Looking for flea medicine advice

graywing

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We have two TNR kitties. They both started out as ferals that we've tamed. Raven is pretty easy going. Very relaxed. I'm not sure I'd even call her even semi-feral anymore. I took her to the vet to get weighed a bit over a month ago and she did very well. Winter on the other hand is probably what would be called a semi-feral. He does pretty well with me. Every day I can see improvements. Just today I was able to pick him up and hold him for a bit for the first time. However, the only person he seems to trust at all is me. He shies away from anyone else.

Back when I took Raven to get weighed at the vet's office, the lady at the desk said that I could use the flea medicine for over 9lbs even if she weighed 8.6 lbs. I was too hesitant to try that though even if it was someone at the vet's office who said I could. However, I've been having problems with my car and I can't get Raven back to the vet to be weighed again to find out her current weight. She's roughly 10 months old now. I figure there's a chance she grew some but I don't know for sure.

If it really is okay to use flea medicine for over 9 lbs on a cat that's 8.6 lbs, then I was thinking I don't really have to take her. I can just see if I can get someone to drop me off to pick up the flea medicine for the over 9 lbs. Does this really seem safe though? I just hate the idea of her getting eaten up by fleas. I also want to get flea medicine on Winter. He seems to be roughly the same size as her but I don't know his weight at all. I was wanting to get him more used to being handled before taking him to the vet. I think he's at the point where I really would like to take him in for it except it comes back down to the car. I was thinking if they are the same size or if he's a bit heavier than her, then I could just get him the medicine for over 9 lbs, too. But then it comes back to the question of whether that's really safe or not.

They do let me comb them with a flea comb. Raven in particular loves to be combed. Winter is a bit more fussy about it. Sometimes he's more okay about it than others. Doesn't help that I've been having a problem with zapping him occasionally from static. They're currently both in a bathroom together as it just seemed too dangerous lately outside including problems with loose dogs in the neighborhood. They're extremely bonded together so they both had to come in together even if Raven was more tame than Winter.

I'm planning on getting them completely checked out as well. I'm having to save some more money for it first. I just want to be sure I have enough to hopefully cover surprise expenses. I also want to take them in together at one time if they both need to be treated at the same time for anything. Wasn't really planning on having more indoor kitties but I guess sometimes unexpected things happen. Since Winter only likes me, I don't really see anyone else who can really keep them together as a pair. And I do love them both. Raven is also the litter mate of one of our other cats. I figure despite the wait to see the vet at least they're safer indoors than outdoors?
 

Kieka

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At 10 months old they are both still growing so giving her the 9 pound even though she was slightly under shouldn't be an issue. If you have a scale at your house you could do the whole "weigh yourself, then weigh yourself again hold the cat" thing to estimate their weight. But the way I look at it the medicine doesn't all come out of the applicator anyways so when they say 9 pounds it is probably more like a few ounces under 9 pounds. If you want to be on the safe side don't squeeze the applicator too aggressively so a little more product stays in the package. I am going to guess you don't have the small cat version on hand and I don't blame you for not wanting to spend the money; especially since it sounds like both would outgrown any extra applications before it was time for another does. The other option would be baths with Dawn soap or a flea medicated shampoo (make sure it has no tea tree oil which is effective against fleas but deadly to cats) every other week with flea combing in between to remove the fleas. It won't be as effective but it will eventually get there and it would buy time for them both to gain a little more weight. 

Since they are indoor only and not interacting with your other cats you do have time to wait on the vet visit for Winter. I have the same overly skittish semi-feral cat (who was only good with me for the first year and is now expanding to immediate family) so I know the desire to avoid a vet visit. Although, when all is said and done I think I am more upset by the visit than she is. At the vet she wanted nothing more then to shake and huddle in my arms; since she is only 7 pounds she can hunch up pretty small. The fun part was trying to get her teeth checked and the vet ended up giving up saying what could be seen looked good and given her age it wasn't worth the trauma to force her to open her mouth more. The good news is that Rocket was perfectly fine within 24 hours of the vet visit and didn't have any lingering apprehension or anything. So while Winter may not like the vet very much the experience may not be as bad as you think. 
 

Primula

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As Kiera above has said, try giving the friendlier cat a bath. This will eliminate the fleas. Problem though is with the other cat, especially if they share a room. Revolution is the best thing for ear mites & fleas, but it's expensive. It's so easy to apply because it goes on a cat's upper back between its shoulder blades. Unfortunately if you buy it in America you need a script.
 
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