Bugs on my cat's ears

[orientalslave]

These fleas are sticktight fleas. They are commonly found on poultry but have been known to be on cats, dogs, horses and pigs. you can look on the internet to find what you can use to get rid of it.
 

I go with this, not ear mites.  Ear mites live deep inside the ear canal, not on the flap and are tiny, and the ear has brown gunge in it - there are plenty of explicit photos that Google can find.

 

[paulagirl1222]

Oh my gosh....my cat has these weird little bugs on his ears too. Maybe 3 or 4 usually on each ear everyday and I can pick them off just like u can. Like you, I am so strapped for money. I have two dogs with pretty serious health problems that are costing a lot to care for right now and if there is any over the counter or cheap way to take care of these icky little bugs I really need to hear it.

Did you ever figure out what they are? Thanks in advance.

 

[daisy the cat]

i made a huge word document on strictight fleas for anyone who might want it. last time i tried to upload a document it wouldn't let me because i haven't been on this site long enough. anyone can email me and

i will send it to you if you want me to.

[email protected]

OH COOL! IT ATTACHED!!! YEY!

 

[daisy the cat]

HOPING THIS DOCUMENT ATTACHES THIS TIME AND IT NEVER DID SO I WILL TRY TO PASTE THE WHOLE THING HERE BUT I BET IT'S GOING TO BE TOO LONG

WELP IT WON'T ALLOW ME TO PASTE HERE. JUST MAIL ME AND I'LL SEND IT TO YOU.

 

[wauntohelp]

This may be chigger. Im sorry your having this issue. My dogs bring these in. My cats have them too!!! Best thing used is DEET =off for yourselves. Make sure the yards animals go in is mowed oncd a week. Use sulphur powder works wonders! Hope this helps.

 

[wauntohelp]

Oops chiggers

 

[celina]

i have the same problem but he is an outdoor cat and hes very ittitated by them atm always flicking and scratching his ears but he still has his hair covering his ear last night i removed most by disturbing them and then they de-attach and run and i catch them as its hard to remove them while they are attached  and tonight hes come back with groups i dont know wher they are coming from and they dont seem to grow in size much at all????

 

[tickedoff123]

I have a cat that goes outdoors and Ive been feeding and trying to care for a feral cat and both of them had these black dots today now they would not let me mess with their ears....but here I am typing and I felt an itch and I go and feel this little bump I look and its one of them darn things that were on the cats ears......I had to remove it with tweezers just as I removed bigger ticks off of the stray today and I have a ton of health issues, cancer, liver disease and Lord I don't need anything from these things does anyone know for sure what they are?

 

[elflingskitten]

Yes, Amy Harvey posted the answer, and I thank her for the research! My family has rescued cats for years and these bugs have come up occasionally; I never knew what they were. They're 'sticktight' fleas, also known as poultry fleas or hen's fleas. As she said, just do an internet search; you can look right at a picture of them. I found a site, 'Backyard Chickens', and a member there, 'Rayday61', posted some very encouraging information under the title 'a-cure-for-sticktight-fleas'. Basically just Adams puppy or kitten spray, dabbed on with a cotton ball and Ortho yard spray for the yard. Keep in mind, they're dealing with chickens over there so I don't know how safe the Ortho stuff is for cats.

It seems I had tried Revolution years ago and didn't think it worked, but I realize now those little *%&#@! dig so deeply into the animal's skin, their bodies must stay in place long after they're dead, leading one to believe it didn't work. What others have posted here about Revolution being effective is surely true, because it works on just about everything else. It really is a miracle worker. BTW, it's an instant cure for Mange, something a vet finally admitted to me after years of me begging for a cure when finding suffering strays and no money to bring any of them in. It annoys me deeply that we still need a vet's prescription for it. The supposed reason for that is if the cat has heartworms (unlikely) the treatment could end badly, but no vet who has EVER prescribed my cats Revolution ever actually tested for heartworms.

Most of what little I have learned over the years has come from times of desperate poverty, so I understand what others have written about finances. Occasionally you can find Revolution on Ebay or you can do what I have had to do. I currently have ten cats and care for many others in a stray colony. If I have to take ANY of them in for ANY reason, one of my own or a stray I'm getting spayed, I mention to the vet I would like to get Revolution for them at a later date and they're fine with that (and I confirm that with the receptionist before I leave). That gives you a year from the date of that appointment to go in and tell them however much Revolution you need for Kitty-fill-in-the-name. Good luck, and thank you for what you are doing :-)

 

[azchick]

Those are rabbit fleas. My cat gets them everyspring when he goes after rabbits and gophers. They stick to to the tips of the ears and cause little bald patches on the outer ear. I use a spot on treatment monthly. When I used Frontline, he was flea free. I switched to Sentry and its not working, so going back to frontline or advantage. Just apply it between the shoulder blades and it works for a month. 

 

[Catostrophic]

I know I'm coming onto this late...lol...they arwhat's known as sand fleas....they attatched to the edges of the ear...not mobile like traditional fleas...and they are much smaller...much much smaller...almost the size of flea dirt...