bringing in a stray kitten......

Ok, so I've decided to bring in Midnight. Here's my questions:

I think she's got fleas, can she take zodiac, or should I go get Revolution from the vet? I'm leaning toward the latter, since it also covers mites and heartworm. 

First shots are 70bucks.... does she need them  Before she comes in, or can I de-flea and deworm her first, then vet her on the next pay cheque?

Litter-training.....I thought I'd fill a tray with dirt from where she usually goes, and slowly mix in liter over a couple of days each time I scoop?

Thinking I'll house her in my son's room, since it's hard wood and at the back of the house away from the main activity? Also he's got cubby holes in his desk for her to hide in.

What am I missing?

I brought in a stray before taking him to the vet, but I made sure he had no contact with my other resident animals.  He was upstairs in a bedroom all to himself for 2 weeks before I took him to the vet.  He had already been neutered and had his rabies shots, but he needed the rest. 

As far as litter, the dirt is a great idea.  I had one box of dirt mixed with litter and one box mixed with litter and cat attract.  My cat chose the cat attract and never used the dirt!  Go figure. 

Deworming yourself is harder as you may not get all types of worms.  You may want to wait and get a prescription from the vet.  Revolution works great and the added benefit of killing ear mites too.  You could try Capstar for fleas if she is old enough.  It will get rid of them, but not prevent them. 
 

Thanks for the info. I located a vet for her, and got prices(have to wait for the paycheque before I make an appointment.) should I bath the baby with sunlight or something for the fleas? I have so many questions, and no answers. I'd prefer to bring her in slowly, but the kids keep walking in the house with her in their arms so I'm wondering if I just just get it over with and put her in the bathroom to adjust? She should be to the vet within the week for her checkup and booster. as well as Revolution and deworm

If you can get revolution, you can use it. A small dosage as she is a kitten.

It will kill off most parasites and worms.  Save the tapeworms, but most kittens dont have it.

I dont know what this Zodiac is and in what it is different from revolution.

Capstar is useful for instant killing of adult fleas, but you must use somehting long term too.

Yes, it may be a good idea to take the deworming and vaccinations at different occasions.  Not only by the financial reasons, but also, some kittens get real down after vaccinacion.  Sleeping heaviily three days perhaps.

Adding deworming to it may be too much.

So doing everything at once is convenient for the owner, but not optimal for the cat.

Dont let her met foreign cats before she is vaccinated though, and preferably, dont let her met your residents before she had her check up, etc...

Good luck!

StefanZ said:

If you can get revolution, you can use it. A small dosage as she is a kitten.

It will kill off most parasites and worms.  Save the tapeworms, but most kittens dont have it.

I dont know what this Zodiac is and in what it is different from revolution.

Capstar is useful for instant killing of adult fleas, but you must use somehting long term too.

Yes, it may be a good idea to take the deworming and vaccinations at different occasions.  Not only by the financial reasons, but also, some kittens get real down after vaccinacion.  Sleeping heaviily three days perhaps.

Adding deworming to it may be too much.

So doing everything at once is convenient for the owner, but not optimal for the cat.

Click to expand...

Zodiac is a flea treatment that you can buy in Walmart...but since it's cheap, I'm doubting the safety of using it on a kitten. I think I'll use Revolution and bath him......Thanks for the info about the vetting, too-this will be my first kitten

thanks. I think it'll be a little while before a meeting takes place, as there's been some hissing on Matt's part through the fly screen the baby's trying to get in and being VERY vocal about it. It's cooling down outside, and he's chilly. I don't know that he'd cry any less if I let him in and put him in the bathroom though....he might just want more sucking up?

Oh yes, I noticed today as I flea-combed the kitten the she's a he  But at least the chosen name is gender-neutral so he can keep it and a neuter is cheaper than spay