Having a cat with an allergy to fleas is very sad. He would swell up, and break out all over, besides the flea bites. I tried the flea collars for my cat and that made him sick. My vet suggested Comfortis for my cat. I would grind up the pill and mix it with butter and stick that in his mouth. If he gave me a hard time, I would wipe the pill/butter mixture on his front legs. He would lick it up and end up taking it while he cleaned himself.
I have tried other expensive brands with the drops, it helped a lot but didn't do as good as the Comfortis. He is now a very happy cat.
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
I have a 3 month cat and a 4 month old cat. They both have fleas. I went to the vet and asked for some kind of shampoo and was told they don't make it for cats. I've tried Dawn and am fighting fleas. I bathe them once a week. What else can I do? Help!
By Sandi M.
Go to the farmers supply store and get syringes. I think the one mL ones are the best the smallest ones. I may be wrong... Take out the needles if they are in there.
Now here is a review of this product that you can buy for dogs, the large size and then use a little of it at a time for your cats.
Amazon Verified Purchase (What's this?)
This review is from: Bayer Advantage II Blue 4-Month Flea Control for Dogs 55+ lbs. (Misc.)
The drug in Advantage II for Dogs and Advantage II for Cats is exactly the same drugs (Imidacloprid and Pyriproxyfen) at the exact same concentrations.
If you buy this "Large Dog" package, you get four 4ml tubes. If you then empty those into a vial or vials, you can use a syringe (without needle) to apply the right dosage to your dogs and cats. In fact, if your cats are under 10 pounds, you can get 10 cat doses out of each of these vials. That's a real bargain!
I am a former Vet Tech and can assure you I have been doing this for years (with Advantage first, and now Advantage II) with zero problems.
Use the following chart and you will be fine.
But I have found that I like using lufnuron, I might have spelled it wrong. It is kind of la flea birth control rather than a flea killer. I buy it from amazon, and they come in capsules. The good thing is that when you open the capsules, you mix it with a little cat food liquid or even water, small amount of water and give it to them once a month. Here is the address of where I buy mine:
www.amazon.com/
Also you can go to the feed supply store and get some powder that you can put on vegetables and plants and dos and cats. I like it, I use it on the ferret, and then you also go over them with a flea comb and drop them into a glass of water with soap in it.
I do flea control all the time. In addition to whatever you choose to use, sprinkle salt all over the house carpets, and under sheets, under couch cushions, it kills fleas also. Don't put the salt on the cats fur.
Here is the powder I use on them. I get it at the feed store, in my case Tractor Supply. It is years old, but still works.
It is calld Hi yield Garden Pet and Livestock Dust.
It costs $3.99 for one pound. You can put it on vegetables and such and dogs and cats. I use it on my ferret as she is not a fan of a bath. She is kind of getting adrenal problems and I don't want to use the topical on her at. I go over her with a flea comb. But I digress. Now that you have treated for fleas you are not done, you need to improve the cats diet or he/she will be a target for fleas.
Any kind of dry food is good that says no artificial perservatives, no corn, no fillers. I find lots of these at Tractor Supply.
Also when you feed them wet food, add egg yolks, a couple of drops of baby vitamin drops, and a small amount of olive oil. Don't give them any egg whites.
When you make chicken stock, add some of that in there if there are no onions in it. Any way you can improve their diet will make them less attractive to fleas.
Also you can't go wrong with Krill Oil I have heard. I don't use it myself yet. But I will. :)
My daughter is a vet technician. Both she and the vet discourages over the counter flea drops, powders and shampoos. They have been known to make the animal ill and cause death. Spend 7 dollars on capstar tablet. The results are amazing.
The ingredient in Hi-Yield Garden, Pet, and Livestock dust is permethrin. It is EXTREMELY toxic to cats. Google it: Exposure to even small quantities of concentrated permethrin can cause severe and fatal poisoning in cats. After exposure to permethrin, signs of toxicity usually develop within a few hours, but in some cases can take one to three days to become apparent. Common clinical signs of toxicity include: Muscle tremors.
Thank u. This is very helpful. What do I do since my cat is about 32 lbs? Do I still give him .8 cc?
I gave my cat and dog Advantage 11 last week and my cat is still scratching. I know I have to give them 3 more treatments, but does this mean she still has fleas?
