the store and demanded to speak to a manager to express my concern about their product. They have temporarily pulled the drops from their shelves and contacted their home office. I informed them that their name is continuously being mentioned on numerous websites and they should be concerned about their reputation…not to mention the safety of all animals that are using this product. They called me back to the store today to fill out a Customer Complaint Investigation form. So, I urge all of you whose pets have experienced an adverse reaction to the Sergeant’s Gold Flea and Tick Drops, to march right up to WalMart or any other store you purchased the product from and insist that fill out a form so this product can be removed from the market!! I have also been doing some research and have found a website for Andrea Arden, a celebrity dog trainer, who is recommending this flea product to everyone and even has a link to Sergeant’s on her site. I’m going to call her business this afternoon to let them know what is taking place with the use of the flea drops that she is promoting. Who knows, maybe she can help out? I can guarantee she will not want her name dragged into this chao. Her # is (212)414-9597 and you can also email her at the following: info@AndreaArden.com. Considering she has been on The Today Show, 20/20, CNN….and the list goes on, maybe she will help put an end to Sergeant’s Gold products. Good luck and PLEASE follow through with the complaints!!!
I Feel so bad. I bought this crap and used it on my dog last night. I thought i was helping. I poisoned my dog. 9lbs Chihuahua, Peanut. well soon after he started crying, drooling, mouth foaming. cried all night and soaked 3 chairs with gods knows what fluid. shaking his head, scratching his ear. Emergency run to the Vet after a call and they did a full check out on him. with meds and shampoo he will be ok. I really wish i had seen this site first. if any class action let me know. I called the Sergents and a man said mail them the remaining gold formula and Vet paper work. is this a scam? Should i turn the evidence over to them? I feel that once I mail it it will be out any means to getting any if not all of my $215 for the vet which their product cause. Not to mention the damage to him and the pain and suffering. he put his trust in me to keep him safe and I put my trust in them to have a safe product. well i let my dog down, and SERGENTS is going to pay for making me let my dog down. vze6js21@verizon,net
I just bought this stuff today at Petsmart and one of my dogs is having a reaction to this poison. I have given baths and my Westie is so fidgety. My Llaso Apso seems to being doing ok and I have given her a bath also. I am so mad right now, I want a class action lawsuit…….NOW! I am going to give Benadryl after I figure out how musch to give without hurting her more.
I am another horror story on the adverse reaction to Sargeant’s Gold Flea product. Last night I applied to my mini Schnauzer, Zoie and I have been up most of the night trying to soothe and calm her. I have given her 2 baths with Dawn dishsoap, a Benedry and a teaspoon of honey. She is still very agitated, chewing at her feet, groaning and rolling around in the floor with her legs twitching. It is so painful to watch the misery she is in. If she is not better in the morning, I will take her to the vet to see what else can be done for her. I too purchased the product at Walmart and will be visiting their store and will also be contacting Sargeant’s. Please keep me posted if a class action lawsuit is started.
I purchased the seargents gold spot pack that goes on the back of the neck and have had similar problems. I have used the flea soap for a long time and both my yellow labs acted fine and it seemed to work really well any fleas would die instantly. I had used the 65$ frontline stuff from petsmart and it seemed to work So i figured i would try out the spot pack from walmart and save a little money. I feel so bad. I put the spots on before i left for work thismorning and when I came home late tonight from work my 60lb puppy was running around and couldnt sit still, rolling on the carpet chewing at her feet and acting very off.I washed her twice and she seems to be calming down now. I can tell you this stay away from this product!!!! This is crazy, any thing happeneds to my puppy I’ll have the ceo explain why to my 9yr old daughter.
Update:: 4 days after applying this toxic crap… and the initial visit to the vet… We ended up back at the vet because Weezy began to yelp while urinating.. and then began to urinate blood soaked urine… Preliminary diagnosis led us to believe he was suffering a UTI… no doubt due to the 15 or sum odd hours w/out urinating due to the trauma of this product and his reaction to it… Thank goodness, he was okay… as my initial reaction when seeing his blood filled urine sent me into hysterics… the total amount in two vet visits in 4 days due to using Sergeant’s Gold Flea Treatment… $475.00.
I have sent documentation to Sergeant’s as they have called approximately 3 times to “check” on Weezy… and while I have been very upfront with them regarding the distress and grief using their product has caused, as well as speaking out and being proactive… filing a complaint with the better business bureau… Sergeant’s contacted me and told me they would like to settle the issue… So PLEASE…IF YOU HAVE AN ANIMAL THAT YOU HAVE HAD ISSUE WITH THIS PRODUCT… DO NOT GIVE UP!!! BE PROACTIVE AND DON’T TAKE ”I’M SORRY” from them… DEMAND TO BE COMPENSATED… I WILL COMEBACK TO FURTHER UPDATE ….
I would like to let you know that I purchased the same flea and tick meds from sergeants for dogs over 61 lbs. my dog started falling and not being able to walk, he also was foaming at the mouth and went into siezures. It severely affected his nervous system. I live in the country and at midnight was driving into town to get him to the hospital.
he almost did not survive, he has been released today and feeling better. considering the 30 minute drive to the emergancy vets office, i am amazed at his recovery, my children were devistated.
I am not as being as harsh as some of you regarding pulling the product, however I am totally peeved at the box and label not relaying this possible hazard. I hope everyone of you contacted the company.
It needs to be fully disclosed on the box. It is not.
If it were we as consumers probably would not purchase the product and the sales would drop and the stores would not stock it, so getting the label changed is the biggest thing we could do and inform everyone you know.
The vet did disclose that it usually does not affect dogs, but does have a very bad affect on cats systems.
Do not buy the product- it is dangerous, and the vet stated- it really doesnt work except in the spot the meds are applied.
I too contacted the company
They want the product back, I told them I would photo copy the box, send them 1 tube of the remaining product and keep the opend , used container and remaining product, to use against them if they did not fully compensate my vet and gas bill. My 11 yr old was so traumatized also.
I will accept the repayment, but I am not sure about being another american out for all they can get, but definately what is owed.
I too am now going through this all night after application. My 11 yo golden is dry heaving and licking everything in site obviously poisened. Thank god for this site. since I ave bathed him with dishwashing detergent he is still licking the carpet but he is getting better drinking lots of water while beaing bathed. For a while I didnt think my dog would make it. I never would have used this product had a known even a slight chance for fatality was involved.
These bastards should be put out of business, this is corporate animal cruelty. I cant believe how hard it is to get an FDA approval on a drug that has very few side affects(unless your pfizer or smith kline making major payoffs) and for dogs these bastards sell products that kill daily. Imagine all the people that dont look on google.
I am siting here at 4 AM going through the same thing as all of the others that have posted here. Tucker is our 14 year old jack russell. He beagn drooling like crazy, then starting coughing, then vomiting. I am so glad I searched the internet to see what could have been the cause. After reading the posts, I immediately gave him a bath with dishwashing soap. He started to get better almost instantly. He was also running around the house like he was on speed, and I now his back may be injured from the hard collision with the wooden chair. I thank everyone for their posts they were very helpful. I am now going to keep monitoring our dog, only to try to leave for our vacation in a few hours. I will be contacting Wegmans and Seargents when we return to try get them to remove the product.
Thanks again to everyone.
Eric
Sargeant Gold nearly killed my dog yesterday. I had to rush him to the ER Vet beacuse he was shaking, tremoring and collapsing on the ground because he could not stand on his feet. It was the most terrifying experience. Turns out Sargeant Gold just being on the skin is toxic to dogs. Any contact who I can complain to would be helpful. A direct contact for Sargeant and Walmart.
They had to bathe my dog in soap and warm water. They got to him early so he didn’t start seizuring which is common with this product.
I too used this same product on my pom. I just cam across your article because i am dealing with the effects as we speak.
I just bathed her twice. She keeps pacing and foamoing at the mouth. I am going to call the company right now. Pray for my baby please…Now I am nervous…Pam
My parents just bought this product for their Boxer on Thursday. He started jumping around and having tons of problems with his back legs. We were camping, so could not research on line. He continued to eat and drink, and did not show any other signs listed above. My dad asked me to look up the product on line and I found this web site. My parents are right now washing him down with dish soap. Keep your fingers crossed that he is ok.
I called the company and they did not seem surprised at all about the reaction my dog had. Her recommendations seemed so rehearsed..(probably from giving it to so many people). I bathed my pom 3 times with dish soap…gave her tuna juice mixed with water applied vitamin E to her red burnt skin. I feel so bad… I only used this as a precaution and only made things worse for her. She seems to be doing better…just tired. Anyone trying to pursue this matter please let me know. Noone deserves to have to go through this…I feel like crap for putting my baby through this. smaggie3932@wowwway.com…I used it on my 2 cats and my other dog also…no reactions yet!!!!! I will pray I did’nt make it bad for them too. Good luck everyone.
JJ…a direct contact to sergeants is 1-800-224-PETS…good luck because they r not very sympathetic. I already called and they did not seem too surprised. Good Luck
Thats terrible! I was thinking about getting that for my two dogs…..but not anymore! I feel so bad 4 u.
check out this site also for more info on these products – not good!!! I am so happy I came across the site before I had even considered this product – I never will after reading the whole thread…it saved my babies from ever potentially having to suffer from them…
oops it didn’t attach let’s try that link again sorry
http://journal.drfaulken.com/problems-with-sentrypro-xfc-flea-and-tick-medication/
Update: Have sent letters to Walmart and CVS where I purchsed mine. I found out this product is regulated by the EPA, called them and they have had a ton of complaints. They said its the same thing as hartz years earlier. It takes years to get this product off of the market. So the best bet is to contact the stores that sell this product to take it off the shelves for now.
My 7 year old cocker has been through the same experiences on this site. I purchased my product at Meijer’s (Michigan) and will be contacting the store to let them know what happened.
You are right that Seargent’s doesn’t really seem to concerned and gives that same line to people who call in desparation about their pet. My vet bill is $134 just for today and with the liver damage ALT is 688, who know what is to come in the next few days.
My fingers are crossed that she makes it through, but I am so mad that this crap is still on the market at stores after reading these posts. Anyone who knows how to contact the EPA or is interested in a class action suit to shut this company down can put me on the list (mother@charter.net)
I have a four year old Black German Shepherd who is a Service Dog. Because she is a Therapy Dog, she is well groomed and maintained at all times. She also has a great dispostion, mild mannered friendly etc. Well, I recently purchased Sergeant’s Gold flea and tick squeeze on for dogs.What was I thinking. I usually use frontline. She is 100lbs and I thought that this product would be ok. About an hour after I applied this death serum, she started to act very strange, walking funny, heavy breathing, scratching and hyper(very unusual for her). I checked her skin and it seems as if this stuff burned her. I called the hotline and they said to bathe her in dishwashing liquid. I had already bathed her in doggie shampoo and that didn’t help so I bathed her again in dawn dishwashing liquid. I also put aloe on her and that seemed to help somewhat. I will be taking her to the vet either tonight (she seems to be better now) or tomorrow. I cannot believe this product is on the market. I mean she’s a big dog, what does it do to little dogs? I will be contacting Sergeants again and Walmart (where I purchased this highly toxic product.)
update: I called up sergeants again to document this wonderful experience. The woman told me (very coldly) that it’s a normal reaction that some dogs have, kinda like having pins and needles. You have got to be kidding me! I am telling everyone not to buy this. I am also calling my local newspaper, maybe they’ll do a story on it.
SERGEANT’s products are toxic – one of my pets is in EMERGENCY room right now fighting for her life.
This is absolutely unacceptable that you can buy poison like this through well known stores.
Lets do something about it!!!!!
Two of my three cats are now dead, and one is still not well, 24 hours after using the Sargeants gold.
Where is PETA now?
Will this company help console my children?
Will this company help pay over $1000.00 in vet bills?
Will this company ever stop?
I want to hurt this company, like they have hurt me.
my kitten just died from this toxic meds
please lets do something together to save poor animals from being murdered. i called them and they said that a lot of people make it up don’t believe the comments on internet.
Lets stop the killers!!!!! Call me if you want to group a community against this product. We need to get it into the media.
678-838-7653
I am so sorry for you loss Kayla. I hope you pursue legal action. I mean, how many animals have to suffer or die! I did some investigating last night and have written the EPA. The FDA told me that they have no jurisdiction over pet meds. So…. consequently there are no rules or regulations to make sure pet med products are safe. My vet told me to never buy any OTC medication for your pet.
I had to take my dog to the vet today, she still had symptoms from using this deadly product. The vet told me he had 10 incidents this year alone. Some much worse than my dogs.
The vet had to give my dog a shot of cortisone and a shot to keep her heart rate steady. He said that it is if she had been poisoned. When I got home, I called the hotline again and they said they would reimburse me for my vet fees The woman I spoke to said that the chemicals in the product do not go into the blood stream, I asked her if she was an accredited vet. Obviously she said no.I told her that my vet said my dog had serious neurological symptoms from the product as well as burned skin. My question is this, how can they keep this product on the market? They must know it is dangerous and in many cases fatal to some animals. The mere fact that they are so ready to pay for my vet bills tells me that they have had a lot of people calling them and complaining. I also went to Wal Mart where I purchased the product and they immediately took them off the shelves. They said they were going to send them back to the company and that they would not purchase them anymore.
