Flea advice pleeease

[Ilovemycat13]

Hello!
I bought my lovely indoor cat a new bed from pets corner. Turns out they have a returns policy, and since I’ve brought the lovely bed home and my cat loves it; it’s given him fleas.

We used frontline on Monday but he was a wriggler so slightly skewed rather than between the shoulder blades and he did lick a bit off (cue lots of dribbling). Frontline says it should kill fleas within 4 hrs but I’ve just checked him and I’ve still found live fleas. They don’t recommend another treatment for 4 weeks.

Can I do it again? Will it overdose him? I’ve been de fleaing the home like mad I don’t want it to be in vain!!

Thanks

It'll probably take a few weeks for all the fleas to die. Vacuum carefully especially the corners and edges as often as possible and spray with a good spray such as Acclaim weekly.
I wouldn't use the spot on again until the 4 weeks is up
I had the same problem in Aug and it was probably 6 weeks before I was sure they were all gone

6 weeks? My goodness what a ballache. So just keep defleaing the house and hoovering etc. I’m just worried he didn’t get any dose of frontline

Frontline isn't always effective. Do you not normally treat your cat as even indoor ones should be?
I'd use a vet strength flea treatment or if buying over the counter then go for Advantage. Use indorex to spray the house

I put spot on at the base of the head/neck so that cant get to it to lick it

Steam cleaning will kill fleas but you have to keep on doing it to kill any eggs that hatch

Frontline has lost it's effectiveness. Fleas have become resistant to it (although I think they have just changed the active ingredient again, to something I haven't heard of, so who knows now). To be sure, get Advantage. You can use it two weeks after using the Frontline.

We used the spot just at the back of head/neck too. Little buggers can’t lick it off then.

You’ll need indorex spray to get you through the next two weeks (and him). There’s an injection that stops fleas breeding but it’s £35 or so and it’s lockdown tm 🤦🏻‍♀️.

This is going to be the most expensive cat bed ever at this rate.

There's different types of front line. The one from amazon etc is shit
We got one from the locked cabinet in pets at home. This has worked on one cat but not the other. I wouldn't buy it again. But we're unfortunately like you we now can't treat for another few weeks. My cat absolutely hates the cat carrier so I'd rather avoid the vets if possible. So I've bought some diatomaceous earth to try. It's coming tomorrow.

I dont need to take the cat to the vet just for flea treatment if they've seen them for their annual booster. I just phone and then go and collect it.

Advantage can be bought over the counter. I think pets at home sell it too

I've always found the tablets better. I crush it is and mix it with a small amount of food first thing when my cats extra hungry to make sure she eats it all.

Yes Indorex spray. Costco does a good flea treatment.

Don't buy a Costco flea treatment. The only flea treatment that can be bought without prescription that works and isn't dangerous is Advantage.

What do you mean isn't dangerous @thecatneuterer

@nancybotwinbloom Some cheap, off the shelf treatments, including one very famous brand (which has now changed it formulation) contain permethryn. A small percentage of cats reacted badly to this and died! Our rescue regularly saw cats dying (horribly - convulsing) after being treated with the famous brand (not naming for legal reasons. Google should tell you what I'm talking about). I'm normally on call on Christmas Day and will never forget being called out to pick up two dying cats on Christmas Day six years go that had been flea treated that morning using the famous brand.

So off the shelf treatments not only don't kill fleas but they can kill your cat.

One of my colleagues used the famous name brand one morning before work, unexpectedly went home at lunch to get a folder she’d forgotten and her kitten was turning in circles frothing & drooling at the mouth. Luckily she lived right by the vet and they treated her.

Usually she wouldn’t have gone home for another 5hrs.

You need to manually comb all the fleas out of your car's fur. If you wait the days or weeks for the medication to kill them, you still have an infestation in your house that will be extremely difficult to get rid of. Vacuum all your carpets now and change all bedding etc. And get a flea comb and remove every flea.

Combing is very effective, it's what we used to do before we had all these lovely new easy to use treatments. I remember having to hold cats down whilst we rubbed in clouds of powder, I am amazed we are still alive!

OP I wouldn't worry about treating the house with chemicals. You may have a couple of fleas around, but the cat will "hoover them up" as it goes round the house. Cat is treated, fleas jump on cat, fleas die. You really only need to treat if you can see jumping fleas, or are getting bitten on the ankles. Hoovering and treating the cat should be sufficient.

Thank you all for your advice. I think the frontline is working - he was on the bed yesterday and when he jumped off I looked and found a dead flea which is reassuring. I haven’t seen anymore but he’s got such think hair and he’s a wriggly bugger that it’s hard to tell. Il keep going with the flea spray/hoovering etc and this is lesson learnt that I still need to treat him despite him being an indoor cat, I don’t know why I didn’t I just assumed he wouldn’t get them ☹️
@Baaaahhhhh what sort of comb did you use? Like a nit comb?

Most of the fleas do not live on the cat. They are in the environment.

Ilovemycat13 Exactly like a nit comb, I've got a metal one with a handle. Concentrate around the neck, behind the ears, and the base of the tail. This is a bit sick, but again, before spot ons, we used to comb the cats and you would literally get a comb full of fleas, run your thumb along the edge, and squish them all, it was very satisfying .

We have found two dead fleas where he was sitting! So something is working. Have ordered a flea comb. And continuing to wash/spray everywhere. Hope it eventually just goes... he’s an indoor cat in a one bed flat so hard to stop him from going everywhere 😂

I am having the same trouble with my cat, she doesn't even go out! I applied frontline yesterday but can still see some fleas on her, do you think it probably hasn't worked? I don't think I have the energy to de infest my whole house! I remember doing the nit comb thing with my old moggy too.

Apparently they start dying but obviously with a flea cycle, they may appear and once they bite the cat they’ll die plus they may be in the home. I boil washed everything and I’ve actually bought a new hoover today (as mine was shit) and have hoovered everywhere too. Gonna hoover daily and change the throws around as much as I can and try and stop the cycle. Mines an indoor mog in a little one bed flat so hard to stop him from going anywhere! He has been grumpy though since treatment and has stayed in the bedroom all the time apart from food 😞

I've just moved into a house that has fleas. I don't have an animal. It's a mix of hard floor and carpet. I think the fleas have jumped onto my sofa as noticed two tonight on my blanket that was over my legs.

My house is rented. The landlord is going to clean the carpets and get some flea bombs. I'm hoping that'll work. Will it kill off any fleas in my sofa ? I'm really pissed off as I've been bitten too.

Indorex could be sprayed on soft furnishings