Help! Fleas!!

[lizziegrace]

Help! Flea advice needed. We've got fleas on both indoor cats. Gracie (9 years old) was treated with Capstar and Frontline. Widget (almost 18) wasn't treated with either. The vet was afraid with his advanced age, the treatments my cause harm or death. He's become flea central. I comb him every day and he's still scratching like crazy. Any advice? It's killing me to see how miserable he is. (And all the bedding's been washed daily and I vacuum twice a day.) Between this and no water for 3 days due to a well pump failure, I'm losing my mind. (Not to mention what it's done to my torn rotator cuff...)

Thanks...

[Inchworm]

1. Green Palmolive works on kitties

We used it at Humane Society for even the smallest ones.

The "cat people" make it look easy to give a cat a bath. I've never tried.

Lather the kitty up with Palmolive and let it stay on her for 5min then rinse. It sounds like you are already doing the rest... vacumming and washing :)

G'luck Lizziegrace

:hug:

[lizziegrace]

2. I'll try that as soon as we have water again

The pump is working, I replaced the filters that clogged immediately from the silt and now one is leaking all over the basement. Landlord should be here later today to try and get it sealed.

We combed him yesterday when it was 70 with a damp flea comb (dunking the comb in water to drown the fleas) and he shivered so badly. This is breaking my heart. Poor old man.

:hug: for the advice. I'll try it this afternoon.

[applegrove]

28. I tried to give my small cat a bath one time and she screamed bloody murder. The older cat came

running into the bathroom growling.

[flvegan]

3. Add a pinch of garlic powder to their food bowl.

Not garlic SALT but garlic powder. And by a pinch, I mean just that...a pinch. I give it 48 hours, maybe 3 days.

[lizziegrace]

4. I'll do that

he eats canned food now. Should be easy to add.

Will the garlic kill the fleas or just make him a disgusting host to the fleas?

Thanks!

[flvegan]

12. It actually repels them.

Here we have 10 dogs, 2 cats, 0 fleas.

[SOteric]

14. Garlic and onions are toxic to cats

and should never be used on older cats or cats with sensitive kidneys. Be VERY careful with this if you're going to try it.

[Rhiannon12866]

17. Excellent point! Garlic and onions are toxic to both cats and dogs, but cats are more sensitive...

General Information
Garlic and onion are used as flavor enhancers in food. Some human baby foods have onion in them, and it is not recommended to feed them to pets. In dogs and cats, garlic and onion can cause Heinz body anemia, resulting in a breakdown of the red blood cells and anemia. The very small amounts of garlic that are present in some commercial pet foods have not been shown to cause any problems.

The bulbs, bulbets, flowers, and stems of the garlic and onion are all poisonous.

Toxic Dose
Unknown. Cats appear to be more sensitive than dogs.

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=1&aid=2414

[flvegan]

24. That's why I specified using just a pinch.

The amount of garlic powder a cat would have to eat to be toxic is of a level no cat would likely touch. Or even go near.

[lizziegrace]

33. I used a tiny pinch for a small can

and he loved it. He's actually gaining some weight now that his food tastes good to him.

I try to vacuum twice a day and he gets flea-combed at least twice a day. Gracie is doing well on Frontline Plus and Lelapin hasn't gotten any new flea bites for several days. They lover her and leave me and that Zombie character she loves alone.

[hippywife]

5. Sweep boric acid all over the floors or

food grade diatomaceous earth (please use a mask for either.) Let it set for a day or so. Vacuum up with moth balls in the vacuum cleaner bag.

It should start getting cool enough for the fleas to settle down shortly.

Wishing you lots of luck. :hug:

[MiniMe]

6. Diatomaceous earth

You can get food grade and it gets rid of fleas. Note - I am not advocating buying from this site, it is for information only.


http://wolfcreekranch1.tripod.com/no_flea.html

[InvisibleTouch]

30. Seconded.

It's not a toxic chemical like insecticides - it mechanically kills fleas by abrading their exoskeletons and dehydrating them. You can also sprinkle it on carpets and vacuum up later. Be sure to get the food-grade stuff and not the type used in pool filters. Just try not to breathe it in when applying, or get it around the cats' faces. It can be irritating to the lungs.

[Duer 157099]

36. I wonder how long the DE takes to kill?

I did an experiment and put a flea into a mound of pure DE, and watched it dig it's way out. I was thinking it would kill it or immobilize it immediately, but it does not. Just FYI.

[mike_c]

7. ask your vet about flea products with methaprene....

Methaprene is a flea juvenile hormone analog-- non-toxic, it interrupts flea life cycles by preventing juveniles, who do not bite, from molting to adulthood. It's an artificial version of the natural juvenile hormone that regulates flea development. No adults, no reproduction, and no new fleas. It's usually sold in formulations with a quick knock-down insecticide like pyrethrin, which shouldn't affect your kitty because it's applied in the environment rather than onto the cat. You might even be able to get preparations that omit the insecticide, although I doubt it (because it would APPEAR not to do anything-- Americans won't buy anything that doesn't have an immediate apparent effect).