I am willing to try and push this issue. It has been 3 days and my dog and cat are still suffering the effects of this product. My pom and my persian are both burnt on there necks. I was told by sergeants PROFESSIONALS not to worry they will be fine. Screw that…what about the needless suffering til they are FINE?? Someone should be held accountable for there actions. They don’t care about nothing but the money…if they cared there product would have been pulled months ago.
SORRY MY FRIENDS!!!! I am very much aware of your pain. We should stand up for our dear pets and protect the from this deadly product. I would like to get a group of people together who are willing to inform other consumers of the circumstances they may be facing by using Sergean’t gold flea meds. I talked to the company and they are going to investigate this matter but meanwhile the product is still being offered to other naive consumers who put their trust in the hands of killers. The packaging it self does not mention that this product is extremely toxic and can cause death in animals.
Another concern – I have children who touch the pets and then it probably gets inside of their system. Does anybody knows if it can case harm to children.
I am going to create a flier as well as some other materials to circulate on the net. If any body wants to be part of this please let me know, we just need to make sure people buy this junk at their own risk.
Katya
My 13 year old daughter experienced numbing of her tongue. It lasted a few hours. I called her pediatrician and he said she will be fine to make sure she drinks plenty of water. He said to bring her in if she gets any other symptoms. She is fine though. Katya…I am willing to help in anyway I can.
I have a 8 month old chihuahua that I applied Sergeants gold to. She only weighs about 5 pounds. After it was applied she kept shaking herself like she had just had a bath. My daughter in law called the vets office and they said to wash it off immediately. I did, but she still is shaking her head and scratching at her ear. I picked up the package and realized that i bought the wrong dosage!!!! I am considering myself lucky that she didn;t have a worse reaction!!! I feel horrible that I caused this trauma. We will be seeing a vet tomorrow if she continues this behavior. I hope that she won’t develop anything worse. I hope everyone else’s babies will be ok.
count me in to help get these products off the shelf and make the companies accountable. i recently applied sergeant’s gold to my corgi’s and experienced the same horrible symptoms.i was outraged to find so many of the same stories on this website and the products are still on the shelf
My 3/12 year old lab/husky mix is experiencing these issues right now. He has an appointment with his vet at 2:30 today. I am willing to get involved in aany class action suits against this company to put a stop to this. lballew@comcast.net
I have the same problem! It was hell! I really need to do something about this I really want to create a lawsuit against the company of Sergeants Gold. MY dog had a huge flea problem so my mom and I decided to go to walmart pick the medication and the soap up to fix his problem. We got home gave him a bath and that was the start of our problem! He started to vomit, he kept whinning, he became very restless and would not even go to sleep. I had no idea what was wrong he was making me crazy I spent all night trying to get him to relax i laid on the floor with him and rubbed his belly and put him to sleep for only an hour before he became restless again and that was off and on trying to help him. I called the vet to ask what was wrong they said it could be that he was poisoned but couldnt help me because it was on sunday. Finally I found this site and that gave me some answers I feel so bad that this happened to him because of flea medicine its awful that you try to help your dog and it makes it worse! Please no one use any of the Sergeants Gold Products!
I took my dog to the vet yesterday. Since we were lucky enought to have bathed him in Dawn dishwashing liquid and we got him to drink water with tuna juice, we caught it before he got too sick. He did get a shot to control his upset stomach. The massive drooling stopped and luckily there were no burns or long-term effects (that I am aware of at this time). Other than being very clingy now, he is acting more himself.
We need to keep pushing with this but I am not sure where to start. My pom has huge scabs on her back from the burns. She is physically fine but it is not fair that we put our babies through this. Someone should be held accountable.
Sergeant’s Gold Flea and Tick is DANGEROUS!!!!
I am the owner of a puppy. The purpose of my email is to alert other consumers as well as dog owners of a dangerous product sitting on the shelves of Walmart
stores.I purchased a flea and tick prevention product from Walmart on yesterday. I made sure I purchased the proper weight requirement for my pet and I also
thoroughly read the directions before applying the product to my pet. After reading the directions, I properly applied the product to my pet. Three hoursafter applying the product to my puppy he began to whimper, moan, and cry. After taking him in my arms and observing his body I noticed that the product burned him badly in the spot where I applied the treatment. I immediately called the pet hospital and after following directions home directions from them, I called
the manufactures of the product. The manufactures of the product seemed illegitimate and gave me the run around. I have been up with my pet for tweleve hours listening to him whimper, moan, and cry. I also noticed that his skin is sensitive in those spots as well as burning red. He does not even want me to touch him in those areas. This product is defective, dangerous, and needs to be pulled from Walmart shelves. I have given him a bath four times, nothing seems to calm him down. Please help me anyone. i do not want my little puppy to die. Call me with any advice. 229-296-3408, Kim
Sergeant’s Gold Flea and Tick Liquid Tubes
Murders, they are!
I do not want my pet to die, I called Wal-mart and they told me that this is not the first complaint they have received about this posionous shit. I need an attorney and coonot find one. Where is PETA!!! Someone help me please, we need to get together and form a class action lawsuit.
Hello again everyone,
Just giving you an update about this wonderful product. It has been over a week and my dog is finally getting back to normal. I had to cancel a pet therapy session with her at the hospital because the area in which she was burned is still sensitive. Wal Mart and Sergeants have been in contact with me to make sure my dog is ok. My local wal mart is requesting that the home office recommend to take the products of the shelves everywhere. Sergeants says they will reimburse me my Vet bills (wow). I contacted the EPA and below is a copy of the email reply they sent me. Apparently it is under investigation. So… if you want to do something about this, contact Dr. Thomas Zachos at the EPA. Here is the email:
Dear Ms. Sutton:
>
> Thank you for contacting the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
> to provide comments on the pesticide product named Sergeants Gold flea
> and tick squeeze-on for dogs. I received your e-mail, below, on August
> 6, 2008. I am indeed so sorry to hear that the application of this
> pesticide to your dog made her very ill. EPA is responsible for
> regulating pesticide products in the United States and ensuring that
> they can perform their intended functions without posing unreasonable
> risks to humans, animals, or the environment. I therefore share your
> concerns and appreciate your comments.
>
> EPA does take into consideration incident reports from pet owners like
> you in determining whether further regulatory action is needed. I have
> thus forwarded your comments to EPA Headquarters, Washington, D.C., so
> that the information you have provided can be included in the EPA
> Pesticide Incident Database, which contains inputs from reported
> pesticide poisonings such as yours. EPA routinely examines information
> from this database to determine what concerns are being raised about
> registered products and whether further regulatory action is needed.
>
> If possible, please help EPA to better document this incident by
> providing the registration number (EPA Reg. No.) of the product you
> used. You should be able to find this number on the product packaging.
> Kindly provide the number by contacting me at the telephone number given
> below, or by replying to this e-mail.
>
> For your future reference, you may be interested in reading the
> information available on EPA’s Protecting Pets Web page at:
>
>
> http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/health/pets.htm.
>
> Another information resource is the National Pesticide Information
> Center (NPIC), whose Web site is at http://npic.orst.edu. The Center
> provides experts who can answer a broad range of questions concerning
> pesticide-related issues such as product use, health effects, etc. You
> can contact NPIC toll-free by telephone (1-800-858-7378) or e-mail (
> npic@ace.orst.edu).
>
> I hope this information is helpful to you. Again, I am sorry to hear
> about the adverse effects that your dog experienced. It is encouraging
> that she appears to be getting better and I hope her condition has
> improved. If you have any further questions or concerns, please call me
> on (732) 906-6903.
>
> Sincerely yours,
>
> Dr. Thomas H. Zachos
> U.S. EPA, Region 2
> Pesticides and Toxic Substances Branch
> 2890 Woodbridge Avenue, MS-500
> Edison, NJ 08837
> e-mail: zachos.tom@epa.gov
I just e-mailed our experince and request to pull this product. Thanks for that information.
We just spent $419 and from 2am-4am at an emergency animal ctr. with my dog, Zach, a 3yr old German Short-haired pointer mix. I had applied Sargeant’s Gold flea med to his back yesterday PM. Within hrs. he began to vomit uncontrollably, drool, gag for hrs, pant, cough, and jump around the house acting hyper. I think he was able to reach around and lick the spot where it was applied and was itching and inflamed. The vet told us NEVER, NEVER purchase these over-the-counter products……she has numerous sad stories to tell of reactions. These are ALL pesticides and toxic!!! Would you apply this on your child? We are contacting the company. I am ENRAGED…..
Hi Guys,
I am back. Ok my puppy is finally healing. However, I have my local news station coming to my house to complete an investigation into this dangerous product that is harming our pets. I have had two sleepless night. Snickers, my Shih Tzu, is healing but still having adverse reactions. I will follow-up with the EPA as well since my nerves are finally beginning to calm down. My local Wal-Mart has also been in touch with me but that does not make my pet better, I want this product pulled. Hopefully, the investigation started by the news will spark a fire under the shoes of the EPA to pull this dangerous product.
Did anyone else receive a get well card for their dog?
i about died when it came from the company.
Like that makes me feel better!
I applied Sergeant’s Gold Tick and Flea Squeeze On, on my dogs. My 2 year old lab mix has a serious reaction to this product. My pet had redness on his back, blisters, puss , and was not acting normal at all. I took my dog to the vet the next day and the vet had to keep him over night, he was in a lot of pain. I took pictures of the damage the product did to my dog. I am definitely going to pursue legal action against Sergeants. If anyone is interested to hear more about my story, or able to give me more information about pursuing legal action, or would like to see the damage the product did I can e-mail you pictures. My e-mail is josh_diaz_83@hotmail.com I strongly believe if we all work together we can get this product off the shelf and keep this form happening to other dogs.
Hi nala! You should never use any medication flea and tick or otherwise not prescribed by your veterinarian. And this is why. You can pursue legal action against Sergeant’s assuming that you used to product correctly. HARTZ and SERGEANTS have killed numerous dogs and I have personally seen it happen. The active ingredient is TOXIC to dogs, why these medications are allowed to be sold I am not sure. I am a former ER vet tech myself. Watch your dogs carefully for ANY tremor activity at all over the next 24 hours. If this happens bring them to the vet ASAP and they can administer Robaxin to relax them and stop the tremors. I hope that your post will alert people to this problem!! And I wish you the very best of luck! PLEASE let me know if you have any questions.
meandmymuttz@yahoo.com
To all pet owners, STAY AWAY form Seargeant’s Gold Flea and Tick Killer! My story is like many of the ones told above. Goldie, my chow-golden retriever mix has fleas. Since I could not afford Frontline at the time I decided to go to WalMart yesterday and purchase a flea killer just as effctive but less expensive than Frontline. I hate to this day that I picked up that red box. I applied it to my dog and she has ben acting strange ever since. She has thrown up her food and she kept shaking as if she were wet. She was very fidgety and couldn’t be still. I knew this behvaior was odd for her, so the next day I did a little research online and found all of these horror stories. I immediately left work and went home to bathe her with dish detergent as some people stated. I bathed her twice. I hope that when I get home today she will be fine. I don’t know what my family and I would do if anything happened to her. We’ve had her for five years with no real health problems until now and I don’t want some irresponsible dog-killing company to take her away from us. I will warn every pet owner that I know about this horrible product. In the meanwhile I am going to attempt to get my money back. To those who have lost their pets to this product I am very sorry. Seargeant’s Prodcuts SUCK!!!!!!!!
I too experienced the horrible poisoning of Seargents Flea and Tick. On Monday night 8/18/08, I went to Wal-Mart to pick up some flea meds (as with e1 else to cut corners because of the high cost of Frontline), I applied the medication on my two precious Chihuahau’s Ike and Suzi Q. About an hour after applying the poison they started freaking out, running around madly scratching and whimpering. I knew it had to be the medication because both of them had the same symptoms at the same time. I then washed both of them rinsing it off, however, they could not get comfortable, jerking uncontrollablly, biting at their paws. At 1am I washed them with medicated shampoo to remove the shit. I did not experience the foaming at the mouth, but their eyes and ears were very red. None of us slept that night, and the next day I was in tears thinking I have slowly killed my puppies. I took them to the vet, where she told me I did the right thing by rinsing it off. She gave them each a shot of cortisone and antihistamine and sent them home with a four day supply of muscle relaxers. This morning their vet called to see how they were doing. I told her they are not eating well, she told me to get some Gerber baby food (meat variety), feed that to them and if they are not better in the morning to bring them in for blood tests. I hate Seargeants and their affiliates and they should be held responsible for all the loving pets that have suffered from their poison. Please count me in on getting this product and other poisons off the shelf. To all of those who lost their pet, my heart goes out to you.
I have recently spoke with the manager of Wal-Mart that I bought the product from and he was very simpathetic and assured me that the product would be removed from the shelves and he would also alert the managers of surrounding stores of this issue. Thank God for the ones who care.
We just experienced some of the same problems with our Bostons, their ears are twitching uncontrollably and they keep shaking their heads side to side. We have washed Mooch and Bueller with soap and then Dawn. We have also given them a Benadryl.
Bueller’s has calmed down but Mooch is still twitching pretty bad.
