can i use palmolive dish soap on a kitten to kill fleas instead of dawn she is 6 weeks old?

Answer 1

Neither Palmolive or Dawn kills fleas - it may wash most of them off, but it is not the way to flea treat any animal, even a young one. Trying to comb the fleas out is also pretty much a waste of time, you could be at it for days and you'll still never get the eggs because you can't see them.

Frontline Spray is what to use on cats and dogs under 8 weeks of age. Frontline stays on the skin, it does not affect them internally, and the spray is safe for use on kittens and pups from 2 days of age. Not many people seem to know this, they try all sorts of stuff like washing the poor kittens and trying to comb them all out. Save all that, just pick Frontline spray up from your vets! And I'd pick some housespray up too while you're there, because that's where most of the fleas are living. Frontline spray will protect kitty against fleas for up to a month, but you will continue to see fleas if you don't spray the house.

Oh and for when the kitten is older, still stay away from ALL store-bought products, they're not safe and they don't work. That's why you don't find any in stores that can be used on cats younger than 12 weeks - they're quite likely to be toxic to adult cats, but will almost definitely be toxic to young ones. Veterinary products can be used to puppies and kittens from 8 or 12 weeks of age. You've been warned!

Chalice

Answer 2

I don't like to recommend any dish washing detergent to bathe a kitten, especially one so young.

I had orphaned kittens last fall that were flea infested. They were about 10 -12 days old when rescued. I bathe them in baby shampoo. It is not as harsh and drying, and left their fur so soft....but they still had fleas!

Bathing will not kill the adult fleas only wash off the flea dirt, the eggs and larva stages that are clinging to the kittens fur. The adults will jump, go in their ears and other openings while the kitten is wet. Once she is dry, the adult fleas will jump back on.

Instead, make an appointment for a well kitten exam with the vet. There are safe ways to combat the fleas, even for one her age. My vet recommended Mycodex. It is a spray to use on the bedding and places she lies. If you cannot take her to the vet right now, at least call them and have them recommend a flea product for you to use.

Do not use the over the counter flea anything, spot drops, spray, collars, shampoos. The insecticide they use is a synthetic of the chemical the vet-quality products use. This synthetic makes many cats sick. I can tell you first hand...I made my 5 cats sick years ago, thinking the OTC products would save me a little money. Instead, they cost me a fortune! The product made all 5 cats sick and had to be taken to the vet for treatment and then I still had the fleas to fight. Never again!

Purrs to you and kitten.

Answer 3

Yes, you can treat him. No - don't use flea products since they can harm kittens under 8 weeks of age. Most rescue leagues and vets will tell you that using dish soap is the preferred method. This will kill the fleas, but not harm the kitten. I have used this on a litter of four kittens and two adult cats with success. You will need to be equipped with the following: Normal liquid dish soap (NOT dishwasher detergent) Metal flea comb (the plastic ones don't work) Small cup with water and dish soap disolved in it Basin for cleaning Towel Bathe the baby in water of the proper temperature. Expect to see fleas crawling toward the head, so start at the top by the neck. Lather him up all over, including his tail and right up to his neck and behind his ears. Don't forget under the belly and on the soft skin by his back legs. Allow the soap/bubbles to sit on the kitten for a few minutes, or until the fleas are no longer moving. Don't let him get chilled, but do make sure the fleas stop moving. Rinse thoroughly, all over including his belly and tail, dry and then go for the ones on the face. Take the metal flea comb and comb the face, head, ears, thoroughly, and then dip the comb in the cup of soapy water, to kill them. Look all over his little face and get as many as you can. Check his belly with the flea comb in case any stragglers are hiding in any skin folds. Keep baby warm, and dry as best you can. If a hair dryer is tolerated, try that, but on a low heat setting so you don't overheat him. Otherwise keep him in a nice warm place. He'll be scared, so maybe cuddling inside a towel for a little while might calm him down. In about 7 to 10 days, you will need to repeat the process, since there some baby fleas may appear. This final "de-fleaing" should do the job. Repeat all the above steps. House: Vaccum each day. Bombs: No, they are not very safe and can even make the situation worse. Most of the fleas will stay right on the kitten and normal vaccuming should take care of any other concerns. Remember: Kittens are very vulnerable to the effects of fleas. They can cause anemia and a kitten can get very weak from this. I have know of younger kittens dieing from flea infestations. Your kitten is probably stronger and this should take care of the problem. If your kitten seems weak or sick in any other way, take him to the vet.

Answer 4

I don't know if palmolive works for sure or not, but I do know that Dawn works well to kill fleas and is safe for kittens that are too young for comercial flea products.
You should also treat your house for fleas. If the cat has fleas and has been in the house then the fleas are in the house and are in the carpet and furniture etc.
You need to get foggers to set off inside your house, I would recommend getting foggers from a vet. because only vets can carry foggers that contain insect growth regulators (IGR's) which kill the eggs and larvae instead of just the adults.
once your kitten is old enough, you should start using a monthly flea product such as frontline.

Answer 5

Doubtful. Dish soap is not designed to kill much other than bacteria. And it could be harmful to the kitten. There are specially designed soaps for pets. Why not use one of those and/or get a flea treatment from the vet?

Answer 6

The safest thing to use on a 6 week old kitten is a flea comb. You then dump the comb's catch into a jar of water and any flavor dish soap.

Answer 7

Dish soap would be pretty rough on a kitten (or any animal's) skin, so I would advise not using that at all. :)

Better to buy some flea shampoo for cats or see if they have any for kittens especially.

Answer 8

dawn is the best and recomennded by vets for young kittens. do get a flea comb though it seems to only stun the fleas and they are much easier to pic of your little one with a comb. u will have to do it repeatedly. if u can't get to a store right away and the little ones are infested water the palmolive down alot and use it. it would be better to water it down and get the little blood suckers off your babies then to leave them with a nasty infestation. get to a store asap though and get some dawn.

Answer 9

Dish soap will not kill fleas. Flea combs are often used to check if there are fleas present. They won't kill or get rid of them permanently. Check your local pet store for a cat and kittens flea shampoo. Follow the directions carefully. Flea infestations can bleed a kitten to death.
http://www.petco.com/product/4828/Zodiac-Veterinarian-Quality-FleaTrol-Protein-Conditioning-Shampoo.aspx

Answer 10

One is as good as another. No dish soap kills fleas - they simply drown. So it doesn't matter which you use.

Dawn in particular is used by some people because of its grease cutting ability, so it may actually be rather harsh.