Flea Collars on Kittens?

My two kittens, Parrot and Shinobi, possibly have fleas... they have something, at least. I've seen bugs on them, just haven't gotten a good enough look to identify them. The problem is, my kittens are still young, and all the products I've looked at in stores say not to use on cats under 12 weeks of age. I'm pretty sure Parrot and Shinobi are around 9-10 weeks (didn't know how old they were when we got them). I tried a flea collar on them, hoping maybe they'd be okay, but a few minutes after I put one on each of them, they became very lethargic and just not themselves at all, so I took them off at the advice of a vet. They seem to be okay now (the collars were only on for about 10 minutes), but I'm still at a loss as to what I can do... I can't afford to get actual prescription medication from a vet, I'm limited to the very cheap over-the-counter stuff for the time, but you see how that went. I've been bathing them, but it's leaving my hands in shreds and I don't think it's doing much good. Any suggestions? Heh, or donations?

Yes, definitely no flea collars on cats or kittens! They're pretty dangerous actually. What you can do with them (if you haven't thrown them away) is to cut them up and put them in your vacuum bag to kill fleas when you vacuum.

Stay away from the over the counter flea medications you see too -those can be highly highly toxic.

My recommendation is to go out and get a flea comb and some Dawn dish soap (plain blue stuff, nothing fancy). Put some Dawn in water, grab a kitten, then run the comb through their fur. Dip the comb in the soapy water to kill fleas, dry off the comb, and repeat. That should be much less objectionable to the cats than a full out bath.

With fleas, they'll lay eggs in the carpet and keep hatching out. So you have to vacuum, vacuum, vacuum! Wash what you can in hot water, etc. I heard from someone else that they're attracted to salt left out? I've never heard that before though, so hopefully someone else can confirm it and elaborate.

Good luck, I'll let you know if I think of anything else.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO no collars on kittens or cats! Its a waste of money and its more harmful then good. The collars have poison on them - if the cats lick it or chew on it you will have a dead kitten.

So contact your vet and have them checked first. If they have fleas, you can wash them to get the fleas off and then the vet can recommend a flea preventative (Advantage or Frontline) appropriate for their age!

Over-the-counter flea meds SHOULD say "Don't ever use on any animal ever" because they're dangerous, as has been said-- dangerous to the point of being possibly fatal.

You can get rid of fleas with hot water, soap, a vacuum, and a comb more effectively than deadly poisons which wind up being not very effective anyway.

If you have two pennies to rub together, try diatomaceous earth.

Put both kittens in one room, preferably a bathroom with no upholstery, fabric, rugs, towels, anything fabric. Then wash everything washable in HOT water. Vacuum the heck out of your carpet, and the one and only thing those flea collars are good for is the inside of your vaccuum. Spot clean areas where the kittens sleep. Wash the curtains, etc etc etc. You might end up having to throw things away, but probably not.

Then, use a dry flea comb through their fur, and dip it in soapy water and dry it between brushes.

Originally Posted by Abstract

My two kittens, Parrot and Shinobi, possibly have fleas... they have something, at least. I've seen bugs on them, just haven't gotten a good enough look to identify them. The problem is, my kittens are still young, and all the products I've looked at in stores say not to use on cats under 12 weeks of age. I'm pretty sure Parrot and Shinobi are around 9-10 weeks (didn't know how old they were when we got them). I tried a flea collar on them, hoping maybe they'd be okay, but a few minutes after I put one on each of them, they became very lethargic and just not themselves at all, so I took them off at the advice of a vet. They seem to be okay now (the collars were only on for about 10 minutes), but I'm still at a loss as to what I can do... I can't afford to get actual prescription medication from a vet, I'm limited to the very cheap over-the-counter stuff for the time, but you see how that went. I've been bathing them, but it's leaving my hands in shreds and I don't think it's doing much good. Any suggestions? Heh, or donations?

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Do your kittens go outside of the house?? I'm just wondering because I got Persi at 7 weeks of age and I have never even thought about putting a collar on him. He has never had any fleas or other bug problems. Another reason I am convinced to never let my cats out of the house.

At that age, my suggestion would be to talk to a vet about Revolution. You should not have to bring them there or pay for an office visit, just ask. One tube ($10?) should be more than enough for both of them, but please ASK how much to use.

If they have a bad flea problem, you'll need to treat your house or the products won't do any good. Both Frontline and Advantage that you get from your vet are safe and can be used on kittens that are 8 weeks old. At my local pet store, they sell the Frontline. It's MUCH better to use than Hartz or similar products. Also, ask your vet about Capstar... it's a pill that you give that starts working immediately, the fleas literally just start falling off. It only works for about 24 hours, but you give that and then put the Frontline/Advantage on and you shouldn't have anymore problems.

Yes, I agree with what others have said: No flea and tick products on kittens, you must bath the kitten in tepid water with dawn dish soap. If the kitten has bald patches and/or sores on the skin (because they are already infested with fleas) this may sting very badly, so try just soaking the kitten in tepid water to start, to give relief from fleas biting. If the kitten is already weak from being bitten she/he probably won't struggle to get out of the water. You can also try Veterinary Formula Clinical Care Hypoallergenic shampoo for sensitive skin Sulfate Free, (that is safe for kittens), use no more than a dime sized dollop.

NEVER use Hartz or any brand of flea shampoo for a cats or kittens, especially if they already have fleas/ sores/bites... IT WILL KILL YOUR KITTY!!!   The stuff that is in flea & tick shampoo (sold at Walmart or any over the counter flea & tick shampoo) which is marketed for cats and kittens, contains dangerous neuro-toxins that seeps into your cats skin and will kill him! THERE IS NO WARNING LABEL that indicates this. I have written so many letters to the companies that sell this stuff, telling them what happened to me, and begging them to add a warning label that says what can happen. I learned this the hard way when I helped someone bathe their badly infested gigantic Garfield cat (20+ lbs!), the water turned orange (presumably from the bodies of the fleas that were engorged with blood, coming off the cat. After a few minutes the cat went limp and we raced him to the vet, which was 5 minutes away, but they could not save him. The vet said that they always tell their clients to NEVER USE FLEA & TICK SHAMPOOS, they are dangerous and you do not know what dose you are giving to your cat or kitten.

Kittens are extremely sensitive to environmental toxins like flea & tick shampoos, frontline, advantage. Even peppermint soap or essential oils will burn their skin so badly they will be traumatized, and never trust you again!!! 

Fleas can absolutely kill a kitten, so depending on how badly infested they are, you might need to bring them to the vet before trying anything that might hurt them worse. If the kitten is already listless, it might be too late, so bring them to the vet. The only safe thing to try with a listless kitten is to soak them in tepid water to offer them some relief from being bitten further, allowing their skin to heal a bit before bathing them with any kind of soap. (The safest soap to wash a cat of any age in, is human grade natural/organic oatmeal soap with limited ingredients: it needs to be, hypoallergenic, no sulfates, no perfumes no fragrances, no chemicals.

Something else that works wonders for getting rid of fleas in your carpets in a steam mop, I have one (a shark steam mop) and the steam is hot enough to not only kill the fleas but their eggs and larve as well. Also the steam is non toxic so you do not have to worry about any poison making your Fur-Baby sick.