Bob Martin Flea Products

Who's up for a little controversy? Yes please!

I read a blog recently that really ticked me off. It made me hopping mad. The writer was a right blood sucker. Insert other parasite related pun here. The author (claiming to be a qualified vet nurse) was publically bashing the entire range of Bob Martin flea products. Now this means one of two things: 1) This particular vet nurse is horribly mis-informed about the contents of the products she is talking about or 2) She is absolutely offensively ignorant and needs to have her RQP status revoked.

Now throughout this little (slightly ranty) post please bear in mind that I do actually hold an AMTRA certified SQP qualification. For those out there who don't know what this means: I have sat through several exams and a few months of study in order to be able to supply (and in some cases prescribe although this is very unusual) animal medicines that are categorised as NFA-VPS or POM-VPS. In terms of human life, you can buy certain types of medication off the shelf in Boots, but for other kinds, you need a pharmacist to dish them out after he asks a few questions. Believe it or not, this system also is in place for animals! I would never claim to have passed the same level of training as a pharmacist, but it's just a relatable example for you. Now the reason I mention this is that I have a vested interest in the contents of animal medication. On a daily basis I have to talk to people and make the judgement whether people are using the correct product or if they are going to be able to use it properly.

But let's get back to Bob Martin. Our previously mentioned blogger wrote a post claiming that ALL Bob Martin flea products were horribly dangerous and should never be sold again. The author claimed that ALL Bob Martin products killed cats and it is terrible that nothing has been done about this. Shall we poke a few holes? Yes, I think we shall.

Type Bob Martin into google. Go on. Yes, you will certainly find a lot of reviews claiming that Bob Martin products have caused terrible reactions in cats leading to fits, death etc. But what we need to do is bear in mind what is actually being talked about. The product in question is Bob Martin's "Spot On" (not to be confused with spot on as a term for all treatments that are a pipette applied to the back of the neck). The product used to contain a flea killing chemical called Permethrin, and yes it is toxic to cats. In fact the product no longer contains this. At this point you probably think I'm not really making the case I think I am, but please bear with!

Ok so yes, Bob Martin had a product which was labelled for use with cats and contained low levels of Permethrin. But is it accurate to label Bob Martin as the only brand with this? NO! Of course not! In fact many other suppliers also use Permethrin. Next time you are out and about, have a look at all flea sprays / powders / spot ons and see exactly how many of them contain this ingredient. I think you'll be surprised.

Now in the last year or so, Bob Martin released a new flea spot on called "Flea Clear". Now this is COMPLETELY different to their "Spot On" product. It contains a flea killing ingredient called Fipronil. Heard of it before? Yes, I'm sure you have; it's in Frontline.

Before your jaw hits the floor, this isn't a lie. In the last few years Fipronil based flea products have been on the rise, and now the classification on them has been downgraded to AVM-GSL (which means that ANYONE can sell them, not just qualified persons!). Having said this, Frontline remains one of those products that you have to be qualified to supply so please don't think you can just go get it off the shelf!

You  may have already gathered then, but Bob Martin's Flea Clear and Frontline is essentially the same product. NOW your jaw can hit the floor. I would refer back to our blogging vet nurse - so if ALL Bob Martin products kill cats, does Frontline too? *cough* I win. To be serious, my point is that it is the responsibility of those in the animal care profession to fully understand and communicate the true facts about our suppliers and their products before making sweeping statements.

For my part I am using Bob Martin's Flea Clear on my Luna and have done so on my cats too. None of them are currently dead, though I can't say the same for any parasites that have tried to latch on! For this reason, I give Bob Martin's Flea Clear a 9/10! Good job guys, good job.