How can this be a legal product?????
I’m a journalist working on a story about pet exposures to insecticides. If anyone would like to discuss the experience you’ve had with these chemicals, I would really appreciate the opportunity to talk with you. I have a dog myself and I’m very sorry to hear about these incidents. I can be reached at MBP.CPI@gmail.com or at (202) 481-1248.
My Story started on 8-24-08 with my two Pugs (Lili 11yrs and Titus 7yrs old), My poison was Sergeants gold flea and tick squeeze-on from Walmart! Had all the symptoms as mentioned above! Yet, I didn’t look on the web so I washed off the ointment with more Flea Soap!
Went to the doctors, got two shots each (Diphenhydramine 50mg/ml & Dexametasone 2mg/ml and continued with Benadryl 2 times a day.
Felt horrible we still didn’t sleep for 3 nights straight! Even after the shots we had the side effects…twitching & itching…
Wrapped both Pugs in Ice Packs to stop the itching and dipped dish towels in ice water to wrap around them. On the third day, had to take Lili back to the doctor because she had rapid breathing and she couldn’t lay down. She just sat up and was unable to stop rapid breathing she was physically exhausted. Doctor gave her Temaril-P to calm her down and take care of the inflamation that was causing her to gasp for air. Now it is 09-01-08, Titus is doing fine, still twitching occasionally and Lili is still breathing heavy and is not herself yet. Going to be hopeful that by next weekend she will be back to her normal self! Go Glad for this website, have been trying to let go of the guilt…. Now I know it is the product! it is evident! Will take action… Lili has suffered so much because of Sergeants.
I too have had a horrible experience with Sergent Gold Flean and Tick poison. On the evening of 9/01/08 I purchased the product from Walmart and put it on my 3 dogs, within 2 hours my min pin Willie was acting funny running around like crazy, drooling, panting and dry heaving. I put him in hte bath tub and quickly rinsed the shit off, he immediately started to feel better after the bath and the Benadryl, thank god. Thank god the other 3 dogs were ok and did’nt have any reaction. This crap needs to be removed from the shelf!
Shelley Matthews
Hi,
Sergeant’s is very sorry to hear about what all of your dogs have experienced. We really want to hear from each one of you who believes their pet has had an adverse reaction to any of our flea and tick control products. If you haven’t yet contacted our 24-hour consumer hotline at 800-224-7387, we strongly encourage you to do so for a couple of very important reasons:
- We want to make sure that each one of your dogs is now in good health. Naturally reading these posts are more than bothersome to us.
- Sergeant’s needs to gather information from you and your vet in order to start an investigation. Sergeant’s has a procedure in place where a complaint of a possible adverse reaction is given to a committee of independent veterinarians to review and investigate what may have caused the reaction or problem.
It’s important to remember that all flea and tick control product are pesticides and in order for these products to be as safe and effective as possible, they must be used as directed. It’s also important to understand that, just like human health care products, nothing can be 100% allergy-free, so some dogs will have a reaction. Most reactions are temporary, such as skin irritation, but some can be very serious.
Sergeant’s wants to help pet owners make safe choices, which is why we expanded our “Look at the Label” educational campaign and website http://www.lookatthelabel.com to educate consumers on proper application and use of flea and tick control products. Each case in this forum – and other forums – is different, which is why we think you will find the information on http://www.lookatthelabel.com helpful in answering many of the questions you may have at this point in time. Sergeant’s President, Bob Scharf, wants pet owners to know this tool is available and encourages everyone to visit the website or call Sergeant’s hotline to answer any questions or concerns you may have – whether it is pre, post or after application. You can view a special message here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbONNAshrWo.
We really are very sorry to read the experiences here and want nothing but your pets to be healthy and happy! Visit http://www.lookatthelabel.com for useful tips. Please let us know if you have any questions at all, as we would be more than happy to assist you further.
Best,
Julie
Why aren’t these products taken off the market? It’s unconscionable. I am so sorry your pets had to go through this. What a heartache. I hope they recover quickly.
Unfortunately Advantix can be expensive and Frontline but it’s worth it to get these products. I know you were waiting for your products to come, others usually use what they can buy in Walmart or the grocery store. Entirelypets.com sells these items at a reduced price for those of you interested. And they are the same products you get from the vet.
Sergeant’s President, Bob Scharf,
Please read all the Sergeant Poison Cases listed in this web site along with the Sergeant suffers in other sites below on the results of Sergeant Gold and SentryPro XFC.
We read the label, it is not the packaging of your product that is the issue. We are experienced dog owners, we would rather be directed to see a corrective action campaign on how to stop producing a product that has known consistent adverse reactions than how to read a label.
We watched our loved ones suffer for days as the result of your product. Lili is next to me now, she is still breathing hard and I don’t know if it will stop after the medications are complete.
How many cases can you read before your company takes action? How much customer suffering and expense will Sergeant create for the sake of their revenue?
Why are you requesting your customers to do Sergeant’s product testing and giving us the onus to report out to you the adverse results?
Take a total of the calls you have received regarding the reactions, when is one more call going to be enough???
Take it off the Market. One Animal Suffering is Cruelty.
http://journal.drfaulken.com/problems-with-sentrypro-xfc-flea-and-tick-medication/
http://www.hartzvictims.org/2008/01/28/danger-sergeants-gold-flea-and-tick-squeeze-on-2/
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070603204206AAZelWw
Well my problems first started about a month ago. I was having a real problem with Frontline Plus working for my Yorkiedoodle. It was almost as if we would go to bed and she would be flea free and we would wake up and she would have 5-15 fleas on her. So I decided to get the Sergeant’s Gold from Walmart. We had been using this on our Great Dane and he would do just fine. Within 3 hours of the application, my little one, Gabbi, was running all over the house trying to hide in closets, under furniture, and just spazing out. I called a few vets, and asked other members of my family and they all suggested that I bath her in dish soap. After 2 baths she was doing much better but was very sleepy. She usualy fights and cries her whole way through a bath, but she just sat there. After about 6 hours she was perfectly fine.
So a month rolls around, to last night. I was told by all my “informed” sources (vets, family, friends) that had a lot of dog experience that I should try just putting half of the tube on her. This time she was just lazy, but restless. She was pacing all night and slept all day. She did do some of the similar pacing if I put her frontline on her late in the evening and I just figured she slept all day because she was up all the night before. We tried to console her and she kept wanting to sleep in bed with us, but I couldn’t stand the strong smell of the flea stuff (and she is only allowed to sleep on her bed at night). So I would console her and finally get her to sleep, not wanting to rinse the flea control off thinking its for the best because she isnt having as bad of problems.
5AM rolls around. I woke up with a horrible knot in my throat and eventually end up throwing up. It felt like acid! Also parts of my face were cold and numb (like the feeling you get from icy-hot). I washed my hands throughly after each time I touched her or anything else with the med on it, but there wasn’t anything else that could have caused it.
Now Gabbi is doing much better, but she has no experienced any reduction in the amount of fleas that are on her! I just put her through over 24 hours of torture for nothing! To make matters worse, this is the second time I have ended up making her sick while I was just trying to do what was best for her.
PS. If you even try to look up adverse reaction symptoms on the box or the website (for dogs or humans) they are non-existant! Is that even legal?
[...] that occurred after using Sergeant’s Gold flea medication. Joy posted an article, Sergeant’s Gold Flea Medication Almost Kills Dogsters Lucky and Nala, to make everyone aware of the potential [...]
[...] that occurred after using Sergeant’s Gold flea medication. Joy posted an article, Sergeant’s Gold Flea Medication Almost Kills Dogsters Lucky and Nala, to make everyone aware of the potential [...]
I reported Sergeants Gold to a TV station. They did a piece on the dangers of this product. Sergeants sent a letter telling them to retract their story and take it off the internet or there would be a law suit. Everything they complained about in that letter was false. This company disgust me and I will never buy another one of their products. They did send a little bag of treats to my dogs, I gave them one, and so help me both dogs threw up. I dumped the rest in the garbage. Money is the only thing this company is after. They are not concerned about our pets, like I thought.
Wish I would have read this before putting this stuff on my dogs! I have a Yorkie and Boston terrier. Our poor yorkie has about died. Foaming and and running around acting crazy! Will not eat, we have bathed her and finally acting a little better, she is resting now, waiting to see if I need to take her to vet when they open. My boston terrier was also foaming but isoverweight and it did not affect her quite as bad as my yorkie.
PLEASE DO NOT BUY SARGEANT’S flea and tick squeeze we have been up all night watching our dogs and praying they will be okay!!!
Thanks so much for this website. I put some Sergeants Gold flea and tick squeeze on medication on our Puggle tonight and he had a bad reaction about two hours later. We didn’t know what was going on, he was barking and foaming at the mouth in his kennel. I let him go outside also gave him water (didn’t drink much). Because it was midnight I couldn’t go to our vet, so I got on line and started to see what I could find out. It took me two more hours but I was lucky enough to find your website. I immediately washed him twice and also gave him some honey. It is almost 0330 now and he is back in his kennel still barking a little. Guess its going to be a long night to see how he makes it. Pretty shocking that this is such a problem and the product is still on the shelf…….. Thanks again for the information.
We have 4 dogs and I used Sargents Gold on them last night. Our oldest went in to convulsions and our other dogs threw up all night and the nest day. My vet talked me through this, but if there are so many problems, why is it still on the market?
Does anyone know if there is a Class Action Law Suit against Sergeants. If there is not, there should be. Dogs are getting sick daily and some even dying. They continue to make this flea medication, knowing this. We have to stop them for our pets.
Below is website to a recent News Report on the Sergeant Gold Poisoning
http://wkytarchives.com/watch?v=3499
Another Sergeants victim. My 7 1/2 year old Jack Russel had a horrible reaction tonight. Applied Sergeants Gold at 9:30pm and by 2am – Vomiting, drooling, falling over, legs wouldn’t hold him up.
I can not stress enough how important it is for multiple baths with dish soap. Since then the recovery has been incredible. Drinking water, peeing regularly. Able to bounce around again. He still is not 100% but has made great strides in recovering from this poison that this careless company is producing.
I am beside myself with anger and guilt. Lets suffice it to say that the bastards are lucky that there were many miles of phone line between us when I called them. My 35+ lb black lab is showing no signs of any problems at all but it will be washed off of her also. I will never use a product like this again. I would advise anyone against it and I am bringing the issue up with my local retailers as well. Take care and good luck saving your precious, beloved pets. My prayers and heart felt sympathy’s are with you all.
i lost my best friend tonight because of that flea and tick squeeze on RIP SAMMY 21 sept 2008. i need a lawyer i want revenge for my dog and my duahgters grief
I am so sorry for your loss . It’s time to take action and get this product off the market!
9/20/08, I applied Sargents to my bulldog this past Saturday ,after about an hour we noticed our bully was acting very frightened and seemed to be in pain. I knew the Sargents flee and tick squeeze was the only difference to her daily routine and immediatly bathed her. Didn’t help too much…within hours she seemd to be worse:
Listlessness, sitting up still with her head drooped and not wanting to move. When she does move she acts like she is taking electric shocks to her rear. rapid breathing, knawing at her paws. At 1am we noticed she wasn’t getting any better and took her to the emergency vet clinic. The Dr gave her a benadryl shot and told us to bring her back if we noticed seizures. We sat up with our girl all weekend. We wapped her in a cooling blanket and ice packs to keep her from over heating, which seemed to help with her breathing. It’s Monday morning and our bully is on Benadryl, she has stopped biting her paws and her breathing seems to be back to normal. She still has the shock like motion when she moves and is listless. She’s eating a little and not drinking much today. Our regular vet is aware. Our girl may end up with a fluid flush all we can do at this time is wait….In my efforts to research this product and to my horror, I noticed many similar stories WHY IS THIS PRODUCT STILL ON THE MARKET!!
I just experienced these symptoms with my two dogs; one a Yorkie and one a Pug. I had them at the vet’s this a.m. and now after two shots, steroids and several baths, they are acting a bit better. My Pug still cries and has a terrible cough. This company is horrible and I cannot understand why this product is allowed to be sold. I’m writing to my congressional delegation.
On my vet’s recommendation, I use Frontline for flea/tick control. Why do people buy Sergeants? Is it cheaper?
Do people really pinch pennies when it comes to the health and safety of their dogs?
Must be the case. I also notice people feeding their dogs horrible food (Iams, Purina, etc.) in the effort to save the almighty dollar.
You get what you pay for.
Sorry for your loss Ron,
Know it hurts bad………….the missing is the hardest part of the loss of your Loved One. Then there is the Anger of knowing that Sergeants is knowingly selling a product that causes tragic reactions to our loved ones. The only way we know about the effects of their poison is when we experience the suffering of our loved ones. The only solution Sergeant can offer is to read a label. Sergeants needs to step up on their own and take this off the market. The consequences of their non action to producing a horrid product will catch up with them.
Will carry some of your pain with me while I fight to get Sergeant Flea & Tick products off the shelves of both Walmart and Pets Mart. If Sergeant is not going to take action quickly we need to target the retailers of their poison.
Lorraine a forever Sergeant Sufferer
Pedro ………. On my recomendation keep your negitive no brain comments to yourself !!!!!
