Did I screw up?? HELP!

OK...Heres the thing....we got a new kitten two or three weeks ago...he had an upper respitory infection, worms, and fleas galore! We took him to the vet where he was treated for everything except the fleas (Ill address that in a second) My adult cat really loves the little guy and they're always together. I knew I had to do something about the fleas ASAP, so I called the local (and only) pet store .... who was OF COURSE out of Advantage and Frontline...so I bought Bio-Spot instead. I came home and gave both cats flea baths, let them dry, and applied the Bio-Spot. Now It seems that the big guy is EXTREMEMELY lethargic...and I cant figure out why????? He has always been kind of fat and lazy (in a sweet, charming way of course) But he has slept (in the same place) since yesterday...he is still eating, but has no interest in his catnip (which he usually loves) Any advice/suggestions? Any replies would be greatly appreciated.......thanks Stacey

Maybe he is just tired out from playing with the kitten? But if there is a clear change of behavior, to actually lethargic, you need to call your vet!

I'd bathe the flea product off of the kitty and call the vet. OTC flea medications are dangerous to cats. Check out this thread about a very bad reaction to Bio Spot.

I agree - give him a bath right away and call the 24 hour emergency vet.

The flea products you can buy at the pet store aren't good - either they don't work or they harm the cat. You can only get Advantage and Revolution and Frontline from the vet but it is so worth it. It's better to let them itch for a couple of days till the vet opens on Monday than take chances with OTC stuff. I've just heard too many scary things about them.

Please call your vet and wash the Bio Spot off with diluted dish soap. I'm sorry, but this product is toxic. I recently lost my cat to it. See my thread at this link...

http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=58253

Get him to the VET NOW! Good luck and I hope it isn't to late. Bio-Spot is bad news, especially on kitties.

How's the kitty doing today?

My cat got very sick just like that on advantage too. He was lethargic and forming at the mouth. All of those are poison and not good for cats or other animals as well as humans.

Did you say you used Bio-Spot? If you wonder why your cat is lethargic check out this site:


msds.farnam.com/msds/m001233.htm


from the site:

SECTION 3. HAZARDS IDENTIFICATION
Bio Spot Flea & Tick Mist for Cats
EMERGENCY OVERVIEW

ROUTE(S) OF ENTRY: Inhalation? Yes , Skin? Yes , Eyes? Yes , Ingestion? Yes
POTENTIAL HEALTH EFFECTS (ACUTE AND CHRONIC)

CARCINOGENITICY: NTP? No , IARC Monographs? No , OSHA Regulated? No
CARCINOGENICITY/OTHER INFORMATION
Not known
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF EXPOSURE
Product in eyes can cause temporary irritation, tearing and blurred vision. Prolonged or repeated skin exposure can cause irritation and reddening of the skin. Excessive inhalation may cause nasal and respiratory irritation. Ingestion may cause stomach irritation resulting in nausea, cramps and vomiting. Can also cause nervous disorders, such as fatigue, headaches, dizziness, lack of co-ordination, tremors, and unconsciousness.
MEDICAL CONDITIONS GENERALLY AGGRAVATED BY EXPOSURE
None determined
As for Advantage/Advantix: from various sites)

Advantage/Advantix considered unsafe for pets

Advantage Flea product: how safe or how toxic is it?

Used Advantage on my cat and shes sick
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Hi, last week I used the usual Advantage for cats on my Harley, and it was even one third the dose, because I use one vial on 3 cats. She was sick by that evening, wouldn't eat, acted like she was barfing even if she drank water. She soon quit eating at all, and for 3 days it was touch and go. Luckily she is chubby, so she had some fat on her to live off of. I spent 180$ in tests at the vet, and they hydrated her, and sent her home with no answers.

She hadnt pottied or eaten for 3 days. She looked horrible. I managed to find some soft treats by a natural cat food company that she finally ate one a few days ago. On the 5th day she ate a few more. I really think they saved her life. She finally drank a little water on the 6th day and eats a few bites of food here and there. She still is in the same spot, sleeps all day and rarely moves. I can tell she still doesnt feel well. But at least she is eating. Very little pottying at all.