[WolverineDG]

8. I'd ask again about Capstar

if they give it in half-doses to very small kittens, it should be ok for your 18 year old. But don't give it to him until you check with your vet, just to be on the safe side.

dg

[sammytko]

9. ditto for the Frontline

small dosage might be okay. poor cat

[Flaxbee]

10. Frontline didn't work AT ALL for my cats

I have no idea why. I stupidly decided to switch from Advantage to Frontline earlier this year, and man, was I sorry. I was getting bitten by fleas every other minute. It was horrid, and my poor kitties were miserable and balding from scratching and licking so much.

Anyway. I'm so sorry you and your kitties are having trouble. Get Advantage for the younger cat.

I have one older cat who can't handle either Frontline or Advantage; so what I did was get cats' fleas under control with Advantage after the Frontline-induced failure, and then for my old girl, Clarisse, I bought an organic flea shampoo and powder, gave her a bath & lightly combed in the herbal powder, and then gave her Capstar every other day for a week. It worked.

Also, here is an excellent secret: go to www.vetshoponline.com -- VASTLY cheaper prices on cat drugs -- the company is out of Australia so the products aren't nearly as $$$. I live in Virginia, and it takes about one week for the meds to get here (shipping is $5).

A 6-pack of Advantage for cats over 9lbs is $45 (as opposed to at least $65 everywhere else).

[JCMach1]

11. I used to use Skin So Soft on my old kitty...

She smelled good and kept moisturized...

[SOteric]

13. Frontline doesn't do half the job that Frontline Plus does,

but the Frontline Plus is pricey. For the one kitty who can't be dosed, continue the vacuuming and combing, but remember to take the bag out of the vacuum after each use, those little f%ckers actually can live through the vacuum and creep back into the carpet. I know kitties don't care to be washed, but a little bath in a mild soap will drown the fleas, water alone won't do it. Gotta have soap to penetrate the oils that coat their armor. Since they're indoor cats, I'd check the rest of the apartment building (assuming you live in one) to see if there's an infested pet in a nearby unit causing the problem.

[lizziegrace]

15. We're using Frontline plus on the younger cat

Also, I'm living in a rented house on 4 acres.

I've got flea killing powder in the canister of my Dyson. Hopefully that will kill the little bastards.

[WolverineDG]

19. Is the vet concerned about using Capstar & Frontline at the same time?

(sorry I didn't ask about that before but it just sprang to mind)

anyways, they do use Capstar on very small kittens, although they cut the pill in half. :) I had a set of feral kittens who were younger than the recommended age, but the vet told me she regularly uses 1/2 dose with no problems.

Ask if you can use just the Capstar on him, then Frontline a few days later. At least the Capstar would give him some relief. Poor guy! :(

dg

[lizziegrace]

22. The vet routinely uses Capstar and Frontline Plus together

The Capstar is given and a day later, Frontline is applied.

The 18 year old cat is the one who is not treated. The 10 year old cat has been treated.

I'm calling her today about the old man. There's got to be something we can do. I combed 16 fleas off him in two days. :-(

[marzipanni]

16. I suggested the use of a metal flea comb to a woman who had fleas jumping on her white socks

The static electicity stuns the fleas just long enough so that you can drown them, pinching them off of the comb with the other hand, in a jar lid with a bit of dish detergent or vaseline after each swipe, then wipe fingers on a tissue.
Wetting the comb would stop it from being static-y.
The woman I gave this advice to later told me she counted 80 (!) fleas from her black cat in the first combing session.

[emilyg]

18. I do that

twice a day.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

20. Flea shampoo can work

and washing a cat is usually great family entertainment.

Then you have to flea-bomb the whole house.

[Deep13]

21. The only thing that has ever worked for me is to "bomb" the house...

...and use a flea shampoo on the animals.

[lizziegrace]

23. We're a day away from the bomb option

We'll have to bomb all three floors.

[Locrian]

27. same here....

Tried borax, cleaning, washing etc. Nothing. Had to go with the shampoo and bombs...

[madrchsod]

25. i use lemon juice or vinegar...

[kaiden]

26. Move to Colorado. We don't have fleas out here.

[yankeepants]

29. or mold!

[Enthusiast]

31. You must use a

micro filtration vacuum cleaner. We used to vac every day trying to get rid of fleas. Nothing helped until we got a micro filtration sweeper. We also use 'Revolution' for two months then Frontline for a month-alternate. The fleas can become immune unless you alternate.

[lizziegrace]

32. Is a Dyson considered a micro filtration vacuum?

It has a HEPA filter.

[Enthusiast]

34. I believe a HEPA filter is

micro filtration. Good luck.

[lizziegrace]

35. Vacuuming twice a day and combing Widget

several times a day seem to be working. He's not scratching as much and my daughter, who seems to attract any kind of biting insect, has had no new bites for several days.

We'll keep up this routine for a few weeks and see what happens.

[grasswire]

37. remember, everyone, that fleas can kill a kitten

An infestation of fleas can give a kitten anemia and kill it.