People buy a product thinking that their local store wouldn,t sell trash like sargents but , somtimes they do !!! Its a hard lesson to learn but,who are you to make stupid comments . I cant wait for the day it happens to you !!!!! and i am certain it will eventuly !!! and i will be there to say hey Pedro why did ya cheap out and buy your kid that cheap stuff if you bought the good brand he wouldn,t be sick and dying !!!!!!!
Sorry to everyone else who read my last comment but , it just pisses me off for someone like that to make those remarks !!!! i feel for you all and i had it happen to both my dogs and i treat them better than i treat myself .I give them everything and i bought this trash because it was there and they were iching and i trusted my store!!!!!!! $6000.00 later my dogs are still alive . I have been fighting with sargents for 3 months to get them to pay . ….So pedro did ya pay $6000.00 for your mutt i doubt it I would have paid $ 50,000 to fix mine
Just logged a complaint with the Consumer Affairs Site!!!
I wasn’t the first! Please log a complaint so that they will take action for us!
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/pets/sergeants.html
We need to let them know this is happening every day and how awful this experience feels!
We need their help to get this product off the shelves! Every day there is another person like you and me that will experience the horror of watching our loved one suffer. Please take the time to log a complaint.
Sergeant is knowingly causing Cruelty to Animals and I am almost at my limit watching them.
A Sergeant’s Sufferer for Life
Lorraine
This product should be banned. I spent my whole birthday weekend at animal emergency and the vets. My girls heart was pounding and she went into convulsions in the middle of the night. She almost died. At least Sergeant’s told me to bring her to emergency. Bad product don’t use
Hello!
We are going through Sargents Flea and Tick Hell right now as I write. I applied the stuff to Spooky’s back last night before we went to bed. Spooky is a 4 year old (we think… she is a stray) White Boxer. She is high strung anyway.
Sometime during the night, she started doing a lot of moving around on the bed. By this morning, I could tell she was starting to get flipped out. i didn’t know what about. She was drooling, prancing, acting like demons were chasing her, chewing at her feet and bottom. Not her normal self anyway.
This afternoon when I got home I realized that it must be the flea stuff. We gave her a bath and some benedryl and a pain pill. That seemed to calm things down. When I got back home at 9pm, she was all freaky again. Gave her another bath with dish soap and a long rinse. Gave her more benedryl and some steroid that I happened to have here. She seems pretty quiet at the moment. We will see what happens.
I suspect we will be making a trip to the vet in the morning. I can’t see going to the ER vet. So expensive. Seems common sense what it is.
Wendi
I used this on my maltese sergeants gold.And he started to go crazy panting,scratching,he even peed on my bed which he never does he has been pad trained for 4 years, he attacked me and bit my hand he has never been a mean dog.He couldn’t stop scratching has a blood sore on him and just didn’t act like him I hate this product DONT BUY IT
THEY NEED TO REMOVE THIS PRODUCT WITH SO MANY DOGS HAVING THIS REACTION ITS NOT WORTH IT BEING ON THE SHELF FOR PEOPLE THAT DONT KNOW HOW BAD IT IS YET
I too used this product not knowing what the outcome would be. Friday night I gave Coco a dose of the flea meds and went on to bed. The next morning he was itching, restless, foaming at the mouth, unable to sleep, just in more pain than I could have ever imagined. He would lick his private area, looked as if he was having seizures, back leg constantly twitching. It took two whole days for him to start acting somewhat normal. I gave him two Dawn baths, which did seem to help. He is very lucky. I contacted the BBB and it seems that this company has a satisfactory rating. More consumers need to file a complaint with them, this product needs to be removed from the store shelves. I will never use any of their products again. Tell all your friends about the danger of this product.
I treated my Shih Tzu a couple of hours ago and he started freaking out, so my husband and I gave him a bath with a gentle dog shampoo. I am going to go use Dawn on him now, he’s still freaking out. The drool, the hyperactivity, scratching….I feel awful! This product should be outlawed! Thanks for all the advice!
Earlier today, I bought the Sargeants Gold for dogs to put on my 1 y/o chihauhau, Chachi. After an hour, he started acting strangely, but ignored it until he started drooling and whizzing. I immediately bathed him, then started researching about adverse effects of this poduct. I came across this thread and was appalled at the side effects of this product. While reading, Chachi started exhitting some of the additional symptoms mentioned by some posters I had read, so I followed the adviced mentioned, bathing him a second time, forcing some water, etc. Fr the hour following, he seemed to not get better and started some additional symptoms – back leg twitching, scratching at his eyes, continued drooling and iritability. Ater 3 1/2 hours now, he has improved, thanks to the posters here, he is resting, being a little playful and not so confused, and seems to regaining his vison. I will definitely be contacting Walmart and Sargeants, for all the good it will do, and giving them a piece of my mind.
My sympathies go out to those who lost their beloved companions, and best wishes to those whose companions were lucky enough to survive this horrible product, as well as my thanks to thooe who took the time to post, so I knew what to do. I will be watching Chachi very close tonight, ready to take him to the emergency vet hospital, should it become necessary. As of no, I don’t think he will have to go in until tomorrow for a check-up, he is resting now on my lap, watching me type this…
If a class-action suit does start, PLEASE notify me at keokex@gmal.com, so I can be included. These idiots need to be held accountable for their carelessness.
I hope no one flags this posting. It could save a dog and cats life. I recently used Sergeants Silver Flea Medication on my animals. It seemed inexpensive at Wal Mart, so I bought it. This was against my Vets advice. The economy is tough and money is scare, so I went with the poison. It damn near killed my dogs and cats, in fact my Vet said he has seen so many cats killed after receiving the Sergeants treatment. I know there are alot of animal lovers on Craigslist. Please, please, please….Cut and paste this posting to everyone you can think of on your email list, and those who own animals. You can Google Sergeants Silver Flea Treatment and read about nightmare stories from people just like me. The word has to get out about this stuff. Please let North Carolina become the starting point for a national effort to put these killers out of business. This post is extremely honest, and I ask that no one flag it. My cat died a terrible death, and my dogs became violently ill within hours after putting this stuff on their backs. Please, Craigslist Pet Lovers…Help me get the word out. I know there are thousands out there who have suffered the ill effects of Sergeants Products. My Vet does not understand how and why the government allows the stuff to be marketed.
God Bless Everyone Who Cares About Heir Animals.
I just purchased sargeants gold flea medicine and put it on my 2 dogs and they both ran around like crazy, I have rebathed them twice with dish soap and am going to the store to buy some honey as mentioned in previous posts. This is absolutely ridiculous, I had no idea….I do now…..
I have a 1/2 jack russell 1/2 chihuhua 3 years old and a shitzu 11 years. If you have any others remedies please let me know…thank -you
i’m sitting here watching my babies trying to recover from a single application of sargeants gold flea and tick squeeze on for dogs…they may make it through the night and may not…i fell so helpless-i put this crap on them last night and just like these other folks have said they became so ill very soon. i bathed them both and used a creme rinse to soothe their skin but it didn’t help.my little morkie boy is 6 mo.s old and weighes 3lb.14oz. and my little girl chi is 4mo.s old and weighes 2lb.3oz.s. she’s having the hardest time(foaming biting her back paw shaking and tossing her head scratching her neck very lathargic and her left eye is almost shut) her name is cameo and his name is riley. i love them. i called our vet of 20 some years this morning-did what i was told with the benadril. gave them each 2 more bathes. no better…took them to our vet around 3:00 this afternoon…he gave them two shots apiece and told us this scenerio is not uncommon. seems sargeants products are rather famous…i stayed up all night last night and he wants me to watch them all night again tonight. i hope i can stay awake. riley(riri) seems somewhat better but not my little cameo(cami). please-pray for my babies? and yes; i too want to get justice for them…i just don’t know right now where to start. they’re so very innocent and who-ever thought up this concoction is so very evil and should be brought forward! gloria m.
well, my cami and ri ri made it through the night and seem alitle better this morning. she is still scratching about every 3 or 4 minutes though…my husband and i are so sad this has happened to our babies. i personally want to take a part in any class action suit there is to stop this from happening again to someones loved and cherished pet! i feel a rage building inside my heart for these businesses making a living off of little dead bodies that should have had long happy lives! if anyone needs my help in trying to stop these killers they can contact me at gloryiousartist@yahoo.com….i wonder if my babies will be 100% again or if there has been permanent damage done…. i don’t know if they’re out of the woods yet either-they just seem better- i may be making another very expensive trip back to the vets today–i guess i’ll never know for sure if they will remember what a painfull time they’re having just because someone wanted to be rich and famous for their formula to kill fleas and ticks…but i do know i’ll never buy another sargeants product again. gloria m.
I just got through bathing both my Shi Tzu’s after applying the Sargeants Gold. They are having all the same reactions described in the postings. They are crying, shaking and tossing their heads. I called my vet and he told me to bathe them with the dishwashing soap. I think I will do it again. I can’t believe that this product is being sold everyday to unsuspecting animals. I would also be intersted in a class aciton lawsuit. As long as they get away with selling these bad products, others will be going through what we are going through. I am so afraid that my two best friends aren’t going to get better.
I too treated my three dogs with sergeants GOLD and their reaction was awful–I used the 9-20 pound vial and they are all 13 pounds, different breeds, one a chihuahua-yorky, a dacshound-shnauzer, and a shi tsu. It was the same as many have already described, shaking the head, stumbling, coughing, vomiting, seizures, hallucinating, ect…—The point is 6 months age I used one tube for all 3, meaning they got 1/3 of what the box said to use and we had vomitting by one dog(I didn’t know which one at the time) head shaking, tremors, and staggering by the dacshound/schnauzer I did not know what it was from? So I took him to my Vet. who also didn’t know it lasted 3 weeks and got worse. I took him back to the vet. who sent me to the vet. college in Columbia Mo.—They did every test they could think of and when they could not pinpoint anything they said they believed he had “Little White Shakers” syndrome and said the only way to treat that was about 4 months of steroids then another 4 months to ween him off steroids. While they were waiting some more test results due in about 5 days they started him on 2 antibiotics (one being doxycicline) because after his spinal tap they said his brain was inflamed and this atibiotics works in the brain—He responded almost immediately. because he responded sooo well they NEVER even gave him Steroids—-now I know why he didn’t need them–because he didn’t have “Little White Shakers” syndrome!!!! I found that out because his reaction is the same after using the GOLD only it is 5 times worse!!!!! I reached my Vet. 11 hours after giving the GOLD and he stared them all on the antibiotic……My shi Tsu did not respond for almost 3 days…..he sat and halucinated and cried and could not go to the bathroom……finally he snapped out of it about 12 hours ago…I am still worried about long term affects on them all and am very interested in a law suit. I spent over 2,000.00 on the first incident. When I called the E # they were sarcastic and unhelpful and offered nothing but “Take your Pet to your Vet. and have him call us, we will inform him how to treat your Pet—garbage!!!!!! I want my bills paid AND then some!!!!!!! I—–imamogirl58@sbcglobal.net
I cannot believe Sergeant would out out a product like this. I also purchased the Gold Flea & tick squeeze on. Mimi is 7 yrs old and over 60 pounds and she has never acted like this before. First she started acting very aggitated, drinking lots of water. Her nose got warm and she started throwing up. I gave her a little milk which seemed to calm her a bit, then she started gagging. Had to give her benedryl and finally she fell asleep. This morning, she will not drink anything. Sergeants emergency line told me that once she throws up, she’ll be fine. She is still not well
Please log a complaint on the Consumer Affairs web site so their Lawyers will take action for us!
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/pets/sergeants.html
We need to let them know this is happening every day and how awful this experience feels!
We need their help to get this product off the shelves! Every day there is another person like you and me that will experience the horror of watching our loved one suffer. Please take the time to log a complaint.
You are not alone in your experience.
So Sorry you had to suffer from the hands of Sergeant’s Products,
Hardest part for me, Sergeant says they read our daily cases of suffering yet they will not take this product off the market. Instead they continue to collect financial profits off of innocent Pet Parent’s suffering.
These parents love their animals as if they were human beings. If this product was for the consumption of humans then the reactions would be considered cruelty and the deaths would be equal to murder.
Hard for me to know this tragic experience will happen to someone tomorrow. Hard for me not to be able to stop it.
Sergeant please Stop it. You Can.
