cat fleas - what to do?

[tortoise]

If you use Frontline Plus (a spot-on), you don't have to do anything to your house.

I had a friends whose mom is a hoarder. They had fleas so bad you CANNOT imagine. If you touched the carpet you would instantly have a dozen fleas on your hand. They spent so much money on "cheap" bug bombs, collars, pet-store spot-ons, powders, you name it, over 2 or 3 YEARS.

Apparently because Frontline was "too expensive."

Well her mom moved and left her the house when she turned 18. She had 1 cat, her roommate had another. They used Frontline for 3 months and it took care of the WHOLE HOUSE flea problem! They never did special laundry, sprays, powders, etc, or anything else in that time.

Frontline Plus is available all over now - not just from the vet. Online, WalMart, Petco, PetSmart, Menards. Probably more I don't know about...

The problem with "natural" flea control is that it is either a) toxic to cats or b) a repellent only.

Imagine how much good it does to put a natural flea powder on your cat's beds... only to have the fleas move into the carpet.

 

[patandchickens]

we have no where other than in the house to put the clean laundered stuff (no useable garage) =/

Just stuff it into big plastic bags, like Hefty bags, or put on the driveway on a tarp with more tarp folded over it. Not a big deal, certainly doesn't require a laundromat (unless your well won't allow you to do the necessary number of loads of laundry in one day)

This is huge, and our house has MANY crevices being old. We only just noticed this week the fleas, so they might not be at a large stage yet... and the cats only started scratching a few weeks to a month ago maybe.

Well, this is definitely the right time to attack the problem, before it gets worse!

Unfortunately its not at all practical to do the combing of every cat, we have 3 totally feral cats that we won't be able to catch and treat at all.

I would not bother with bathing them, personally. The feral cats aren't coming into the house, are they? If not, they don't matter. If they are, it would be better if you could catch them and put one of the monthly spot-on treatments from the vet, but even if you can't, unless they spend a huge amount of time in the house, not treating them at all is unlikely to make a big difference. Remember, the fleas do not breed on the cats, they breed (= grow up from egg to larva to adult) in the HOUSE, on floor and carpets and crevices and such.

I've been told to wash them in soapy water, would just something like Dawn work or should I get a flea shampoo for cats?

I would use Dawn in preference to an over-the-counter flea shampoo (especially Hartz or some other supermarket brand like that, which are notorious for causing poisonings); but honestly if it were me I would totally skip the bath thing. Unless the cats are literally crawling with fleas. Which probably they are not. I do not know whether you have bathed many cats but it is usually not at all easy, very very stressful, and hard to do so thoroughly that you actually GET all the fleas ANYhow.

We're having the house Flea Bombed tomorrow morning, so it looks like everything is getting vacuumed tonight.

What with? Be careful. Moreover, if you only have it sprayed/bombed with something to kill the fleas, you will be right back where you started in a couple weeks because new ones will hatch out. Honestly, I highly HIGHLY recommend sourcing enough Precor (type) premises spray to spray ALL the floors/carpets/furniture in your house, unless tomorrow's exercise includes an IGR compound already.

Good luck,

Pat

 

[patandchickens]

I have had zero luck with flea collars for cats, and there are just wayyyyy too many reports of serious problems with them for my tastes, and I would not personally recommend them at all. At best a waste of money, at worst a risk.

Have likewise had no luck with spot-ons NOT accompanied by IGR premises sprays and laundering/vacuuming, either... but if others have, that must be handy

Pat

 

[SKR8PN]

We found the best way to get rid of cat fleas.........
Was to get rid of the cat.

JUST KIDDING!! The last cat died of old age and lead poisoning 2 years ago.

ANYWAY....... we use Frontline on the dogs, DE in the house and Beneficial Nematodes in the back yard.
This 3 pronged attack works very well for us!

 

[lupinfarm]

Pat, I can only find the precor in tiny weeny bottles, one bottle only did 3 mattresses and they are like $15 a bottle! Anyway, I did bathe the cats =P and it was easy peasy. Mum says I should be a cat groomer lmao because even the growly nasty cat accio was a peach for me =]

 

[patandchickens]

What's currently in my cabinet is a 710 ml bottle of Zodiac brand "Premise Plus flea spray", which contains Precor. I bought it about a year ago; the price tag says $19.99 and it's from Ryans/Global Pet Foods, a fairly widespread chain. (Also not the cheapest chain in the world and it is entirely possible that TSC or Petsmart or somewhere else might have it a bit cheaper)

That $20 bottle says "will treat approximately 28 sq metres = 300 sq feet". Which would be for instance 3 10x10 rooms. However I find that realistically it usually goes a lot further than that because not all parts of all rooms need to be treated (although as a tradeoff you *do* have to do sofas and such).

Mattresses are usually not a high priority unless you did not have any kind of liner/protector/quilt type thing under the fitted sheet -- normally you would just launder the fitted sheet, and if it is a place where animals sleep a *lot* or a very loose-weave fitted-sheet you might also want to clean the vinyl or quilted mattress protector under it -- but you would not have to do the mattress *itself*, certainly not the underside. So I am a little confused as to what you are using the spray for.

All's I can say is, having been an impoverished grad student or postdoc at various times over the years, I have certainly tried doing it without the IGR premises spray, and ended up wasting a whole lot of work and not actually getting rid of the fleas anyhow. Whereas my batting average with an IGR-containing spray is 100%, with no repeat treatments necessary and no re-laundering re-cleaning re-anything.

