Chester- a close call and a hope for nothing further

My precious Lab/Chihuahua mix, about a year and a half old, has been sufferring from a terrible flea allergy. Even 1 flea (that he picks up from our neighborhood dog buddies) is enough to drive him nuts for days, even after the flea has been removed. He has proven to be resistant to vet flea products such as Advantix, Revolution, and Frontline. My boyfriend and I were planning another vet visit to keep finding a good solution for him. We have been reluctant to treat the yard because we want him to be totally safe. I should have known better than to pick up Hartz. I really thought I was getting a reliable product. I was hoping that even though it’s a more outdated than the newer treatments, that it was still safe if applied properly, and perhaps mainly to the feet and tail, and sparingly elsewhere. I wish I would have thought harder, and realized that this kind of treatment is outdated for a serious reason. I just wanted to see Chester calm, itch-free, and of course flea free, and we were getting desperate. So I got a flea comb, and sprayed him outside, on his tail, his feet, all over his body, and sprayed a paper towell to coat his face. I’m HORRIFIED that I actually so deliberately applied this to my dog ALL OVER and had no idea that it was so toxic. Anyways, he started immediately trying to get the liquid off of himself, which I thought was normal. He continued trying to roll it off for about 20 minutes, and I finally put him in his bed, in hopes he would calm down. But he became increasingly restless. I really deeply felt something was not right- and kept staring directly at me, and running in circles. I did a few searches online, and was deeply heartsick and frantic about what i found. In a panic I grabbed him (he was already so tired from all the rolling and the apparent discomfort) and I saturated him with water in the tub. I vigorously bathed him, and even got in the tub myself be sure I could fully rinse him. I was just so heartsick about the potential damage I could have done. My God- why, WHY is this on the shelves????!!!! I thought it was a slightly less effective product than the pricey vet ones, but that it still worked, and I never dreamed it was this toxic. I kept reading the label and found no instructions indicating that gloves should be worn, but then discovered that if “Absorbed though the skin rinse thoroughly for 15-20 minutes”!!!!! I rinsed and rinsed and of course was also starting to wonder, if it’s THAT toxic to humans, what on earth could it be doing to pets, let alone more allergy-prone ones, like my Chester. I’m worried about his bedding and all else he came in contact with after the treatment. I’m going to remove his bedding of course, and I’ll have to dispose of the Hartz stuff at the toxic waste drop off.

The night is not over. He was immediately calmer after the bath- acted happy and normal. But now he is resting. He seems to be fine- he’s not lethargic, but is resting. I just hope that NO further damage is done. I can’t believe what happened. I can’t believe how stupid it was to put that on him and i especially will never get over how evil it is that this product is still being sold. The indication is that it’s cost-saving, and worth a try. The results could be the loss of your beloved pet.