HELP!!! Kitten Fleas?

Question

I have had this kitten for a month. She had fleas when i found her. I Have bathed her everyother day in fleabath. Put on the spot treatment twice now. But it still not working. I have two small children so im afraid to use the bomb. What else can i do? My son puts his mouth on everything. ANd my daughter and i are being bitten constantly.

Using Advantage from the vet. didnt know about the bathing thing though. No flea collar on my kitty. my son would probably try and eat it.

Answer 1

First let me tell you that I own a pest control company and what I will recommend is the complete treatment that should help you completely get rid of the fleas.

First, treat the pet with Capstar. This is a pill that you get from the vet that will kill all of the fleas that get on the animal for the first 24 hours. Second, use either Frontline or Advantage, these can also be purchased from the vet. Frontline can be used on pets 12 weeks old or older. Advantage can be used on animals as young as 6 weeks. If the pet is old enough for either product, switch back and forth between the two. One month use one, the next use the other. The reason I recommend this is that there are two main types of fleas that infest pets. One product works better on the first type and the other product works better on the second type. By using both, you make sure you have covered all your bases.

Once the pet has been treated, you must treat your home and yard. The best products to do this would include not only a killing agent, but also a sterilization agent. Inside, I would use Ultracide, if you can get it. (Many on line sites sell it.) Follow the instructions on the label! Wash all animal’s bedding and vacuum frequently. DO NOT STEAM CLEAN YOUR RUGS! This can hatch flea eggs and make your problem worse.

Outside I would use Demon WP mixed with Gentrol or Nylar, carefully following label instructions. Treat the entire yard, paying special attention to under bushes and low hanging branches. Most of these products can be bought at any Do-It-Yourself Pest Control company either on line or in a store.

Treating your house and yard is just as important as treating the pet!

It is also very important to stay away from the grocery store or box store products like Zodiac or Hartz. Many of these products can cause severe allergic reactions in animals.

Answer 2

Make sure you're using the spot treatment from the Vet and NOT the over the counter spot treatment. There's a BIG difference. If you used Advantage or something similar the fleas will go away. But, you can't bathe your kitten 3 days before or 3 days after, so basically, a full week. If you bathe the kitten any time during that week the spot treatment will not work properly. I had a similar situation about 2 years ago. We got a new kitten that was infested with fleas. We got the Advantage from the vet and within a week everything was fine. (It makes your cat into a flea magnet, so not only does it kill the fleas on your kitten, but it also takes care of all the fleas in the house.) Also, make sure you are vaccuming. You should vaccum at least once a day until you notice the problem decreasing. The fleas live in carpeting and furniture and that's where they lay their eggs. Good luck!

Answer 3

NEVER, EVER put chemicals for fleas on kittens. Stop the flea baths etc immediatley. Your vet should have told you that these chemicals - including Advantage (which is great with older cats) should never be used on kittens.

The solution is simple. Get a flea comb - a metal one not plastic. Plastic ones do not work well. You can purchase at Long's Drugs or other large drug stores for about $5.00. Put some isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol) in a cup. The alcohol costs about $1.00 and you can also get at the drug store. Do not use a 'disinfectant' - use pure rubbing alcohol. It evaporates off and leaves no poisonous residue.

As you comb the kitten, the fleas will get caught in the comb - you can grab with your fingers also. Quickly put the comb with fleas into the alcohol. They will die within seconds. Sometimes you may need to trap the fleas with your fingertip so they don't jump away.. Remove the comb, dry off a bit with a paper towel and keep combing. Do this every day and soon - no more fleas on kitty. This is very, very easy to do.

This is the only safe way to remove fleas from kittens - and they usually love the attention also. It's great for older cats as well. And is very inexpensive. I don't recommend using soapy water instead of alcohol because you will leave soap on your cat - and they will lick it.

If your family is being bitten by fleas you may have to bomb the house - not a problem. But first keep vaccuming - you should get most of the fleas that way - and also wash your bedding. My mother had a bad flea problem and she did not even own an animal - they lived outside and in her carpet and reinfested every spring. Bombing helped - and it is safe if you make sure everyone is out of the house - including your kitten - and then you air out the house afterwards for a while. We only bomb every 3 years now.

Answer 4

It depends on how bad the infestation is.
If the fleas are already bitting you it means that they may be on the carpet's, if there are any. Or on bedsheets and so on and so forth.

Either way the kitten needs to go to the vet to get a flea bath. And needs to have advantage put on it.
I think bombing the place would be the best solution if the fleas come back, it means that the fleas are laying eggs somewhere.

If you do bomb the house, make sure you wash all the clothes and sheets afterwards. Also wash all of your son's toys.

I would suggest bombing your house while your family takes a trip, since a bomb usually goes for 4-5 hours, and while the kitten is in the vet taking it's bath.

Hopefully you won't need to resort to bombing!

Answer 5

Also- make sure your family wears thick white socks at all times. I wore my husband's white gym socks when we had this problem. First, fleas tend to bite the ankles and lower legs of humans the most. Also, you can see the fleas on the white background of the socks. Keep scotch tape nearby. When you see a flea on your sock you can catch it with the sticky tape.
At least this will give you & your daughter some comfort.
Everyone here gave excellent ideas regarding your kitten.
Take care, I hope this helps you out. Fleas are a nightmare!

Answer 6

What kind of spot treatment are you using? I use Revolution, you can get it from the vet. It is a bit pricey, but it seems to do the job. It protects against just about everything. The treatments you buy at the supermarket are usually pretty weak.

Also, please don't make your cat wear a flea collar. It has been shown that these irritate the skin and senses of most cats, and as they can't get these off it is like a torture.

Hope you get rid of these pesky things!

Answer 7

i have a kitten too and wen we got her she was flea ridden, get a fine tooth comb and some disinfectant, and put some news paper on the floor and get your kitten and go through her with the comb removing each one, if u get a flea on the comb shake it in the discinfectant and water until the flea has drowned in the water and then repeat process it shud take a while but after about a week the flea problem shoudl go away!!

Answer 8

Take her to the vets immediately! Not only are the chemicals bad for you and your family, not to mention the flea bites, but the kitten can actually die from blood loss from the flea bites if she's not treated promptly. Good luck!

Answer 9

You will have to treat your house in one way or another. The eggs are everywhere the cat has been, they'll hatch and you will just have an ongoing cycle.

If it's a moderate infestation vacuuming thoroughly and daily can help because it will pick up a lot of the eggs as well as fleas.

Answer 10

First quit putting pesticide on your cat all the time. Now, go spend the money on one of the good flea medications like Advantage.