I bathed her yesterday and I didn't see any.Keep checking and keep treating. The scratching could be from the previous bites still irritating.
She may have irritated skin, or may still have fleas. Keep treating her
It sounds like for some reason the advantage is not working for you. You will need to ask your Vet why she could be covered with fleas again so quickly. Either the advantage is not working for you or you did not apply it correctly. After applying the Advantage fleas should be gone in a couple of days and stay gone for a month. It can be really hard to apply the stuff correctly. I take it into my Vet and he does it for no charge. I think it is one of the techs that puts it on. Advantage does come in a box with 4 applications, but it gets rid of the fleas with the 1st application (it may take a couple days). The other 3 applications are for the following 3 months. I do it on the 1st of each month. Dont miss an application or it is like starting all over. I do not think you can dose again after one dose has failed. You really need to check with your Vet on that. Follow the directions very carefully and call your Vet if you have questions.
Did you get the Advantage from your vet? They are entirely different meds for cat and dogs so be sure you are aware of this.
If you used Advantage on your cat last week you should not be finding that many fleas when you give her a bath so something is not right.
There are several months treatment in each package so do not give her another treatment without talking to her vet as it could be dangerous to her health.
Ask your vet about using Capstar on your cat as it is a 24 hour treatment that can be used with other flea meds.
My cat recently got fleas and I've tried everything to get rid of them and they won't go away. How do I get rid of these stupid fleas?
My husband is an entomologist so I speak with first hand knowledge and experience.
The first and very important step is to take your pet to your veterinarian to make certain the only problem is fleas. There are many other medical problems that could be affecting your pet in addition to a flea infestation.
The humble cat (cat, dog, etc.) flea is one of the most abundant and widespread species on Earth. You may have noticed that your dog and cat often choose different places to sleep in your house and outside. Your cat may have five or six favorite inside spots (usually in the sun) and outside even more. Many animals choose several places to sleep to avoid fleas. They might sleep in one spot for a few days and then another for a day or two. This sleep pattern breaks the flea life cycle and does reduce the effectiveness of flea attacks as adult fleas only live for a few days. However, some can live up to one hundred days in a good food environment. As you will see, the flea has a complicated life and you and your pet are invited!
Flea eggs do not stay on your pet, they quickly drop or roll off as they do not stick to anything. The fleas you find in your house hatched from the flea eggs that fell off of your pet. Flea eggs are tiny and opaque white or almost colorless. The fleas you may see on your cat or dog are immature fleas from eggs on the floor or outside that hatched into fleas and jumped back onto your dog. You will also see (many!) small black dots on your dog but these are only flea feces.
The flea eggs in your home and outside are the real problem. Just one female flea can produce 40-50 eggs per day. The eggs fall off into your house and outside so, either way, your dog or cat will then again attract the immature and adult fleas both inside and outside which are the children from flea parents that may still be living on your cat or dog.
Any dish detergent bath may wash away or possibly kill some fleas on your pet, however, not all fleas are killed. In a bath many migrate up to the head and ear area and then, once the bath is over, travel back to their favorite spots, usually on the back. If you use dish detergent, you can seriously dry the animals skin and may cause skin rashes, an allergic reaction, etc., and you are not addressing the real problem. The thousands of flea eggs that exist all the time in your house and outside hatch and then jump back onto your dog or cat (and you!). So, you and your pets are locked into the everlasting cycle in the life of fleas.
A search online for how to kill fleas brings up many ideas for bathing, applying natural and awful sprays, etc., but these only address the fleas on your pet. Rarely do they address the bigger problem as a whole. You can check this site for answers that address your pet, your home and the outside. As you will see, flea prevention is a much larger problem than just giving your dog a bath.
The only way you will become flea free is to treat the cats/dogs and your home with flea killers. It will take time for the flea treatments to work and money for the medications. I strongly suggest having the cats/dogs checked for fleas and any other medical problems and then treat them with prescription medication. Over the counter flea products are not strong enough to deal with the uncontrolled flea infestation in the house.
Fleas are such a nuisance and can be very difficult to remove from your pets and your home.
Complete removal takes time and dedication.
Certainly a trip to the veterinarian is the best first choice but you will still have to deal with the removal process in your home.
