flea collars

I have just read in two posts today that flea collars should NEVER be used.

I didnt know that - my parents cats ALWAYS wore flea collars and they all lived long and healthy lives...
Having said that - dont worry - my 2 dont wear them.

however - can someone give me some information on why they shouldnt wear them? or maybe direct me to a website which discusses this.

I am curious about this now

Thanks

Danielle-

Many flea collars are made with a substance called organo phosphate insecticides. Cats are highly susceptable to this chemical. It can cause drooling, seizures or muscle tremors, skin irritation, paralysis and even toxic shock.

When I was growing up our cats always had flea collars with no problems, but this chemical was added much later to this product. It is just a good idea to treat fleas with a spot-on treatment from your vet and steer clear of products you can buy at your local grocery store that claim to do the same thing.

Dan, I agree with hissy. Flea collars are not a good idea. They can cause rashes, and skin disorders, and even more serious problems than that - they have caused death in kittens. If you have a flea collar, you can cut it up into little pieces and put them in your vaccuum cleaner bag.

When Tara and Pebbles were brought to me they were both wearing bright orange collars. I thought they were ordinary collars and I did not think to check on that. Two days later I found both collars on the floor, they had chewed them off and it turned out they were flea collars. They must have been irritating them for the cats to bite them off.

wow - I certainly did not know any of this at all.

Tanya - dont worry I dont use flea collars - I use the spot on that I get from my vet.

I was just curious about why they shouldnt be used.

Hissy - if this chemical - organo phosphate insecticides - is used and is proven to cause this sort of illnesses in cats - why is it still used? does this effect dogs as well?

do all flea collars have this chemical? and if so is this listed as an "ingredient" type thing on the labels?

thanks everyone

Flea collars are usually comprised of two things, organophosphate and carbamate insecticides. These are completely different from the safe chemicals used in spot-on treatments.

Frontline Plus contains Fipronil and Methoprene.
Advantage contains Imidacloprid and Benzyl Alcohol.
Program contains Lufenuron.

Organophosphates are considered highly toxic to cats; while there are many products containing OPâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s labeled for use on dogs only; pet owners often do not read the label carefully and apply them to cats resulting in significant toxicity and death. (from www.urmc.rochester.edu)

Also avoid using flea products which contain "organophosphates" because cats have very little tolerance for them. One type of organophosphate in particular which some cat flea products and many dog flea products contain is "permethrin". If the product contains a very small concentration of permethrin it should usually be safe as long as you follow the instructions, but that doesn't mean that your cat may have a lower tolerance for permethrin than other cats. For an example of the difference between dog and cat flea products: some flea products for dogs may contain as much as 40-60% permethrin, whereas cat flea products contain less than 0.1% permethrin. This example shows why even a small amount of dog flea treatments can be lethal to a cat. If you do decide to use a flea product which contains organophosphates please be sure to follow the instructions carefully and rinse it off of the cats fur very thoroughly so that the cat can't ingest the chemicals and become sick. (from www.pets-opedia.com)

Here is an article on carbomate insecticides (it's long).

I would ask that question of the manufacturer who made the product (shampoo) that killed my Bartee- I would ask Hartz why they put unsafe products on the market- as well as other companies that "claim" their product is safe to use around cats. It's a loaded question and it all boils down the bottom line- money-

Originally Posted by huggles

Hissy - if this chemical - organo phosphate insecticides - is used and is proven to cause this sort of illnesses in cats - why is it still used? does this effect dogs as well?

thanks everyone

Click to expand...

Cats and Dogs are two COMPLETELY different animals

Dogs have a much better tolerance for most drugs, whereas cats have major problems with most drugs.

Pyrethrins are also commonly used in flea control products. Dogs are fine with these, cats are NOT.

Spotz