A Sergeant’s Reaction Sufferer for Life
Lorraine
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Hello this is Michael from Michigan. I could not believe what I was reading as my two little dogs were suffering the same symptoms form using Sergeant’s flea and tick That you place on the neck and down the spine. This stuff is a poison for our pets. If the pediatricians were prescribing medicines for our children that did half the stuff this garbage does it would be on every news network and they would be out of business. After leaving the groomers this week I went to and area store to get flea preventative for my two dogs. I read the boxes and what the product did. I did not read it was a pesticide and poison and that hundreds of dogs and cats have been traumatized or killed. The only warning on or in the box was do not use the dogs type on cats. And yet this poison is on the shelf. Shortly after putting it on the two dogs they began two have fits and cry and roll on the floor. We thought my Lord what is going on. Come to find out when I called the Sergeant’s Phone # and had to wait ten minutes that my dogs had been given insecticide on there skin and was having a severe reaction. I’m not the sharpest knife in the kitchen but I realized if the phones were backed up ten minutes this was some bad stuff. They were traumatized by this and did not sleep for 24 hr. and kept scratching and digging and whining. I stayed up all night rubbing the one dogs back and every time I stopped she would jump up and start biting and diging.My daughter stayed up with the other dog. It was sickening to watch my little dogs stand there half awake and there legs kept moving to scratch. The hotline told me they were feeling a pin like feeling all over there skin. Now after 24 hr. they are still having troubles from this. When I looked on the web and found story after story of this sickening thing. We took the dogs to the vet today and found out that many times a week people bring there loved ones / pets into the vet for the same thing. It also cost me $126.00. I’m very angry that this could happen and worried it could happen to another family. I have called the company and demand retribution for the vet bill. I went to Wal Mart and told them they have this poison on there shelves. I will be contacting the Michigan Attorney General and my attorney. I’m angry as I write this and I encourage all of us to contact stores appropriate government offices and demand that this poison and others like it be taken off the shelves. I do not know if they will listen to me but if there were a few thousand people demanding this some would listen. I’m know different from any of you folks in the love and commitment we have for a little fury loved ones. And the joy they bring to our homes and life’s. Many times I look at my two little dogs and say daddy would not take a, million dollars for you. And to see this greedy companies making money at there health and effecting our home I will do all I can to stop it.
Thank you
Michael
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Everyone keeps asking about a Class Action Law Suit, has anything been done to start this? We all need to get together on this and soon. How do we get started? Someone please help us get this law suit going and get this junk off the shelves. Our precious babies suffered and this awful company does not care. Does someone know a lawyer that can help us.
OMG! It’s 2:29 am and I am still awake. I applied Sergeant gold on both my dogs around 6:00 pm and one became very anxious and kept scratching and whining endlessly that my husband washed him off. the other didn’t react until two hours later when all hell broke loose and both were twitching and behaving weird. So I search the web and fell on this site THANK YOU…because I immediately bathed them again and shampooed and rinsed them off again. I made them rice and made sure they drank. They are wanting to sleep but their nervous and restlessness is making them whine. I hope they’ll be ok soon. This product must be pulled from the shelves!!
I had to take my dog Linden to the emergency vet on Saturday night – then to another vet (The Marina Animal Clinic) on Sunday. I put some sergeants GOLD flea and tick on him Saturday morning (I bought at Wal-mart) and apparently vets and consumers are trying to get it off the shelf. I didn’t know anything was wrong with him until about 8 hours after I applied it – had I paid attention I’d have noticed immediately that he was not well – it is like he couldn’t sit still and he kept barking and doing this low under the radar type of whine. I spent the entire day on my front porch and only took him out side for a walk once – where he kept eating grass (which I’ve never seen him do) – apparently animals do this sometimes when they are sick. Once I sat down with him – he kept laying his head on me and crying and then he would lay in his bed for 60 seconds – then get up and lay on me – then get up and lay on the floor. I immediately got online to see about the Sergeants and immediately came across hundreds of horror stories – some going on in real time – where animals were sick from this stuff. I quickly bathed him – used joy (dawn is recommended) – and he really started crying – the skin on his back was pink and somewhat burned – HE NEVER ONCE TRIED TO GET OUT of the bathtub if that tells you anything. I took him to the emergency vet – and they thought I had gotten most of it off and he would be okay – he wasn’t ticking or anything with him because he was scared and shivering from the bath. I took him home and the symptoms seem to get worse – I called the emergency vet again and they told me to get him benadryl – to help with symptoms and allow him to sleep. They said the usual dosage is 1 mg per pound – but to give him a double dose – he is 12 pounds – so he basically took one 24 mg tablet. The emergency Vet said to take him to the vet the next day. The benadryl made him sleepy – but he still couldn’t sleep – he kept twitching or ticking like something was wrong with his nerves. I was up the entire night on Saturday into Sunday morning with him b/c he couldn’t sleep – and would only lay still if I rubbed his neck or petted him. I gave him another bath at 7 a.m. on Sunday morning and then took him to the Marina Animal Clinic as soon as they opened. They usually hook them up to IV fluids – to flush out what is in their system – but that usually requires overnight stay and the alternative was a very strong muscle relaxer to get him to stop ticking and encourage him with liquids – children’s pedialite, chicken broth -we took the shot because I didn’t want to leave him and the vet said he would probably be okay. Linden finally fell asleep around 4 pm. Sunday and he slept until this morning.
1. The vet gave me a FORM FDA 1932a – it is a form that you can fill out for an adverse drug reaction involving an animal. The Marina told me that they see at least one animal a day as a result of Sergeants, Hartz and Bio-spot. Many of the cats and dogs don’t survive – there are more reactions for cats than dogs. I think the only reason Linden didn’t have as severe of a reaction is because I didn’t get the entire tube on him as I spilled out some of it when I cut the tube open. The vet said they have seen entire families – like with three dogs – where they all the dogs got sick from it. I didn’t apply it wrong or give him the wrong dose either.
It is poison and needs to be taken off the shelf.
If you look online – just type in reaction to Sergeants flea and tick – you will come across thousands of people who have lost or almost lost an animal because of this product.
I intend to send this information to every person or organization possible – it needs to be taken off the shelf.
My wife and I tried Sergent’s Gold Flea & Tick Squeeze for the first time on our two 11 year-old Springer Spaniels (about 55 lbs.)–the female about 3 days ago had it better than the male who got his treatment in the early evening yesterday. The female developed a slight limp and I noticed some lumps in her chest, but we thought it was just age and that maybe I had that walked her too far that day. But then last night after receiving his treatment, the male became very agitated about 2 AM, and started clearing his throat repeatedly. He was itching and biting himself and wanted to go outside. When he didn’t come back we went out to find him wandering around in the yard like he was confused. When he came in and laid down he would repeditively paw with his front legs, even while asleep. We gave him a micro-coated aspirin hoping to prevent inflamation. In the morning, he was still restless and pawing and we feared he had suffered some sort of cerebral incident. They sleep with us and when I woke up my eyes were burning so much that I thought I must have gotten some of the dogs’ flea and tick treatment on my pillow or hands and then in my eyes. I washed my hands and flushed my eyes and finally got the burning to stop. Then we put 2 & 2 together, and I asked what kind of flea and tick treatment he had recieved (we had never had a problem before with Frontline). My wife said Sergeant’s and so I googled the product only to find story after story with similar reactions, many much worse than ours. We washed that stuff off of him and he seems to be resting more comfortably now. Thank you for posting your experiences, only wish I had known sooner to wash it off of the female. She was still limping yesterday.
I Just applied the product to my Miniature Schnauzer – Same results. I thought that I would look the product on line and found that others had the same results.
Something need to be done about this product.
I went and bough Sergeants Gold Flea and Tick drops last night and put them on my 65 lb boxer. Woke up this AM and she was going nuts; she was drooling out of control, foaming, and shaking. I flipped out and called the vet and now she has to stay overnight. This POS product cost me $300 in vet bills all because I was out of Frontline and it sounded like the next best thing. I called and complained to the company and I believe theyre going to re-emburse me for the vet bill. Its the least they can do to keep me from suing them. Has anyone ever thought of a class action lawsuit against these a-holes???
Correction** She’s 55 lbs, not 65!!
I am amazed at all of the people who claim to be dog lovers who treat their beloved pets and dont read about proper treatment procededures it staits in the paperwork if you have two or more dogs eather treat one at a time or if you do treat both dogs you must keep them seperated for a minumum of 24 hours.The cause of the dogs drooling and foaming at the mouth is from the dogs grooming one another do your selves a favor and read all of the articles about this product poisioning their dogs and you will see on thing in common.”TWO DOGS”.
Shopping at Walmart for a Christmas gift for my 3 year old Mini-Schnauzer, my baby, and I noticed the Gold flea med almost sold out, so thinking it must be good, I bought some. After one hour I washed it off because she went crazy with itching and panting. I can’t express how fast this poison overtook her. We went to the vet the next morning. She and I haven’t slept for two days. Cool water baths help the panting, and benedryl helps the itching. I am so sorry I hurt her and I hope she can fully recover. Of course I blame myself for not waiting to get my remedy at the vets. But we stupidly think that if a product has made it on the market, that it must be safe. Lesson learned. I hate fleas… and I’m not too happy with Walmart and Sergents after reading these comments either. I will be contacting them.
My poor little Bella is having a reaction to this horrible product as well, I gave her a bath and applied the Sergeants gold Flea and Tick squeeze-on after her bath and within 30 min. she was acting crazy, twitching, whimpering, scratching, walking constantly. I called the # on the website for emergency cases and was told the same as everyone else, to bath her in dishwashing liquid, so I did, we are now over 24 hrs. in and 4 baths later she is vomitting, she has drank water and went potty, both BM and Urine. A friend suggested Benydryl and diaper rash cream for the skin, this seems to have soothed her some what but she is still very sick. I called a vet ER and was told this product can be fatal, the tech was not surprised at all when I told her the products name and the reaction Bella is having, so IF we make it through the night we will see the vet tomorrow and I will never again purchase any type of product like this. I had the misconception that it would not be sold if it were not safe, was I ever wrong!!! If anyone out there read’s this before using this dangerous product,Please, Please, Please do not use this posion, it is horrible to watch your pet suffer like this. Thank you to everyone who has posted on here, I did’nt see it in time to prevent my own pets suffering but maybe we can prevent others from this garbage.
Tonight was complete hell! I have a 2 yr old 11 pound female pom, a 1 yr old 14 pound male pom, and a 3 year old 13 pound male pekignese. I gave all of them a dose of sergeants gold this morning. The first one to get sick was my male pom. He was vomitting for about an hour then seemed to be okay. A few hours later my female pom started rubbing the spot I administered the medication on, and vomitting as well as constant foaming of the mouth. My pekignese has vomitted once about 10 mins ago, and im sitting here watching all three of them run around like a bunch of insane dogs. I followed the directions I read on here. I gave all of them a bath with dishwashing liquid, gave them a small syringe full of honey, and a small amount of benadryl. So far my female pom hasn’t thrown up since I gave her the honey *thank god! and she isn’t stumbling around anymore. But they are all still pacing the place like maniacs. Im going to watch them throughout the night and keep my fingers crossed that nothing happens to my boys, and my female continues to get better! I feel for all of you that have had to go through this. It is truly painful watching the pets you consider to be like your children suffer in this way! THIS GARBAGE SHOULD BE TAKEN OFF THE SHELVES ASAP!!! how dare any company sell this kind of crap to innocent people who are just trying to take care of their animals! I am disgusted after reading all these letters and I will definitlely follow up on this site! God Bless you and your animals!!
You need to contect a lawyer and have a lawsuit filed against this company. Hartz also has these complaints- Tell the stores you find it in NOT to place the product on the shelves – and threaten a lawsuit if they do- Walmart was placing recalled dog food onto the shelves knowing that it was killing dogs- they just didn”t care-
You have to make a lot of noise and BE HEARD-
Contact the local tv station and write to CNN – do whatever it takes to get he word out. If this was happening to human child- there would be hell to pay- but because it’s an animals-and considered Property” -they have no right to life or safety.
This is B/S-
Act now !
Thank you so much for posting this article! I was doing a search for Sergeant’s Gold when I came across your blog. I gave my dog the flea medicine last night. Since then, she has walked around without resting more than 10 seconds at a time. She is burrowing into my carpets. She hasn’t drooled, but she is constantly panting and her heart is racing. The only other symptom was the constant coughing and gagging. After reading your blog, I immediately bathed her with Dawn and gave her some honey. She is now acting more normal. She is drinking water and playing with her toys. I am so relieved. My dog is my baby, and I don’t know what I would do if something happened to her. She is still a little restless, but I am watching her closely. I am more mad at myself for not researching this medicine more before giving it to her. Thanks again!
Yorkie Allergic Reaction, Female, 6 years old, 10 lbs, used Sergants Gold Flea Drops 9-20 lbs—————————Tonight after Jay spent the afternoon romping at the park I spotted a flea and decided to give her some Sergants Flea Drops just to make sure the problem didn’t get out of control. Within 1 hour she was laying on the couch with dilated eyes, within 2 hours from treatment she had begun to rub on everything in the house, pant, gulp water, act scared, cry, yelp and even act vicious as I tried to pick her up from under the coffee table. I immmediatly thought she was having an allergic reation to either this flea treatment or to the treat she had just eaten. After giving her a small dose of benadryl and a bath I called my husband home from the gym and rushed off for my parents house to get them to help us. I called the # on the back of the box and the operator told me to:
1. bathe her in dish soap to beack down the product since it is oil based
2. coat her with vitamin E oil to soothe her irrated skin
3. go to the vet if she doesn’t improve in 1 hour
While my dad went off to bathe her, my mom started looking online and found this site! We could not belive it so many reactions.
