over the counter tick/flea meds

[Diane]

What over the counter, non prescrip flea or flea/tick treatment works for an outdoor rabbit?

[Bam]

Whatever you choose, DO NOT USE FRONTLINE (fipronil)!!!

This is a warning we always give, Fipronil is deadly to rabbits. It should say so obn the package, but since it’s such a widely-used, easy-to-get anti-parasitic, there is a risk that someone might try it on their bun, it works so well with dogs.

There is no really safe OTC alternative for bunnies, but there is some evidence that permethrin is ok to use. http://www.jarvm.com/articles/Vol4Iss4/Hansen-Beck.pdf

I have used it on one of my buns against fur-mites (cheyletiella), and it was very effective. My bun didn’t have any adverse reaction. If an animal has an adverse reaction, it as a rule happens soon after application, and what you need to do is bathe the bunny to get the medication off (bunnies should otherwise never be bathed of course). So keep a basin of lukewarm water ready in case sth untowards occur. It very rarely happens but it can, with dogs too. Permethrin must never be used on cats.Permethrin is sold as Ex-spot, a spot-on preparation for dogs. Calculate the dosage per body-weight as if your bun were a small dog, then give even less (that’s what I did, I used a tiny drop at the nape of my bun’s neck. I was adviced to do so by a local breeder, back in the day when I was clueless about buns). Permethrin is effective against ticks as well as mites.

The safest choice for a bun is Selamectin (Revolution, Stronghold), but it’s prescription only and not available in all countries. Ivermectin is safe too, but as a rule that too is prescription only and needs to be given as an injection. Selamectin/Ivermectin is not effective against the most common ticks in Europe.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

I honestly would never use an OTC med on any dog/cat or rabbit. I would see the vet for your prescription. I recently saw someone on facebook using an OTC wormer on their dog-they ended up having to go to the vet with a bigger issue then they started with as they actually didn’t know what was wrong (because they aren’t vets) so they treated the wrong issue and still had to go into the vet; I’d always err on the side of caution and see the vet

[LBJ10]

If you’re doing this for prevention and you are already established with the vet, you often don’t need an appointment to buy Revolution. Just call your vet and say, hey I would like some Revolution for my bunny. They should let you just come pick it up.

[Bam]

The best thing is of course always to consult with a vet, I do want to stress that. You want a bunny-safe med that is effective against the parasites that are common in your area. This varies a lot of course, both with what continent your on and what part of the continent.
Revolution is safe and effective against lots of nasty parasites, and as LBJ points out, it can often be prescribed empirically, I e without doing tests on the bun first. That’s how safe it is.

[EmbersMummy]

I’ve always used Beapher mite/flea/tick medicine, I live in the UK and it’s extremely cheap about £3.50 and specifically designed for rabbits. You get three pipetes in the packet and covers them for up to 4 months. Safe to say my family of buns have never had mites fleas of ticks

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