I now use Diatomaceous Earth (DE) food grade ONLY as I know it is safe for everything and everyone.
When friends/family brings their pets I just spread the DE around and I even apply some to my cats fur.
It really works right away on my cat but it takes a few days/weeks to completely kill the in-house fleas.
DE is used for many things including intestinal parasites in many large and small animals.
Great for killing fleas but other uses as well:
I have had rental property in the past and fleas were a common problem left behind by renters.
No pets remained just fleas.
With no pets or people involved I could use Borax (I always used 20-Mule Team Borax) on the carpet and all through the house.
Borax is pretty safe but may NOT be okay for cats.
There is always a cycle of flea hatching and I usually vacuumed several times (and reapplied Borax) over a 30 to 45 day period. (That meant no rent for 60 days! Not good)
Here are a couple of sites that explain how to use Borax:
Always remember - check to be sure anything you use is safe for children and pets.
mistralhowto.blogspot.com/
Diatomaceous Earth (DE) is the only truly perfect way I have found to treat any bug infestation. It is natural silica that can penetrate the shell of an insect and dry it out from the inside out. It is completely safe for mammals. I buy food grade in the livestock store near me, sprinkle it on my cat and comb through. Sprinkle on your carpets and it will kill eggs . It's only drawbacks are you shouldn't breath it so use a mask, and it will dry the bottom of your feet. Just don't use too frequently and not too liberally. It will kill bedbugs too.
You can't just treat the cat. Everything the cat touched (furniture, carpeting, drapes, bedding, car upholstery and your clothing, to name a few) must be treated as well.
After treating your cat, you have to keep the fleas from hatching elsewhere. A steam cleaner is probably the cheapest safe option. Just brush over all the surfaces inside with the cleaner. Use any harsher treatments outside, like sprays. Just keep on every month with Frontline or similar, and killing the eggs with the steamer and your problem should go.
Here is a non toxic way to get rid of fleas in the house. Set up a night light or similar low light like a lamp with a 5 wall bulb. Put one on the floor in each room. Put a shallow dish like a pie plate or shallow bowl underneath or next to each light. Fill them with water and a squirt of dish detergent. The soap cuts the surface tension so that the fleas cannot move to the edges of the bowl and escape. Turn out all other lights at night leaving only the low lights you have set up. The fleas will jump to the light and into the bowls and drown. Each morning you will find fewer and fewer fleas as new ones hatch. You can catch the fleas even faster if you stomp around the room or use a vacuum to make vibrations which trigger the fleas to come out from wood floors for example. They come out when they sense motion.
You can comb the fleas from your cat or you can use one of the non toxic medications that you place on the cat's neck. If you let your cat go outside I would recommend the neck medication, otherwise you will always have fleas. Some fleas may still get on your cat but they will not be able to reproduce and will quickly die depending on which neck liquid you administer. Even after bombing twice with no success, I used this method and within a week I had no more fleas. Best of luck.
So my cat was totally fine before a two days ago. He suddenly became lazy and mopey. We soon found out that he had a lot of fleas on him. We picked most of them off, but he is still lazy and mopey. I was wondering if this is a case of anemia or something. I don't have enough money to take him to the vet so I was wondering. Can someone could help me out; can he recover by himself or should I do more things to help him? Please note that he barely wants to stand and seems to get tired quickly. He is eating.
The cat really needs a vet. Fleas can cause all sort of problems--anemia for the cat, tapeworms and other diseases. Feed the cat well, and give him a wormer for tapeworms-you can find that at walmart. also treat him for the fleas as well.
My cat didn't have fleas but she suddenly became very lethargic and stopped eating, etc. I took her to the vet and discovered she was diabetic. I would highly recommend a visit to the vet to rule this out. She is now on insulin and have to take her back every so often to test her blood sugars which have been quite high. Better to have him checked.
You can surrender your cat to an animal shelter and he will receive veterinary care. It sounds to me like your cat is seriously ill and really needs a vet. This may sound extreme, but the alternative, no care, sounds pretty bad too. Personally I would be looking for a way to come up with fees for the vet. Good luck.