We are right now 6.5 hours into this mess and she is still restless, rubbing on everything and chewing at her paws. Looks like it will be a long night as we will take turns trying to comfort her and watching for seizures. I would like to be notified of any pending legal action as I would LOVE to join. Jay is my little baby and here I was thinking that I was helping her by getting rid of the fleas and instead I put some acid on her that could have cost her life. We just tried to give her a treat and she couldn’t see it, as her eyes are still dilated. We will wait a bit longer and if she doesn’t improve go the the ER vet.
i washed my 6 week old lab with hartz shampoo and brot him to bed with my wife and i. ten minutes later he had labored breathing and was wipmering and crying. he was very restless and couldnt be still. so i looked up the active ingredient and started reading all this horrible stuff. i bathed him in burts bee’s natural shampoo twice and it worked wonders. i read that dishwashing detergent works well also but that has harsh chemicals in it also. i cant believe i was stupid enough to bath him in the Hartz before reading and learning about the ingredients. i just wanted to relieve his flea itches. i think the companies that use these harsh chemicals in their products are no better than Adolf Hitler himself.
We purchased this product at Wal Mart. My mother, who breeds dogs, passively cautioned us against using this but not enough to persuade us not to buy it and use it. After the dog’s symptoms grew stronger and more bizarre, I searched the web and shocked to see how many stories were just like ours.
We immediately bathed the dog twice in Dawn and gave him a spoon of honey. The symptoms have seemed to calm a touch but the dog is still very restless and clearly miserable. It is Saturday night at 1 am so obviously an emergency vet is our only choice.
I am BAFFLED at how this product is not only on store shelves, but on store shelves of the largest retailer in the world. It is utter crap and whoever is charging for this as this continues to happen without a larger disclaimer is completely unethical.
Sergeants Gold = Sergeants Poison
UGH!!! I wish i would’ve researched this product before using it.
I put it on Hershey my lhasa apso and she wont stay still. She keeps scratching her back. I already bathed her twice. I can’t believe they still sell this crap after all the stuff i read about it.
Any kinda legal action against this company put me down. francis84@hotmail.com
I’ve used hartz before and never had a problem. I hope she’ll be fine in a few hours.
I put Sargeant’s Gold 5-in-one flea/tick killer on my dog yesterday evening. About an hour later she began pacing frantically and breathing heavily, panting, and acting strangely. I finally took her into the shower and ran water over her, scrubbing the poisoned area with soap. For the next 5 hours (10pm-3am), she whined, bit at her back, and could not lie still at all. Every time I would fall asleep, she would nudge me with her nose and whine. She kept breathing hard, so I tried to give her water, but she refused it. I got her to lay next to me and I noticed her heart pounding. She continued panting and breathing hard. Since it was in the middle of the night, I wasn’t sure what to do. I kept petting her and praying for her. Finally, she calmed down and was able to sleep. I will NEVER put this stuff on my dog again!!!!
My husband and I got sergeant’s gold flea & tick shampoo at walmart and i used it on our almost 1 year old chiuaua/min pin mix. The next day I noticed my dogs ears were extremly hot and he wasn’t acting right. Hiding under the bed and didn’t want to be touched. I ran to Petco and got a thermometer and took his temp. It was 105!!! I recently had a dog pass away from distemper a few days earlier so you can just imagine how devastated i was. I was sure that this dog had it too. I spent the rest of the night holding him while crying. He was throwing up the following day and I had NO idea it was from this evil shampoo. I bathed him in cool water and draped him in damp washclothes and his fever dropped to 103. The next day I took him to the vet and his fever was back down to normal so they wouldn’t do any tests or anything. Now 3 days later, after clavomax twice a day, I realized it was the shampoo that did it, he has just came down with these awful wheezing/coughing attacks. Something I would describe as an asthma attack in a dog. Taking him to the vet in a few hours to be sure he isn’t suffering from some allergic reaction to this crap. NOBODY USE THIS STUFF! I WOULD LOVE MORE THAN ANYTHING TO SUE THESE PEOPLE! If I give my dog flea/tick meds again i will be using the vet’s products!!
I have two small dogs and have experianced the same effects when using this product. My dogs became very restless and had ticks and whanted to go outside to eat grass and thow-up. I purchsed this product at CVS. also my red dog has a actual burn on the back of her neck where the product was applied. I advise that no one use this product and it should be a valid lawsuit of this company.
I want to thank you for this site. Without it, I would not have been able to help my dog.
I applied a single dose of the Sergeant’s Silver Flea & Tick at noon today on my 23lb schnoodle and 8 hours later I noticed his behavior was very similar to all that has been described…especially the drooling, the air-licking, the rubbing his body against the carpet and the inability to lie down for more than 10 seconds.
I have bathed him four times already…twice in Palmolive and twice in a gentler dog shampoo with conditioner. I have also fed him the tuna water, milk and have administered a capsule of Benadryl. It is now 1:00 a.m. and he has finally collapsed after hours and hours of aggitated pacing, ear-flapping and itching. This is awful! I have used Hartz products on him in the past and he’s never had this type of reaction. I also have used the Sergeant’s Oatmeal Flea & Tick shampoo and that didn’t affect him. This is my first time trying this squeeze tube and DEAR GOD this is miserable.
Thanks to those who have posted and I truly pray that your pets have fully recovered.
THIS PRODUCT IS HORRIBLE I CANNOT BELIEVE I BOUGHT THIS STUFF…MY DOG IS SO SICK AND I HAVEN’T SLEPT ALL NIGHT. THIS PRODUCT IS NOT SAFE AND I WILL STRICTLY CALL THOSE PEOPLE FROM SERGEANTS AND TELL THEM OFF…
THANKS
Ok people – let think a little and not just rattle off another antidotial story and go off the deep end.
I have used the Sargents – no problem on my pug – would I use it again? – not so sure. Clearly Sargents would not sell something that directly causes reactions like this in 100% of cases- that would be an unsustainable business model.
So what is the root cause? Is it an error in the application / dosing? A percentage of the dog population that has a allergic reaction to the product? A bad lot? Trying a small light dose at first would make sense with most medications…
Or is this just trying to jump on a law suit bandwagon? I find it odd so many posts are popping up while the dog is sick or hours after applying…. Hmmm greasing the law suit skids prep work. Folks crying holding their sick dog are able to jump up and start posting on the internet while their dog is on deaths door – odd….
BTW- “pet” Pev – please – these are dogs, pets, etc – Calling them your Childern, babies or you being their “Mom” is just weird. Watch a few episodes of “Dog Whisper” to see what excessive doting leads too..
I care about my dog but it is not my child – I already have those and I am not looking to subsitute a dog in for human interaction.
I too have been a victim of using this flea and tick medicine from Sergeants. My dog has been akting crazy for 2 days and will not go to sleep. I will be going to the vet as soon as Monday morning gets here. The dog already has sores, and just continues to walk around 24/7.
This oproduct should be banned from use and Sergeant should be held liable for all damages and expenses.
I HEARD OF DOGS DIEING FROM REVOLUTION AND HARTZ, BUT NOT SARGENT I AM GLAD I READ THIS!
I THINK I WILL GO HERBAL, YOU CAN’T TRUST ANY THING!
all these Seargents problems seem to be with products that are applied to the animal or liquid household sprays. Has anyone ever experienced adverse pet reactions after sprinkling the Seargents Gold Flea Powder into their carpets? I tried it a couple of years ago and it seemed to do a great job for a long time (its advertised to last 365 days). But, I didn’t have any pets running around the house at the time; my fleas came in from the yard on people that had walked thru the grass. I have dogs now and was considering using the carpet powder again. Just thought I’d ask around first.
I wish I had read all this before I put the drops on Roxy, She immeadiately started acted very aggitated and I have been up all night with her. I have bathed her and gave her Benedryl. She has cried all night, breathed heavy and will not stay still. How can this product still be on the market with all that has happened to our babies? I just pray that they all will be alright.
We purchased S’s Gold and applied it as told on our 4 yr. old Lhasa and he got VERY SICK. He even foamed at the mouth. Being very concerned we bathed it off of him the next day and took him to the Vet who told us of other complaints. DO NOT USE THIS PRODUCT.
We purchased Sergeant’s Gold flea treatment for out young Chihuahua, Brutus. Within minutes of application he was frothing at the mouth, having uncontrollable leg spasms, and generally freaking the hell out, as well as most of the other symptoms that everyone has mentioned on this and the hundreds of other websites about this product. GOD DAMN ALL OF YOU, SERGEANTS PET “CARE” PRODUCTS. HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO SO MANY PEOPLE? YOU EVIL BASTARDS.
It’s 4:18 am and we have had the same experience – we gave our 4 dogs Kiki, Elby (Shih-Tzu’s), Sophie (maltese) and Mason (rescue terrier) the medication at 7pm within a few minutes they were running around like wild – initially I figured it was the fleas dying (such as it happens with Capstar) – but when around midnight they were still behaving oddly I was worried. I bathed them all and the saga continued until I read the post with the dishwashing liquid – hopefully it will help otherwise I will be making a trip to the vet.
Its 1:06 am and I finally got my golden lab to settle down. We bought this at walmart,for my cats also, they seem fine. My 9 month old golden lab has been acting nuts. We put him in the laundry room when we leave,we were gone about two hours and when we can home he was going nuts. I let him out,because I just thought he had to pee bad. I looked at the back door(which is in the laundry room) and there are paw prints up the wall at least 4 feet. This has never happend before, my guess is he was just jumping around crazy. We decided to wash him with just water. He dried and was still nuts. Running around,rolling in his bed,rubbing up against the couches. I was so sad. I feel like I did this,Im supposed to take care of him. We called the hotline on the back of the package. The lady said to give Brody a bath in Dawn detergent. When we put him in the bath he was calm and liked the water being poured on his back. It was some relief for him. The woman on the phone said that they would send me a refund,oddly she didnt ask where we purchased it,or how much for. She said that she wanted us to send the used product back so they could test it so it didnt happen to other dogs. Wow,its late on a Sunday evening and they have someone to answer the phone. I could tell she had heard this before. Needless to say,Brody,or any of my other animals will never use any of Seargents products again! I hope my cats are ok,they seem to be,as I have used this before. Im sleeping on the couch tonight so I can hear Brody in his crate if he needs me. I am so sorry for the loved pets that have suffered because of some idiots trying to make some money. This stuff is TOXIC please dont use it!!
Wow, I wish I had read all of this before putting this crap on my Scottie Puppies. They are both in the age/weight range…12 weeks and 9 – 20 lbs. I put it on last night and they were going crazy this morning. I Bathed both and gave benedryl and now am taking to the Vet. How can they keep selling this stuff? I got mine at HEB grocery.
My comment goes out to “Rational Thought”
Why even bother writing anything at all? Didn’t your mother teach you any manners at all?
Your comments are completely rude and out of line. Obviously you don’t know what you would do if your dog was dying.
Yes I sat at the computer with my sick “baby” sitting in my lap while I was typing away. I wanted to warn others about this harmful product immediately, So it did not happen to them.
Obviously you are incredibly stupid and have nothing better to do than ridicule innocent people who have had a bad experience with this product.
I have been using flea/tick medication on my 2 “babies” for 12 years now. I know how to use the product and I can read.
I did follow the directions that the manufacturer’s put on the label. They did not say to use a little to see what was going to happen. When the doctor gives you a prescription do use “just a little” to see what will happen?
Your comments made me VERY angry. My pets are members of my family and we love them as much as we love our children.
t is a shame that YOU are allowed to have pets or even children for that matter. Shame on you for being so cruel when people are in distress.
What goes around, comes around. I just wish I could be there when it does. Best of luck to you.
Quality News Reports regarding Sergeant Sufferers and their Pets:
http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Pet_Product_Investigation_Los_Angeles.html
http://wkytarchives.com/watch?v=3499
Please log your complaint on Consumer Affairs Website to warn others and so that their Lawyers can help us!
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/pets/sergeants.html
Thank you!
Lorraine a Sergeant Sufferer for Life
Yesterday I applied Sergeant’s Gold Flea & Tick monthly treatment to my 55 lb lab/chow mix. He was on his side when I applied it, so it looked like it didn’t go down the middle of his back, but towards his side where he might could have licked it. Today he started drooling heavily and then vomited about four times. It was white and foamy. He acted like he was miserable. It has been a few hours and he looks like he is getting much better. I took him for a walk and he was jaunty as ever. He is still drooling more then usual, but other effects seem to be going away. If it does that to a larger dog I’d hate to see what it could do to a smaller. I’m never touching a Sergeant product again.
I used Sergeants Silver Flea and Tick on my two chihuahuas. They are both now at the vet with itchy skin and both are having trouble walking. I have placed a call in to an attorney in my town. I will be filing a class action lawsuit against this company if there is anyone out there who would like to join me.