Just passing along my very-repeated (because I kept moving to new apt's with existing flea problems ) experiences with this type problem,

Pat

 

[Shiloh Acres]

I have a cat with TERRIBLE allergies, especially to fleas, so I MUST control them on her -- as in she develops life-threatening symptoms. (which right now she's having "breathing spells" and it's due to something other than fleas, but that's another topic)

She was a feral rescue through our vet, who had a great program and did all he could to get them healthy and in homes, at a financial loss to himself perhaps. (free vet care for a year including spay/neuter, all shots, and all meds for a $30 adoption fee). Anyway, they knew I HAD to keep fleas off her all her life and back then I was in a very hard spot financially. They told me to buy large-dog (24 lb) (edit it was actually CAPSTAR - not Comfortis) which should cost around $4 per dose (it varies though from $3 to $11 among my local vets) and break it into quarters, giving one quarter per week. I crush it and mix it with a bit of tuna, so you might be able to dose the wild ones that way.

It says it's only good for 24 hours, but it will work for about a week. I don't like to use systemic things like that, but a few times I've had to resort to it to keep her ALIVE. The cost is very low, and it's been very effective. 100% kill on the fleas that actually bite her. And since she's a white-haired, weak cat, they ALL seem to gravitate toward her.

If I have a severe outbreak, I use it for about 3 weeks straight, to kill newly hatched ones, and that always takes care of it.

I've used some essental oils with effectiveness in dogs and premesis, but they are not safe for cats. DE is sometimes effective for me on premesis, sometimes not. It may be that I can't apply it fully enough. I have had limited success ONCE with a flea collar on a dog where NOTHING else was working (and I heard from customers in that area that nothing was working for them, either vet-prescribed or herbal). That was an Adam's flea collar. I don't know why it killed most (not all) of the fleas when nothing else did. But that's the only time I ever had a flea collar be any use at all.

Hope something in here is useful. And hope you get it under control. I hate itchy ankles!

 

[MsPony]

Flea collars only work on the head up, very ineffective. Put them in your vacuum bags instead.

Flea bombs poof up and settle back down in the same spot, still ineffective. The Zodiac sprays are AMAZING.

I'd check independent pet stores for 4 pks of Advantage or 6 pks of Frontline. My store is $10+ cheaper then PetSmart or PetCo! And I live in a very upscale town with outrageous rent. I could sent you the frontline for cheaper then they sell it.

 

[SKR8PN]

Two Effective Methods on bathing a CAT.


First Method

1. Thoroughly clean the toilet.
2. Add the required amount of shampoo to the toilet water, and have both lids lifted.
3. Obtain the cat and soothe him while you carry him towards the bathroom.
4. In one smooth movement, put the cat in the toilet and close both lids (you may need to stand on the lid so that he cannot escape).
CAUTION: Do not get any part of your body too close to the edge, as his paws will be reaching out for any
purchase they can find.
5. Flush the toilet three or four times. This provides a 'power wash and rinse' which I have found to be quite effective.
6. Have someone open the door to the outside and ensure that there are no people between the toilet and the outside door.
7. Stand behind the toilet as far as you can, and quickly lift both lids.
8. The now-clean cat will rocket out of the toilet, and run outside where he will dry himself.


Second Method

1. Know that although the kitty cat has the advantage of quickness and lack of concern for human life, you have the advantage of strength. Capitalize on that advantage by selecting the battlefield. Don't try to bathe him in an open area where he can force you to chase him. Pick a very small bathroom. If your bathroom is more than four feet square, we recommend that you get in the tub with the cat and close the sliding-glass doors as if you were about to take a shower. (A simple shower curtain will not do. A berserk cat can shred a three-ply rubber shower curtain quicker than a politician can shift positions.)

2. Know that a cat has claws and will not hesitate to remove all the skin from your body. Your advantage here is that you are smart and know how to dress to protect yourself. We recommend canvas overalls tucked into high-top construction boots, a pair of steel-mesh gloves, an army helmet, a hockey face-mask, and a long-sleeved flak jacket.

3. Use the element of surprise. Pick up your cat nonchalantly, as if to simply carry him to his supper dish. (Cats will not usually notice your strange attire. They have little or no interest in fashion as a rule.)

4. Once you are inside the bathroom, speed is essential to survival. In a single liquid motion, shut the bathroom door, step into the tub enclosure, slide the glass door shut, dip the cat in the water and squirt him with shampoo. You have now begun one of the wildest 45 seconds of your life.

5. Cats have no handles. Add the fact that he now has soapy fur, and the problem is radically compounded. Do not expect to hold on to him for more than two or three seconds at a time. When you have him, however, you must remember to give him another squirt of shampoo and rub like crazy. He'll then spring free and fall back into the water, thereby rinsing himself off. (The national record for cats is three latherings, so don't expect too much.)

6. Next, the cat must be dried. Novice cat bathers always assume this part will be the most difficult, for humans generally are worn out at this point and the cat is just getting really determined. In fact, the drying is simple compared with what you have just been through. That's because by now the cat is semi-permanently affixed to your right leg.

7. You simply pop the drain plug with your foot, reach for your towel and wait. (Occasionally, however, the cat will end up clinging to the top of your army helmet. If this happens, the best thing you can do is to shake him loose and to encourage him toward your leg.) After all the water is drained from the tub, it is a simple matter to just reach down and dry the cat.

In a few days the cat will relax enough to be removed from your leg. He will usually have nothing to say for about three weeks and will spend a lot of time sitting with his back to you. He might even become psychoceramic and develop the fixed stare of a plaster figurine.

You will be tempted to assume he is angry. This isn't usually the case. As a rule he is simply plotting ways to get through your defenses and injure you for life the next time you decide to give him a bath. But at least now he smells a lot better.

 

[MsPony]

One time my cat peed herself in the carrier so I took her in the shower with me...was not smart enough to keep clothes on...ouch.