home remedies for fleas on a kitten. ?? help please

It's getting cold out there and I want to bring in the stray kitten, but it's got fleas. I'll be taking him to the vet, but not for a few more days and they won't let me buy Revolution without having seen him first(I already asked) I'm terrified to use Zodiac, or other offthe-shelf flea treatments, because my old cat had a BAD reaction the one and only time I used it. She foamed at the mouth, then twitched for most of the day after Zodiac, and it didn't even cure her fleas for all her misery

What about home remedies? 

I found a recipe using lemon juice and rosemary, and someone else posted an article about using Dawn dish detergent for flea removal. 

I'd really appreciate if someone weighed in here

The only safe home "remedies" I know of are to bathe the cat using a mild dish detergent, using a flea comb religiously and vacuuming frequently.

 How old is the kitten?    I have heard you can use Advantage on kittens that are 6 wks  and some rescuers use it younger.   just a smaller amount. 

but  also there's a recent thread on here about Diatomaceous Earth (the food grade kind)  for getting rid of fleas.  http://www.thecatsite.com/t/263073/diatomaceous-earth

and you can comb with a flea comb and then drown  them in water with some dish soap in it.  .  You can also bathe the kitten with the Dawn.   It will not prevent fleas getting back on though.   it's just for getting off any fleas that are on at the time.  

Thank you. I was considering the dawn method, but not sure if it would work. I'm not too worried about the fleas getting back on him, since he got them outside and won't be going back out again once I bath him. That would be a sure-fire way to garuntee I never saved the poor little stray....give it a dunking and put it outside  Ahh! human brings water! He lets me comb him, so I've been doing that already, and removed some larger fleas...it's the fast-moving little ones on his belly I can't catch in the comb. I'm going to keep him in the bathroom for the next couple of weeks or more until he's vetted, had his shots, and the resident cat stops puffing up.

vball91 said:

The only safe home "remedies" I know of are to bathe the cat using a mild dish detergent, using a flea comb religiously and vacuuming frequently.

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Second that.

I was reading an article on-line recently about the benefits of apple cider vinegar,and it has been said to be great for fleas on cats and dogs.

Hope this helps, as its very cheap,less than £2 for a bottle.

DJKWIKFIT said:

I was reading an article on-line recently about the benefits of apple cider vinegar,and it has been said to be great for fleas on cats and dogs.

Hope this helps, as its very cheap,less than £2 for a bottle.

Click to expand...

Apple cider vinegar has a lot of uses for us. However, it should be used with caution for cats. In its undiluted form, it is irritating to the skin. Even diluted, it is very irritating to mucous membranes (eyes, nose, mouth, etc.). It should not be ingested as it alters the ph of urine (not in a good way).

I use food grade diatomaceous earth on even the young kittens for flea control. You must, must, must be sure it's the food grade - nothing you would buy for pool care, nothing with pesticide added. Try health food stores. I rub it into their fur and the fleas it comes into contact with die in a few hours. And it's harmless if ingested, probably even beneficial. I also feed it with their kibble to control worms and parasites. I'm just careful not to create a cloud of dust they would breathe.

I use it around the house also in the carpets and nooks and crannies to control fleas and any other bugs that get in.