Sergeants Flea and Tick – EXTREMELY DANGEROUS–DO NOT USE!! Our Jack Russells, Daphne and Lola are victims of Sergeants Flea and Tick treatment. After spending $500 in a week on the girls for inoculations and other health care needs, I was trying to save a little money. We applied Sergeants flea and tick protection the day before boarding. Both girls began to twitch and appeared itchy. Daphne really became itchy by that night, so I wet a paper towel and wiped the area thoroughly to dilute the application. They appeared ok that night, so we took them to board early in the morning. We picked the girls up 24 hrs later, brought them home and gave them a bath as I always do after boarding. When I wet Lola I noticed she had 2 very irritated spots on both her shoulders about the size of a quarter. After bathing she continued to scratch the areas until they bled. I called the vet and explained I thought they were having an allergice reaction. I asked how much Benedryl they could have. 1/2 tablet was the dosage for a 15 lb dog. It was little help for poor Lola. We wrapped an ace bandage around her and taped it in place to stop her from continuing to scratch, hoping allowing the wounds to heal would be enough. We have had to do this before to stop the dogs from irritating a wound. By that night Daphne was rolling and scraping herself on everything trying to itch, everywhere. Seemed like her entire skin itched. In the morning my husband researched this product online. He saw another customer was advised by Sergeants emergency to wash the dogs in Dawn dish soap 3 times consecutively. It seems to have helped “a little.” I feel terrible! The girls are our babies and are treated like queens. We took them into the vet at the next available appt. Their vet expense was almost $200, more than eliminate any savings, which is nothing compared to seeing our girls suffering. Non of us has had much sleep with these dogs whinning and itching all night. They have been miserable!!! This product needs to be taken off of the shelf NOW – before it kills! Our vet said, they have been seeing terrible reactions to animals by this product for years. Hartz is very aware of the problem but places profit ahead of correcting their product. Tell everyone you know not to use this product for cats or dogs of any size!!!! In some cases the neurological damage is permanent. There are many negative testimonials. Just Google this product. Cats are having even more severe reactions. I will never trust Hartz again.
dude this product is bs. i just put it on my dog like arround 2 pm and its being weirdd i already took it a bathh and i hope she feels ok tomorrow. this product should be banned from all storess and sued for making a product like this one. i wil never ever use it again.
Well………i to have had a horrific episode with this seargents flea and tic med. My dog went absolutely insane after about an hour, he was running thru the house as if he was on crack, shaking his head, rubbing his back and head on anything he could, was walking non stop, digging his entire dog bed apart, just digging, was up all night, throwing up, crying, whinning. So terrbily sad, this product should not be even sold period. What an aweful experience…
I thought also that I would try the Sergeants gold flea and tick drops as of the price of Frontline was a little too much for me at this time..What a fool I was, applied one application to my Elly Mae (73 LB lab/husky) who has never been sick a day in her almost 3 years. With in about 2 hours she was acting weird, antsy, nervous, snapping at the air and rubbing on anything, her tail which is a thick lab tail was swollen, thought she was stung by a wasp or something..The worse was when her throat was irritated and she couldn’t swallow water, kept running out her mouth..The itching and scratching was driving her crazy..Called the hotline said she was probably poisoned, to bathe her in dish soap which I did (joy), lots of cool water, she is a big girl and hates the bathtub, but once I got her in she let me bathe her, skin irritated..This was on Monday 6-1, it is now Saturday 6-6 and she still shows signs of irritation, which I soak her down in wet cool towels. Was going to take her to Emergency vet Monday nite, but she didn’t want to go for a ride which is not her, she always wants to go..So I cuddled with her on the living room floor, not much sleep..I am a single woman, Elly is my companion, friend, my lifetime buddy..It makes me very angry to know that I used a product from a reputable company(so I thought) and poisoned my friend..This product needs to be removed from the shelves and a class action law suits needs to be filed..If they can remove tomatoes, lettuce, that are bad, and remove stuff from over countries on our shelves that harm our childen and pets, what is so wrong here that we can’t get these products out of our stores. Angry pet lover in Idaho..
I wish I would have found this website before using that “poison” on my dog and cat. My dog and cat both suffered symptoms from this product, and my poor little dog is still tearing his ears apart and biting his feet. I washed him in Dawn and gave him Benadryl. Is there anything else that anybody has found to be effective in relieving the itching and should he see a vet? Thanks for any advice.
Sorry about your pups ! Hope they are better now ! It’s sad how all these companies just don’t care and keep making products that are poisonous to animals . Natural products are best in animal care . Keep your animals safe , do the research everyone. There is many things you can do for your animals health and welfare that does not involve chemicals. Stop supporting products that can harm your pets !
Please see all these TV Reports!!!
When is Sergeant going to own up to knowingly causing cruelty to Animals? They are making a profit off the suffering of Pets and Pet Parents!
Http://wkytarchives.com/watch?v=3499
http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Pet_Product_Investigation_Los_Angeles.html
http://www.myfoxdfw.com/dpp/entertainment/pets/SpotOn_Flea_Tick_Meds_Investi
http://www.thebostonchannel.com/video/19425432/index.html
Sergeant Stop the Suffering or be Stopped,
Lorraine
HQ TESTING
If i would of known this product better? Maybe my
“CHITA” woud’nt be suffering at this time.
I’m going to try BENADRYL and washing her down
with some dish washing saop. THANK YOU VERY
MUCH FOR HELPFULL COMMENTS
I too wish I had seen this website prior to using product on my dogs. I used it on 7 dogs!! This past Sunday night was horrible. Dogs vomiting, shaking, one went into full grand mal seizure, and much itching and scratching. I ended up bathing them all a total of 4 times, dosing all on Benadryl and then some Prednisone when that wasn’t enough for the itch. I missed a full day from work to stay home and take care of them. And as luck would have it, my tiny Pom is one of the 2% of dogs that actually becomes overstimulated from Benadryl. He’s been awake for almost 48 hours now, but is showing signs of improvement. All the animals are still itchy and if not better, are headed for the vet for steroid injections. I called the useless customer service number on the package for this horrible product and was told that this type of reaction is highly unusual. Yeah, sure..right. I have since submitted a scathing letter to the company and to Petsmart for selling this worthless crap. While I am not a litigious person, I think a class action lawsuit is in order against this manufacturer. Horrible product and worse people for continuing to market something they know is so dangerous.
TESTING AGAIN
Testing
WD TEST
Dear Lorraine,
My name is Kelly and I work for Sergeant’s Pet Care Products. I’ve noticed online that you’ve posted in a great number of places, but in checking our records carefully, it appears that you have never contacted our Consumer Affairs department to report your pet’s reaction to Sergeant’s Gold Flea and Tick Squeeze-On for Dogs. We encourage any pet owner whose pet has experienced a reaction to any of our products to report this to us as soon as possible. We address each case individually and carefully and, as all responsible companies do, report all reactions to the EPA.
I believe this was stressed in responses posted to you on several blogs by others from Sergeant’s over the past 11 months. So, once again, I would strongly recommend that you contact Consumer Affairs immediately to report your case. The fact that so much time has elapsed is not an issue – we always want to hear from pet owners who have experienced reactions so we can confirm, validate, investigate and assist with their case.
Dear Lorraine, Part 2
In reviewing the numerous posts you have written, I did notice one extremely important fact. In your original post on hartzvictims.org from August 31, 2008, you stated:
You also posted the same information on approximately 30 other sites.
Sergeant’s has made it a priority to educate pet owners about the serious dangers overdosing a pet presents. Flea and tick shampoo (or Flea Soap, as you referred to it), is also a powerful pesticidal product. All such shampoos and soaps contain pesticidal active ingredients. Using both a flea and tick shampoo and a squeeze-on or spot-on product, or even in combination with other flea and tick on-animal sprays, on-animal powders or collars, is extremely dangerous. The smaller the dog, the more possible that making this mistake will cause a reaction.
It appears from your comments that you used ‘flea soap’, then applied Sergeant’s Gold Flea and Tick Squeeze-On for Dogs, and then again used ‘flea soap’. It likely that the problem in the case of your two Pugs was caused by such an overdose. You were correct to state that this was not an allergic reaction. By using both products, it is likely you administered an overdose to the dogs.
Dear Lorraine, Part 3
In another post in November, 2008, you stated:
Sergeant’s launched the Look at the Label campaign in 2005, before Sergeant’s Gold was launched into the market, because we recognized that pet owners were often not aware of how vitally important proper and accurate application of the product is. As you stated you had done, we saw that pet owners were using multiple on-animal pesticidal products at one time, causing an overdose, or misapplying the product in other ways. Based on consumer contacts, we saw that many pet owners were unintentionally making these errors. This is not an issue of blame, but simply an acknowledgment of one cause of reactions. There are, of course, some pets (though a very small percentage) who do have sensitivities or allergic reactions to the product. As a company, we are dedicated to addressing both of these.
Our motivation in producing the Look at the Label site was to protect pets. We wanted to educate pet owners as rapidly as possible, so that fewer pets would suffer because of misuse. We have been dedicated to pet health for more than 140 years, and that is still our main concern. We hope that more and more consumers will visit the Look at the Label site to educate themselves before applying any of our squeeze-on products: Sergeant’s Gold Flea and Tick Squeeze-On for Dogs, Sergeant’s Gold Flea and Tick Squeeze-On for Cats, Sergeant’s Silver Flea and Tick Squeeze-On for Dogs, Sergeant’s Silver Flea and Tick Squeeze-On for Cats, Sentry Pro XFC Squeeze-On for Dogs, and Purrscriptions Plus Squeeze-On for Cats and Kittens.
Dear Lorraine, Part 4
In many of your posts, you seem to support the use of spot-on products available through vets. It is important to understand that all flea and tick products – those sold only by vets as a part of their business and those sold over-the-counter directly to consumers – must meet the same safety and efficacy standards and are under the same scrutiny by the EPA. In fact, some of these “veterinary spot-on products” are now available over-the-counter in large chain retailers as well.
The EPA has recently announced that they are reviewing all spot-on products – veterinary-sold and over-the-counter. The list of products being reviewed due to reports of reactions included both over-the-counter brands like Sergeant’s Gold Flea and Tick Squeeze-On for Dogs, and veterinary-sold products, like Frontline (the product you mentioned in several of your posts.) We are in full support of this EPA review and all such reviews that help ensure pet safety. Again, this is why it is so vital that you report your experience to our Consumer Affairs department, even after this long period of time has elapsed. Every report helps the process overall.
There are several articles that have recently appeared online that help to put all of these issues into perspective. Veterinarians and veterinary professional organizations have come forward to publicly support the use of spot-on products to control fleas and ticks and help pets avoid the diseases they carry.
Dear Lorraine, Part 5
On June 3, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) released their stance as well, based upon their own research on this issue. They stressed that following package label directions is vital to protecting pets, and that spot-on products provide a high level of protection for pets, as well as a low risk of any serious reaction. Here are some quotes from the release:
Dear Lorraine, Part 6
The Companion Animal Parasite Council (CAPC), an independent council of veterinarians and other animal health care professionals, released their official stance on this issue on May 13. Here is a bit of what they had to say:
Again Lorraine, I strongly encourage you to report your specific case to our Consumer Affairs department at 800-224-7387.
Kelly
Sergeant’s Pet Care Products, Inc.
Very Delighted to see the attention!
My only wish would be that “All” Pet Parents and Pets who have suffered or are suffering today along with those who will definitely be suffering tomorrow at the hands of Sergeant’s Pet Care Products, Inc
would receive that much energy and communication.
Kelly, you read the same countless pet suffering cases I have read while you were searching for my web messages. You saw the TV New Reports.
Please tell me while you were passionately writing me you took others Sergeant “customers” experiences to Heart and with consideration.
You know there is something wrong with Sergeant’s OTC Flea products or why would your job be necessary or be in defensive mode.
Your response to me reinforces my belief that Sergeant’s Pet Care Products, Inc and their Representatives are “knowingly” causing Cruelty to animals. You read the evidence in the countless cases and yet
continue to keep your product on the market. One Pet suffering is enough. Your company attended the May 5th EPA meeting which showed statistics of the cases reported and deaths.
Please everyone read this PDF file. Sergeant knows.
http://epa.gov/pesticides/health/spot-on-meeting-may2009.pdf
Coupled with the horrific experience of watching your Pet suffer, Sergeant’s Pet Care Products, Inc is creating great financial hardships (emergency vet visits and medications) for their customers
during a time when Good People who love their Pets cannot afford one more bad thing to happen to them.
Sergeant’s Products were taken off the shelves at the Walmart in my region, that makes me extremely happy to know one more innocent Pet or hard working loving family will not have to suffer while your company makes a financial profit.
My only hope is that your pursuit of finding my postings all over the web allowed you to see all the daily reactions being logged.
Please take these sites to your Management:
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/pets/sergeants.html
http://journal.drfaulken.com/problems-with-sentrypro-xfc-flea-and-tick-medication/
http://www.hartzvictims.org/2008/01/28/danger-sergeants-gold-flea-and-tick-squeeze-on-2/
http://aspcacommunity.ning.com/forum/topics/do-not-use-sergeants-gold-flea
Along with the four TV News Reports listed above.
Then Kelly, you will understand it is not about me, it is about what your company’s product is doing daily to cause suffering and deaths to pets.
Appreciate the attention,
Lorraine a Sergeant Sufferer for Life
sign the petition to STOP this dangerous product…
http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/sentryproXFC
Thanks, Mike!!
Tucker signed! How many more need to become ill or die – this product needs to go!!
Unfortunatly I read this website too late!!!… I have a 56 lb. dog so we bought the Sergeants gold flea and tick for 40-60lbs, an hour after applying this to our dog she started pacing around the house while drooling, itching and licking herself . We decided to bathe her and she was still itching and running around the house drooling, we went online and found this website, we again bathed her but with dishsoap this time and monitored her for hours.
