Help desperatly needed!!!

Hi, i have 3 kittens who i got from a friend and one adult cat. We got the first 2 kittens and then the third kitten 3 weeks later (they are all from the same litter). The first two kittens had fleas when we first got them so we got a flea tablet for them and this cleared them right up. As soon as we got the third kitten we gave him a flea pill and assumed everything would be ok.

2 months later we are still battling fleas. We have took them to the vets and have got them frontline and all the cats have been treated. We have also bathed them in flea shampoo and sprayed the full house with flea spray and used a 'flea bomb' for the house.

Today i have been bitten twice on my ankles and i have just noticed a flea on one of the male kittens. Im getting very distressed as i dont know what to do next. None of the cats go outside so i dont know how the fleas are still coming back.

All help is greatly needed.

Thank u
xx

fleas eggs lay dormat in your carpets, movement will ' activate' the eggs, the flea pops out and nibbles on the nearest juicy leg, which sounds like it was yours so you need a spray that kills them, your vets will have something

get the critters !

The pill that you gave them was probably Capstar, which kills the fleas that are on them at the moment but doesn't treat for the long term. What you need to do is go back to the vet and get Advantage or Revolution. This should take care of things.

Also if you have carpeting, you will likely need to put a flea collar in your vacuum bag and vac the carpets at least 3 times a week to get all the eggs and larva and whatever, as well as treating the cats.

Flea bombs are absolutely worthless. Sprays from vets should be used with caution - I actually had to take a dog to an emergency vet once after spraying his bedding with one - he was poisoned by the spray.

I asked an exterminator once what the best treatment was for fleas. He was honest and told me not to waste money on treatments. Simply vacuum, vacuum then vacuum. Move the furniture out and get all the cracks and crevaces. Wash all bedding. Treat the cats at the same time.

I have used a product that is a powder you sprinkle into your carpets containing borax powder. I've also seen powders that are diatenatious (spelling?) earth but have read controversies with that product.

Never use a flea collar on your cats but they are good for your vacuum cleaner bags (kills the ones that you suck into the vacuum).

Good luck!

I agree with your recommendations for treating the environment. I've found that the only way to go is to treat the cats and vacuum the living snot out of the carpets. It works. Generally you have to deal with one more round of hatching, about a month after the first application of Advantage or whatever, and once you've vacuumed that up you're done.

i'd also use extreme caution and common sense when using chemicals on, in or near your pet. if you can go natural exhaust that avenue first. i've heard that brewer's yeast lightly sprinkled on your pet (maybe your carpets too but i'm not sure about that) will help. fleas don't like brewers yeast...or was that mosquitos?? hmmm, some food for thought anyway

here is an intesting fact:

a healthy animal with no stress, good food and lots of love will do better when faced with fleas. they tend to clean themselves more when they are healthy. strengthen the overall health of the animal. (giving them pills and spraying chemicals weakens their health). dilligence is what is needed. clean. you will find the majority of fleas where the pet sleeps or spends most of its time so be especially dilligent in these areas.

if you feel you have to use chemicals boron compounds appear to be the best compromise between safety and effectiveness. checkout fleabusters company.

homeopathy is an excellent alternative for the treatment of bites, itching and blood loss and irritablity...but there is no magic wand for fleas unfortunately...

there is a nematode that parasitizes fleas in the garden...so that can prevent the animals from bringing them back in the house in the summer...

Consult your vet prior to any application... Some natural ones also have nasty side effects.... I do use a natural method but it is okayed by my vet

Don't panic. Fleas, as others have said, live largely in the environment as eggs or pupae. (cocoons). A very small percentage actually live on the cat.
If you keep treating your cats with spot treatment, the population will die out. The bomb is effective against adult fleas, but eggs and pupae are pretty much protected by their casing, they have good defenses.
Someone stated here that flea bombs are useless. I respectfully disagree with that, it depends on the bomb. There are IGR type bombs that are extremely good. "Knockout" is a great bomb to use, and it's much safer than the pyrethrin-type bombs out there. It will prevent larval fleas from developing into adults, they will die before they can bite.

If you keep treating your cats with a spot on, (use Revolution, Frontline or Advantage, I wouldn't use over the counter products, they can be dangerous), the fleas in the environment will starve themselves out. Just give it a couple of weeks, and you'll see. Hang in there.

Originally Posted by KittenKiya

Also if you have carpeting, you will likely need to put a flea collar in your vacuum bag and vac the carpets at least 3 times a week to get all the eggs and larva and whatever, as well as treating the cats.

Click to expand...

With the Advantage on the cats, this is the most effective method for combating the fleas. Flea collars are bad for your cats, but effective at killing flea larvae that you vacuum up. Plus you and your kitties aren't subjected to the harmful effects of dangerous poisons.

Give it a month or more and see how it goes.

Laurie

I'd also empty the litter boxes, bleach them, and fill them with new litter.

Laurie