Sorry to hear this but as always I always have the answer you can check out HADEY mae on Facebook. Now you can take some iron pills and crush them up the same dose that you would take for an adult mix them in his food and give it some time about a week you should see a change as the weeks go on you should see him get more energy you can either do the same thing with vitamin B complex it does wonders same thing as magnesium. Enjoy
I rescued a stray cat who could hardly stand up. He too was covered with fleas. The vet said he was extremely anemic from the amount of fleas sucking his blood.
I have recently treated my cat with a spot on flea treatment, but he still has fleas. Can I do him again after two weeks or do I have to wait the recommended five weeks?
Will the fleas jump back on my cat after treatment with Capstar?
It eliminates 90% of fleas in 6 hours. You can re-administer every day if necessary
I gave my cat a bath in Dawn dish soap to kill the fleas, but he will not let me comb him to get the fleas out of his fur. I just want to know if they will come back to life or not if I don't get them out of his fur.
You should comb her several times a day. If she resists there are medications the vet can give you.
The Dawn kills the live fleas, so if they died, they will not come back to life. But from my understanding, the Dawn does not kill the eggs/larvae. You will want to talk to your vet about a flea treatment to get rid of those or else the cycle will continue as the new critters hatch, bite, lay eggs.
Call your vet and get his/her best advice for a total solution to the challenge.
Giving your cat a Dawn bath is a good start to getting rid of fleas but it is just the beginning step.
ThriftyFun has a lot of questions and answers about getting rid of fleas. Check out the past answers for more suggestions.
Cats can be treated with a topical monthly flea protection you can purchase online or via your veterinarian. If your cat is an indoor pet, you will also need to kill the fleas and their eggs with a spray to treat carpet, drapes, furniture and pet bed or your own. You can buy the spray online also or via your vet.
I had a flea infestation learned the day our dogs were getting groomed and fleas were noticed by the groomer. I immediately bought two cans Siphotrol Plus II Premise Spray; a fast acting formula that only required a thin coating; one time application. This product works for up to 30 wks. and also kills ticks. One large can treats 2000 sq. ft. and no lingering odor. Do not apply directly on pets. Also, spray interior of your car if your cat has been in it.
The spray will kill adult fleas within ten minutes. Just let area dry well before allowing people and pets into the room.
I learned also that fleas had grown immune to the flea treatment applied topically for years on our pets and had to switch to Nexgard tablet, a more expensive product than before, but no fleas are on our dogs or in our home. I bought an extra can just to make sure fleas weren't going to reappear. It's been several years and our pets/home are flea free.
My problem is that I've been spending money, for flea control at the store and nothing works. I've two grown cats and two kitties. I am looking for a precise home remedy to get raid of the fleas. Thank you so much, if you can help me.
Manny
There is a pill you can give your cats and dogs that will make all the fleas on them die within 30-60 minutes. It is called Capstar and you do not need a prescription from the vet for it. You can buy it at Nationalpetpharmacy.com or check with your vet as they sell it too. I've used them on my cats. I usually put my cats in a crate outside with a towel or sheet on the bottom after giving the pill to them. The fleas will die and drop off the cat and onto the sheet/towel. This would also be a good time to bomb/spray or use salt/baking soda to get the fleas out of the house. The pills are safe and can actually be given every day if need be.
Diatomaceus earth, food grade, not pool grade. Rub on cats and their beds, throughout the house if necessary. Not harmful to pets or people. Available in home improvement stores in the garden area.
Pat
No tablets, drops, sprays, anything like that works whatsoever, they're all a big con and very expensive. The ONLY way to kill fleas is to drown them. Buy a flea trap from Ebay with a 7 watt bulb over a sticky pad. The idea is the flea thinks the bulb is a cat and jumps to the bulb, then gets stuck on the pad. This doesn't work either, they can get themselves unstuck easily, so replace the pad with soapy water (water plus detergent, e.g. washing up liquid) either in the original dish or just use a dinner plate. Place a couple of these around your home on the carpet. The fleas will be drowned and you can clearly see how many you're getting. I had a flea infestation from one of my cats that I was given when his owner became allergic to fur (or possibly the fleas!) (enough so that they were jumping onto my own ankles and annoying me). Nothing worked until I used the water. First night I left them out, 140 fleas killed. Second night, 50. Third night 20. Fourth night 10, and so on, I could easily see rapid progress.
My cat is about 20 -25 yrs old. Is it still safe for him?
By Raiann S
