Ant problem with 12 week old kitten

sooty_94

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My kitten has had his first two vet appointments including all vaccinations needed so far, worming and check ups, all looking good so far but I've been noticing these horrible little ants running through his fur (he has long fur, mostly black with white) Not sure what is the best way to go about this, I do have flea treatment I bought at the vet but have not yet noticed any fleas. I have tried gently combing through his fur but as he is still very playful he sees the comb as something to paw at and tries to bite on. I am quite concerned as there is rather a number of them running through and they are hard to get at because of the length and thickness of his coat. I can see that it is frustrating him as he uses his two paws and rubs his face, they must be itching/irritating him. Has anyone else experienced this problem? Is this something that will likely sort itself out or should I mention it at his next check up? Any advice would be appreciated!
 

strange_wings

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Are you sure you're not actually seeing fleas? - it wouldn't be the first time on here someone didn't recognize what they're seeing are fleas. Though I do know there are some odder mites over there that will bite on cats (that we don't have over here). The only time I can think of that ants would seek out an animal or even human out (other than when a nest is bothered) is if there is something wrong with the animal/human. (ants will go after a diabetic's urine, for example) Give your vet a call.
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by strange_wings

Are you sure you're not actually seeing fleas? - it wouldn't be the first time on here someone didn't recognize what they're seeing are fleas. Though I do know there are some odder mites over there that will bite on cats (that we don't have over here). The only time I can think of that ants would seek out an animal or even human out (other than when a nest is bothered) is if there is something wrong with the animal/human. (ants will go after a diabetic's urine, for example) Give your vet a call.


I did not know what a flea looked like till I asked the vet.
 
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sooty_94

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No they were definitely ants, there have been a lot of ants around lately. Took him to the vet this morning and were advised to give him a shampoo using one the vet recommended, and that got rid of quite a few of the little critters. Poor darling didn't like it much at all which is what we expected but he handled it well and seems a lot more comfortable now. Better to be safe than sorry
Thanks for your replies.
 

strange_wings

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Since it's linked to an ant problem then, you should probably look into what options you have for treating your home. Either through a barrier spray that you could apply outside or treatments by professionals. Inside where there's the possibility of contact with people and pets see if you can get human grade diatomaceous earth.

And of course, use the search on here for past ant threads!
There have been plenty as a lot of us have to deal with them - but with a lot of us being in the US (that had ant issues) most of those threads are from months ago.
 
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sooty_94

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Originally Posted by strange_wings

Since it's linked to an ant problem then, you should probably look into what options you have for treating your home. Either through a barrier spray that you could apply outside or treatments by professionals. Inside where there's the possibility of contact with people and pets see if you can get human grade diatomaceous earth.

And of course, use the search on here for past ant threads!
There have been plenty as a lot of us have to deal with them - but with a lot of us being in the US (that had ant issues) most of those threads are from months ago.
The vet mentioned a barrier spray we should use so we're going to do that tomorrow, so glad I took him in to be checked, was getting rather worried about him, he's been so brave and well-behaved at all check ups and vaccinations thus far
 
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