Help With Fleas!

We just adopted a kitten from a home. It was absolutely infested with fleas...and we've already used the drop medication on her. She is 13 weeks old. How quickly does the medication take effect? I hate to see her like this.

Please take her to a vet

what drops did you use

i gave her a bath and used BioSpot

Also, she has not become anemic and has been acting normally and actively.

Ugh. Vet ASAP. BioSpot is very dangerous and more so for such a tiny kitten. If you recently dosed with that BioSpot, wash it off of her now.

Originally Posted by strange_wings

Ugh. Vet ASAP. BioSpot is very dangerous and more so for such a tiny kitten. If you recently dosed with that BioSpot, wash it off of her now.

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I was informed by the salesperson and by the box that I may use BioSpot on kittens 12 weeks and older. The box is labeled for kittens

Originally Posted by missnomnom

I was informed by the salesperson

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A salesperson is trying to sell you something. They're not vets, nor even trained as a vet tech. Take any advice you get in a store concerning you or your pet's health with a grain of salt.

Originally Posted by strange_wings

A salesperson is trying to sell you something. They're not vets, nor even trained as a vet tech. Take any advice you get in a store concerning you or your pet's health with a grain of salt.

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Okay, but the box still says that it can be used for 12 weeks and above.

Originally Posted by missnomnom

Okay, but the box still says that it can be used for 12 weeks and above.

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That doesn't matter. BioSpot, whether on a 12 week old or a 5 year old cat is still dangerous.

Originally Posted by strange_wings

That doesn't matter. BioSpot, whether on a 12 week old or a 5 year old cat is still dangerous.

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What drops do you recommend. My roommates are currently washing her off

Frontline, Advantage, and Revolution. The dosages are better per weight and they're safer because they're less toxic (to put it more precisely, it takes more per dose to harm an animal). Thought they're still pesticides with risks.

You get these from your vet, after your kitten has had an exam to make sure there's nothing else wrong. You can actually buy by the tube or even have the vet (or tech) apply it for you there. Revolution and Advantage Multi also act as dewormers for roundworms and hookworms as well as taking care of ear mites. Revolution can also prevent heartworm - so before using this one in an area where heartworm is a problem it's best to test for heartworm.

Originally Posted by strange_wings

Frontline, Advantage, and Revolution. The dosages are better per weight and they're safer because they're less toxic (to put it more precisely, it takes more per dose to harm an animal). Thought they're still pesticides with risks.

You get these from your vet, after your kitten has had an exam to make sure there's nothing else wrong. You can actually buy by the tube or even have the vet (or tech) apply it for you there. Revolution and Advantage Multi also act as dewormers for roundworms and hookworms as well as taking care of ear mites. Revolution can also prevent heartworm - so before using this one in an area where heartworm is a problem it's best to test for heartworm.

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Thank you for the advice

I use a flea comb. I dip the comb in a cup of hot water with some dawn dishsoap.

Originally Posted by missnomnom

Thank you for the advice

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No problem. You have to learn somewhere - lots of people make this mistake. Hopefully your kitten will be fine.

I do suggest you do a little research on some of the OTC flea topicals that get sold in stores such as BioSpot, Hartz, Zodiac, etc. There's a lot of them all with some pretty awful stories of injuring and even killing pets. The problem is that some of these formulations may not hurt a medium to large dog, but are dangerous in little dogs and cats (who are easily poisoned). You may someday pass on what you learn and save someone elses pet.
Flea collars and shampoos carry the same risks.

The reason we all suggest the big named topicals you get from the vet is 1) they're from the vet and 2) if something goes wrong your vet will know what to do and will be able to help you in filing the claim against the manufacturers.

Unfortunately all flea topicals are unregulated by the EPA at this time (meaning anyone can put what they want and at what dose they want in those little tubes and sell it), though there is a lot of investigation going on over the last few years.

For other flea tips, you can search this the forum for "fleas". Some of the things you can do that help are cleaning. Vacuum everything, toss a flea collar in it to stun the fleas that get sucked in. Wash pet bedding on hot and your bedding if the kitten has been on your bed. Don't forget to pull out furniture and vacuum around the walls.
If you have carpet you can get food grade diatomaceous earth (safe enough that you could eat it) and sprinkle that in to carpet. You can also dust a cat of any age or health with this.

You're going to have to treat the living area, especially carpets and cat bedding. Years ago we had a cat flea problem and used 20 Mule Team Borax, by sprinkling on the floors and carpets. It should be used for 3-4 weeks. It works like a champ.