sleeping with fur kids and their.... fleas

[mimitabby]

hey, anyone have some good tips for this??

i have no carpet in my house. I Frontlined my cats right before i went on vacation.
(two weeks ago) - that means i can't give them more for 2 weeks!

I covered my bed with two sheets so the cats could sleep on the bed
while i was gone and not soil the bedding. (ha)

I came home last night; pulled those sheets, threw them in the laundry and went to bed. Woke up with several new flea bites.

This morning, I combed all cats; found no fleas on anyone and only one cat even had evidence of fleas..

I went out and got Program for all of them (which doesn't kill fleas but makes the fleas essentially sterile) and bought some spray junk. Meanwhile, ALL the bedding is going through the washer and dryer again.

any suggestions?

[Blueberry]

mimi-

Was there "flea dirt" on the sheets?? That's usually the best way to tell if there are truly fleas in the house. Looks like dirt - turns red when hit with water - actually flea eggs.

Odd...we've had good luck with frontline. Sorry to hear about it - just wondering whether it could possibly have been something other than a flea that bit you??

CA (owner of 4 fur kids, 2 feline and 2 canine)

[Zen]

can you give them a bath?

I also used a product that I got from the vet called Siphotrol Plus II premise spray and another called Zodiac for carpet and upholstery.

That's a lot of chemistry I know, but sometimes that's what you gotta do.

[mimitabby]

I could give the three of them a bath, yes, but that would be traumatic.
The "flea dirt" was found on only one cat.

The sheets were pretty dirty that they slept on. I didn't wet it to test it before I threw it into the laundry. my cats like to roll in dirt.

Those chemicals sound impressive!

tell me about "premise spray"

I hate to spray the mattress i am going to sleep on!

[Brandi]

I could give the three of them a bath, yes, but that would be traumatic.
The "flea dirt" was found on only one cat.

The sheets were pretty dirty that they slept on. I didn't wet it to test it before I threw it into the laundry. my cats like to roll in dirt.

Those chemicals sound impressive!

tell me about "premise spray"

I hate to spray the mattress i am going to sleep on!

aaaahhhhhhh don't spray your mattress. and I would call your vet and ask if you can give them the frontline a little early. I know you can with advantage without hurting them. Were you gining it to them befor you went on your trip? Meaning is it your normal monthly routine to put it on them. Cause maybe there were a lot more fleas then you thought?

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Mimi, be careful about putting too much pesticides on the cats- it can poison them. Try not to mix products like Frontline, flea shampoo, flea powder, and spray. If you already Frontlined them, then you don't want to add flea shampoo on them too- besides, then you won't know how much of the Frontline got washed away if you shampoo them.
You might try sprinkling just a LITTLE BIT of flea powder on the surfaces the flea-y cat sleeps on, but not on the cat in addition to the Frontline.

If you vacuum, remember that the eggs will be inside the vacuum bag where they might hatch. Mopping the floors will help pick up random eggs.

I'm guessing that your cats go outside. You can't avoid occasional fleas if they do.

[mimitabby]

when I told the vet i had frontlined 2 weeks ago, he shrugged his shoulders (meaning, nope, you can't give them more) I also had thought of that; that a shampoo would wash the frontline off.

The cats are VERY clean on their skin; as i mentioned i combed them and only one had a little of the flea cr@p on her. the other two came up VERY clean.

I don't think i have a lot of fleas in the house; RaleighdonSon slept upstairs the whole time we were gone, and he is a flea magnet and got no bites. The fleas were/are in my bed!

Since there's no carpet, there aren't too many places the varmints can hide, thank goodness!

yep, cats go outside. Using Program regularly (up to this year) i had really kept the population down... sigh... i forgot about it this year.

[salsabike]

I know this sounds unpleasant, but I've seen a lot of articles in the last year about the resurgence of bedbugs. You might want to google that to see if the bites bear any resemblance.

