The cat has fleas! Now what?

[SneakyGremlins]

Just noticed the cat has fleas! What do I treat it with? I was going to use frontline but people have told me horror stories..

Adavantage has the same flea ingredient as advocate and doesn't need a prescription

We get spot on stuff on subscription for around £4 a month - prompted by a nasty flea problem at the tail end (no pun intended) at the end of last year with our indoor cat. So worth the money, especially as flea sprays, powders, collars, treatments etc probably cost us £30+ to get rid of them last year, as well as hopefully sparing us another outbreak 😷

We used to use Frontline alternated with Advantage (= Advocate, I believe) and have now switched to Bravecto because it needs doing less often. They've all worked for us. (We started with it after an infestation which was a bitter lesson that indoor cats can get fleas )

I honestly wouldn't treat the house preventatively, i.e. when there's no active infestation. Insecticides aren't great for health, especially if you have children. The idea of the spot-on treatments is that any fleas that bite the cat die. Any that might be lurking in carpets or furnishings are going to get on the cat at some point and therefore then die.

Thankyou everyone - he's my first cat - and gotten to 2 with no fleas!

Advantage just does fleas whereas advocate does fleas and some worms. Advantage can be bought without prescription whereas advocate is prescription only

But if you have an active infestation, you will probably need to treat the house. We used a flea bomb, but you have to stay out for at least 2 hours and then air for at least 2 hours, preferably longer. There used to be a vet on here who recommended Indorex spray, which I think you can do bit by bit. Some swear by washing and hoovering alone, but that will take a great deal longer.

Ah, I thought the difference between Advantage and Advocate was just a naming difference between countries. I stand corrected :)

Elderly Luckily it's a 1 bedroom flat so not massive!

I have thrown clothes in washer - I have closely examined and it appears the hamper of clothes is the only flea source. Genuinely! No eggs or anything except on the cat on the clothes, so I'm hoping to have got them as they start appearing!

Friend had some spare treatment thankfully.

Eggs will be in your carpets/ floors too as only a small propertion of fleas live on the cat

Indorex spray for house (not on cat!) when you can find budget for it. Don't buy from vet as likely over priced. I got some for much better value on amazon

I'd not waste money on cheap flea sprays as they don't do much.

We've just got rid of fleas and yes, you absolutely need to treat your house otherwise you can expect them to keep getting it and lots of lovely itchy bites on your legs.

We used flea tablets every couple of days that kill any live fleas in them and sprayed everywhere with indorex and lemon water spray. Our mattresses, beds, rugs etc. We hoovered every day and sprinkled flea powder around skirting boards and corners - they like these spots.

It's expensive and it's time consuming, by after about six weeks I think (hope!) we've got rid of them.

I also read something like for every live flea you find on your cat, there will be 500 eggs. They'll definitely be in the carpets!

Vet prescribed flea treatment given monthly. Plus vet prescribed wormer given quarterly. Annual checkup/vaccinations. I only have the one cat though who is a real hunter and we need an updated health record just to book any of the local catteries.