Vet says its very rare if it was the drops. I know it was. She might have licked them to much somehow... I have no idea. Just telling you to be careful She is 9 years old. I have used the drops for years, and always noticed they act so tired for a day or so after I use them. We never know, for sure how safe these things are, but if it kills fleas, it might become harmful if they are too young or too old.
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Mary Ann lost her beloved bearded collie 'Kaimen' as a result of using Advantage Flea Drops. "Advantage flea drops were recomended by my veteranarian to control Kaimens flea problems. The drops were placed on the back of his head in the nape of the neck. After using Advantage for 13 months a growth the size of a golf ball emerged in that very same spot where the Advantage flea drop were placed. The growth was made of a grey colored flesh with a putrid odor. A purulent putrid liquid oozed out of it. Kaimen was taking to the vet, where I learned more about the growth and just how deadly Advantage is to our pets. The pesticide that is used in Advantage is called lmidacloprid and should NOT be absorbed through the skin. I learned that dogs and rats who were used to test this pesticide developped thyroid cancer and it affected their appetite. My dog Kaimen died at the age of two as a resuslt of using Advantage which caused a tumerous cancer to develop in his neck and which metastasized in his brain. I sent Bayer, the maker of Advantage, a letter with a return receipt but they never bothered to reply to my letter."
A friend used Advantage on his dog who got sick from it. He stopped using it and the dog recovered.
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I am posting this message on any/all message boards as I can find. I am trying to spread the word about using K9 Advantix on your dog. My husband and I were given this product from our vet a few months ago. We have a ten month Golden Retriever that weighs 55lbs. The first two doses were fine. On the third dose we noticed that she began breaking out in sores on her face and along her neck. We were switching dog foods at the time and thought this might be the cause (since she had no prior reactions the first two administrations). We brought her to our vet who diagnosed her with a secondary skin infection. She said it could be an allergy to anything- most likely something in her new food. She gave us a round of antibiotics and never even suggested it could be due to the Advantix. One month later we put the Advantix on again. This time it was far worse- as though her body just could not tolerate this again. Within 36 hours we had to bring her to the vet. Our's was on vacation so we called around to others in the area. After describing her symptoms (severe scratching at the ears, leaking of puss behind the ears and swelling along the throat and neck) they asked if we had given her Advantix recently. We said yes and we were old to bring her in immediately. She was having a severe reaction to this and she almost died. They had to sedate her and they shaved around her ears and neck to expose the affected area. We were shocked at what we saw. In addition to her neck being about five times its normal size, her skin was literally burned from the Advantix. You could see where we had administered the Advantix at the base of the skull because there was a burn hole. Then you could see the path that the liquid took down both sides of her face down to her neck and throat. It had literally burned her skin right off. She had a major infection in these areas that had also crept into her ears and her right eye.
The next 24 hours were awful. We stayed up with her all night and were not sure she was going to make it. It has been about a week now and she is almost fully recovered. The company that manufactures this drug will only acknowledge that in rare occasions, some dogs to have a "sensitivity" to this. Although, they gave us little resistance to reimbursing for our vet bills. (We also learned, via a middle of the night phone call to our emergency vet clinic, that there was another dog going through this very experience- they thought we were the same people).
Since then, I have been reading other people's experiences with Advantix on various message boards. It does not appear that these reactions are as "rare" as the company claims them to be. (I also think they have a very distorted version of what a "sensitivity" or "minor reaction" really is).
I am writing this because had we known that this was even a possibility- we never would have put one drop of this on our dog. Our hope, since the company takes no formal responsibility in better communicating the risks associated with Advantix that someone may read this and spare themselves and their dog, the agony of this experience.
If you are reading this and you have experienced similar effects from using Advantix on your dog, PLEASE contact the Environmental Protection Agency. They are required to investigate every complaint against this product. Who knows, if enough cases are documented, they may take this awful poison of the market in the future and spare the health and lives of other dogs."

This is just so scarry. I too want to know. What do we use? I know there is nothing absolutely "safe" but, what is the safest route any idea's? Thanks, Hope Evans

Originally Posted by Doc-n-SamsMom

Hi all, thanks so much for your thoughts! Yesterday I went to Farnam's (The manufacturer of BioSpot) website and was able to "chat" with a representitive...who ASSURED me that there was no real danger...that my cat was just experiencing SENSITIVITIES to the medication. I was also assured that the product does not enter the animals blood stream (contrary to everything else I've heard) and that even if it was somehow ingested...it was such a small amount of "toxins" that it couldnt seriously injur my animals. I'm not sure how much of that I believe. After a while a live person called me and told me to bathe both of my animals completely with dish soap, and if there wasn't an improvement by this morning, to take my cat to the vet, and send them the vetinary bills for reimbursement. I assured them that they could count on that one! At any rate, this morning dawned, and Doc seems much better (THANK GOD!) He actually got out of bed, ate some breakfast, used his litter box, and popped his head out the window to do some bird watching (something he hasnt done in days!) Im hoping I have seen the worst of it, but continue to watch him intently. I will definately not be using Bio-Spot on any of my animals in the future. So that being said....I'm wondering if anyone can make suggestions for natural flea and tick repellents? Thanks again to all the replies...I will be sure to keep you posted!

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Stacey, I don't know who you talked to at Farnam, but you need to call again. It is absolutely INSANE to me that they assured you it was a normal reaction to the product. The person I spoke to totally agreed that Sunni died as a result of using Bio Spot. Think about it, would they offer to reimburse your vet bills if they did not KNOW that there is a problem with this stuff? I highly doubt it. Please contact me. There are things that I know from my conversation with Farnam that I cannot post in a public forum. Since your cat has had what appears to be an adverse reaction to Bio Spot, I think you should be aware of the details of my conversation. One thing I will say, there are two major companies no longer selling this product, due to the major volume of complaints and incidents like ours.
I'm glad that Doc is feeling better. He was lucky you were there to observe his reaction. Take care and give him some extra hugs from me.

how come you didnt try Revolution for the fleas? i am just wondering because i know that can be used for fleas and everything. did they not carry that also? i saw you only wrote advantage/frontline, i've never heard of bio spot, but i take it its not very good for the animal. revolution controls EVERYTHING including killing adult fleas..

Originally Posted by bengalbabe

My cat got very sick just like that on advantage too. He was lethargic and forming at the mouth. All of those are poison and not good for cats or other animals as well as humans.

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What do you use for yours? I am getting advantage or frontline tomorrow from the vet is that bad. My missy has fleas and I used advatage July 6 and she has had them a week ago so going to the vet to get something else. Is that not wise? The vets knows what bio did to my kitty beavis I have enough trust to think he would give anything to harm again. But interested in what you have heard, witnessed and happen to you. Maybe I can talk to him about it while I am there to see whats better for my babies

ASk your vet about Revolution. My cat hasnt had fleas at what all since i used it. thats what is reccomended in my area. they have Revolution for cats and dogs. its a skin apply thing. but it treats EVERYTHING, or sentinel. but i didnt like sentinel my dog still had fleas. hope that kinda helps