[mimitabby]

nope. not bedbugs.
lol. when we went to Rome 4 years ago, one of my sons not only saw a bedbug, but he got bitten by one. I was absolutely totallly freaked out by that, when they got home I confiscated all of their bags and clothing (they slept in a youth hostel) immediately. we were lucky; there were no bedbugs.
I have read everything i can about bedbugs; because you are right, they are coming back, slowly but surely.
we did not stay in any hotels on this trip, which helps to not get them too.

I'm pretty sure they're fleas, as one cat was scratching during the night and i have gotten lots of fleabites over the years..

argh now you have me thinking about bedbugs again.

[salsabike]

Auggh sorry! I'm kind of sorry I remembered the bedbug thing, myself.

Anyway, we use Frontline too. Humph. I thought that was magic four-week protection guaranteed. Oog.

[mimitabby]

and i googled bedbug bites and they DO NOT look like flea bites ... or the bites i am now sporting in various parts of my hide.
re bedbugs; they are starting to publish names of hotels where you SHOULD NEVER EVER STAY

[Python]

mimi-

Was there "flea dirt" on the sheets?? That's usually the best way to tell if there are truly fleas in the house. Looks like dirt - turns red when hit with water - actually flea eggs.

CA (owner of 4 fur kids, 2 feline and 2 canine)

That's actually flea dirt when they've sucked the blood in one end, it comes out the other end as flea dirt so when water goes on it, it turns red.

Frontline is good and here in the UK we can get Frontline Combo which kills fleas wherever the cat or dog goes (on the furniture, carpet etc.)

(Mum to 12 cats, 17 snakes and one dog)

There is also another very good product but I'm not sure if it is available in the USA and that is Stronghold.

Occasionally a stray flea has lodged somewhere and a nice, warm body promising a nice, tasty meal is too much temptation!

[makbike]

Okay, here is the speech I gave to clients when I worked in a small animal clinic.

First, treat all pets in the house. Frontline is good for one month so you need to be religioius about applying it on a monthly basis. Second, it is waterproof but this does not mean you should bathe your pets in flea shampoos and use the Frontline. If the Frontline is properly applied (directly to the skin and on the upper part of the cat's neck to prevent grooming) it should kill any fleas that are on your cats. That said, if you have a flea problem in your house the Frontline may not be able to do its job properly.

Flea eggs roll off your pets and settle into the carpet, the crevices of your floors and baseboards. Any place your pets goes will need to be treated. Flea bombs work great but remember what goes up must come down which means the contents of flea bombs can't get under "stuff" so you will need an area spray to get to those areas. Once you run your sweeper toss the bag and put a fresh on in your sweeper. Finally, once you have treated the house you will need to repeat the whole process 7 - 10 days after the initial treatment. Flea bombs/sprays can penetrate the egg and kill the adults but they can't get through the hard shell of the middle stage of development. These developing fleas will survive the initial chemical warfare and will hatch out the reason for the second application. I know this sounds like a lot of work but it is the only way you are going to break the cycle. One adult flea can easily produce 200+ young fleas and well you can do the math from there.

Finally, if your cats go outside you will need to treat your yard as well for there are fleas lounging in your beautiful lawn. Zodiac makes a good yard spray but be careful about allowing your cats outside too early once you treat the area. Follow the directions on the container and be very careful.

I hope this helps and more importantly I hope you get rid of the fleas which are now making themselves at home in your house.

[mimitabby]

thanks Marcie for all of your useful suggestions.


I am a little concerned about using insecticides in my yard because we have
quite an ecosystem of butterfly and bee welcoming plants.
(snirkle, snort, my beautiful lawn??? - not )

I always wonder if the frontline is going on correctly! I can see it and smell it for a day or two, and then it's "gone"

[makbike]

Mimi - when you apply the Frontline it is very important that it be applied directly to skin or it will not work. Frontline must be absorbed by the skin so it can be "wicked" across the body. If you simply apply it on top of the fur it will not work. It is not unusual for there to be a "gease spot" where it was applied but it should disappear within 24 hours. Make sure you part the fur and apply the entire amount in the tube. Do not bathe your pet 24 hours before you apply it or 24 hours after applying it or it will not be effective.

Hope this helps.