What can we all do to get this product taken off the shelves!!!! Our dogs lives are in danger using this product!!!
can a dog take a shower after it has taken flea med?
because i am afraid that the med will stop working
I have also experienced the negative effects of Sergeants Flea Drops product this weekend!!! It was the scariest thing that I have had to deal with. I applied the flea drops to both my cats Egypt and Sphynx, about 5 hours later they were both having Grand Mal Seizures, unresponsive and getting IV drip, valium, morphine and steroid injctions. I contacted the company that was absolutlely NO HELP!!!!! I did report my case and am in the process of getting my paperwork together to make them pay this bill that piled up to almost $1,000 in 2 days. My cats still are not back to normal and the vet said that they may never be normal again. My 14 year old daughter was so scared that she actually ran upstairs to hide in the bathroom. The cats were running into the walls and could not control themselves. I have tried contacting the company with no response.
I just used this on two small dogs this weekend. Within an hr of application they were running up and down the stairs, sliding their backs on the rug and outside and scratching like they had a ton of fleas. They had no fleas prior to using this product. I am so glad I bathed both in less than 2 hrs of application, it was if they were being burned where it was applied. How horrible that a product does this and is stil being sold. I will NEVER use Sergeabt’s products again. Three days later they are both still itching their backs and acting like they are trying to get away from something. Now I know why. I made this purchase in summer of 2009 at Walmart in Ohio.
Oh how I wish I had gotten online and read up on Sergeants before I used it! We are currently going through the same thing and I was so worried, still am. Last night I applied the flea drops and a couple of hours later he was scratching at his ears a lot, licking constantly, unabe to lie still, drank lots of water, ate food but also threw up. He couldnt sleep at all last night he was twitching and shifting position constantly; his ears are also just fluttering nonstop. He is still iching at his ears and shaking his head a lot, I only was able to bathe him this morning. I am hoping the affects are subsiding but now his breathing is starting to not sound so great :/
Update: 24 hours later, Chalupa is better but not 100 % I called Sergeants and was basically told “sorry, these things happen.” I also will be doing all I can to help take this poison off the market. They are knowingly causing cruelty and deaths to innocent pets and causing much grief for the people who love them and would never wish them harm like this.
My cats Kiwi & Foxy
I don’t see many posts here about the effects of Sergeant’s Gold for cats- but I am very upset right now. I have two beautiful cats, Kiwi & Foxy who both started scratching today. I live in Florida and thought it might be No-seeums or fleas. They are indoor cats but spend alot of time outside on my screened-in porch (lanai). (No-seeums are known to go thru screens and once bitten can cause an itchy rash on people.) I saw this product in the Publix grocery store & thought it would work fine. Unfortunately- what I forgot is in the past my vet applied flea repellant during an exam. Big mistake. I first applied it to little Foxy who is just 5 lbs (the minimum) but is a year and a half old. Thank God her fur is long and most of the application sat on top of her fur as I didn’t realize I needed to part her hair so it would reach the skin. She started racing around & howling, hyperventilating and hiding from me. I figured she didn’t like the smell and would be fine once it dried. Meanwhile, I emailed a friend who immediately replied and warned me it could be poisonous to her. I wish I’d done this online research beforehand, but I’d never heard about bad reactions to flea products before so it never occurred to me. I have since bathed her head & neck 3 times with Joy dish soap and she seems to be much better and resting OK. She actually sat very still for me and seemed happy to be bathed. She ate a big bowl of wet food and drank alot of water. So I will keep an eye on her overnight and will take her to my vet in the morning if she isn’t back to her playful self. She is very lethargic now and just wants to rest- not like her at all. My older tomcat, Kiwi weighs 14 pounds and except for a lot of scratching around his head and ears seems OK. I washed it off of his head too just in case. I think this dosage was too much for my little Foxy. I hope this horrible product hasn’t caused any damage or injured my sweet cats. I was only trying to help them. And at $10 for 3 little tubes I didn’t think I was being cheap. It’s just been a while since any of my indoor cats have needed a product like this so I forgot it was administered by my vet in the past. Thanks so much for all of this information. I recently lost a two-year old cat due to an overdose of anesthesia and I certainly cannot bear the pain of losing another cat due to the neglect of others. Kelly K.
Wow – I am so glad I found this information out before I bought it. Was looking up the best flea medicine for my cat and I almost bought some of this stuff at walmart yesterday but decided to check it out online first….SERGEANTS WILL NOT BE HAVING MY MONEY! I have the most heartfelt sympathy for those of you who have lost loved ones. =( Seargents needs to be taken out.
Here’s what happened when I used this TOXIC POISON!!!:
I ran out of Frontline and was at the grocery store when I saw that Sergeants was on sale. I thought “oh, this is a little cheaper, I’ll try it and save a trip to the vet to pick up Frontline.” It occured to me that maybe it wouldn’t keep my dogs flea-free for quite as long, but out of convenience and cost, I just thought I’d give it a try. I put the medication on both my dogs (11 to 15 lb. dachshunds) and went to bed. The next day, I noticed that one of my dogs was acting quite sleepy and just kind of moping around all day. He can be moody, so I thought maybe the clouds and cooler weather just made him feel like snoozing on the couch. When he did get up and walk around, he kept licking his paws. (which I later learned is related to nerve damage) Then he started drooling. I mean REALLY drooling. And this dog never drools, ever. This is when I knew something was terribly wrong. I googled “sergeants gold” and found all of this terrible information about people’s dogs becoming really sick after having the flea medication applied. All of the lethargy, paw licking and drooling were because my dog was having a reaction the flea medication. I knew the toxic Sergeants was already in his bloodstream at this point, because it had been 24 hours, but the advice given was to wash him off to get rid of anything that might still be sitting on the hair and skin, and to get him to drink lots of water. I did both of these things. He kept trying to scratch at the area where I had applied the mediation, and couldn’t reach it, so he scratched his side raw trying to get at the sensitive spot.
When I took my dog to the vet to have the raw spot shaved and cleaned, they gave him a steroid shot to help with the itching and the healing process. When I told the vet tech my story, she said “Oh, yeah, that stuff is really bad for pets, I don’t know why they sell it. And it’s fatal to about 10% of cats whose owners apply it.”
I may have saved a trip to the vet’s office and about $33 on flea medication, but then I made my dog endure this pain and suffering and spent $160 on the vet bill and the shirt that my dog had to wear for 2 weeks until his raw spot healed. It may be tempting to save a buck, but believe me, it’s not. Granted, not all dogs get sick. In fact, my smaller dog showed no symptoms at all. But it’s just not worth the risk. Please do not buy Sergeants products and please help spread the word. Thanks for reading.
August 2009 Consumer Affairs Article! by Susan Wade McCormick
Very Detailed and Well Written!!! Must read! 5 pages!
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2009/08/fleatick.html
EPA site:
http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/health/flea-tick-control.html
http://epa.gov/pesticides/health/spot-on-meeting-may2009.pdf
Consumer Reports site:
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/pets/sergeants.html
4 News Reports below:
http://wkytarchives.com/watch?v=3499
http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Pet_Product_Investigation_Los_Angeles.html http://www.myfoxdfw.com/dpp/entertainment/pets/SpotOn_Flea_Tick_Meds_Investi http://www.thebostonchannel.com/video/19425432/index.html
I tried Sergeant’s Gold Squeeze-On for my medium sized dog (55 lbs), IN SPITE of many negative posts. It appears to be a wonderful product has had NO NEGATIVE side effects and kills fleas like crazy. I was using FL Plus but it had become as effective as putting water on the dog. The fleas jumped, crawled and had a very good time but none died.
Sergeant’s Gold is a very GOOD product, VERY effective, Very good price!
I LOVE MY DOG, RUSTY!!
Maynard, thank dogness! You appear to be one of the lucky pups, but too many dogs and cats have had serious, if not fatal, reactions to the product.
Why is this allowed on the market without further understanding why dogs and cats have had such lethal reactions?
Another horror story for my two dogs.
Without going into all the horrific details my two dogs became violently ill just last night after I applied this Sergeant Gold POISON to them. I applied to the back of the neck and base of their tails. They ingested it by licking it off. Its been 12 hours adn they are finally doing better but was up all night and scarred to death. The directions should say only apply to base of neck because if they injest it they may die as the ingediaents are poison. I feel like an idiot but i wil NEVER by this product or use any other of the type, going natural. It is a crime that products like these are allowed to be sold with all the regulation we have and they wont stop the selling of unknowing poison to conusmers. Thank God for the internet and sites like this maybe other can read and not make the mistake I made.
Hi. In researching Sargents I came across this post and had to comment. I, too, used the Gold Flea applciation for medium dogs and within hours of applying it my dog was very restless, anxious, would get up and down, wouldn’t stay still. I didn’t notice her drooling like others have mentioned but she was up all night. The only way I could get her to sleep would be to rub her back and neck, and that would only last a little while until she started getting up again and pacing around. She kept biting at her back/hind end. We called the vet around 9 p.m. and she said to bathe her. We did but it didn’t really make a difference. At about 5 this morning she finally calmed down enough for both of us to sleep.
I can’t believe Sargeants is still on the market, either, give the reactions that many pet owners have reported. Will never use again.
Follow-up to my earlier post about my 2 cats- I spoke to my vet the next day. He told me I dodged a bullet & bathing my cats with dish soap probably saved their lives. He said baby shampoo works well also. He has seen many cats die from this product & said this product has been removed from the store shelves a number of times but somehow keeps ending up back on the shelves. They use a different name for the poisonous chemical and no one is the wiser. It is basically a pesticide.
I returned the product to Publix & spoke to a manager. She was very dis-interested and didn’t want other customers to overhear our conversation. She took the box & unused tubes & said she’d send them to ‘corporate’ & refunded my $10. I’m sure she did no such thing as the product is still sold there. I turn the box around & hide it way in the back of the shelf every time I go there… maybe I will save a cats life… I am going to write some letters to Publix, Seargants, the EPA and BBB, to name a few. It’s time to put a stop this!
I too bought this trying to save money for my 12 pound bichon. Right after putting it on him he went nuts running, crying and scratching. He was foaming and puked all over our house. I bathed him twice no help. Called then bathed twice in Dawn. Still nothing. After about 5 hrs I went to the er vet to only find this happens all the time with this brand. They had to shave one spot where he had scratched so much made a sore. Now 4 days later his hair is still falling out. He is almost back to normal besides the hair loss but I am so upset that this could have killed my babies pet. This needs to be removed from shelves everywhere.
I also bought this poison at the local grocery store. I applied it to my shih tzu after I gave him a bath and about 1 hour later, he started itching the spot where I had applied it and rubbing his ears on the floor. A little later, he seemed to be twitching uncontrollably. I called the emergency vet and they told me to bathe him again immediatly and to bring him in. The vet gave him a shot of benedryl and he seemed to be doing a little bit better. When we got home, he continued with the same behavior and did not sleep all night. I can see that he’s tired and trying to sleep, but the twitching keeps him awake. I feel soooo bad about applying this crap to my little guy, I stayed up all night with him while he cried and twitched. My husband stayed home with him today, we will be taking him back to the vet this afternoon. I’m thinking of printing out some labels to warn people about this stuff and applying them to the boxes in the stores until this crap is OFF the market.
I had a major problem with this Sargeants liquid flea remover I put on my 8 yr old rat terrier two days ago. She got her back burned and she is twitching and shaking her head. I am really scared and have done what they told me, bath her three times in dishwashing liquid and put vitamen E on her. I want to start a campaign against this Sargeant Company somehow, I dont care about the money, just want to get this product off the shelf. They should also give better warning signs on the label. My email is rlimmass04@yahoo.com if anyone can help. I pray my Gabby is going to be OK, I am sorry I ever did this. Doris, I hope your dog is OK too. I would like to join the sticker campagain if you want to start one.
Oh Maynard,
You got lucky this time.
I applied Sergeant’s flea medication to my little girl, Tasha a chihuahua on Monday 09/05/09.It took about 5 hours for her to react by twitching, itching and having trouble swallowing. I have done a lot of search for information to help her. I call Sergeant’s and followed their directions for Tasha. She is quiet today and this is the first day she has not seem agitated. I have been giving her water spiked with chicken broth.
I’m sick to my stomach that I almost lost my 3 year-old Shih Tzu the other day (on my birthday)! I used the Sergeant’s Gold flea and tick squeeze-on my little Sammy and within an hour she wouldn’t sit still, was acting strange and I knew something was wrong when I thought she was wheezing. My husband and I gave her a bath and watched her. I had to take her to the emergency vet at midnight because she was having trouble breathing. The vet gave her a steriod shot and five Prednisone tablets. She is still not out of the woods, but apparently she was poisoned by this product. Please, DO NOT USE IT! I have written to the company to tell them what happened and I want them to pay my vet bill. I am afraid this product may have done some permanent damage to my dog. My e-mail address is sherrikuebler@verizon.net. Anyone, please write me if you can think of a way to get this crap off the market!
Same thing happened to our lovely cockapoo Zorra. It is a week now and $1,500 later. She spent the night in an animal hospital with an IV in and is still having reactions a week later. She seemed better, but after her first bath she is crying and scratching everywhere. I am taking her in to her regular vet this afternoon. I am so worried about her. What can we do to get this Sergeants OFF The selves?