Flea anxiety! Please help :(

ozma83

I have had a kitten for a couple of months now, and 2 days ago saw that she was leaving behind black flecks after sleeping on surfaces.
We realised it must be fleas, so we got her Advocate from the vet and used it on her straightaway - almost instantly we started seeing dead little insects. It wasn't many - possibly 10 in total so far - but of course I am all eeked out now...


We washed our sheets and couch covers straightaway, and all the stuff she uses (blanket and toys etc) in the laundry machine at 90 degrees. We hoovered everywhere and also ordered a spray for the house (I think it's called Skoosh) and will also have the carpet taken away to wash.

It's been about 30 hours since we applied Advocate, my boyfriend said he saw a couple more dead or dying insects today, but also one which was alive (:eek:) , but tonight I combed her with the flea comb and only saw a couple of black flecks, nothing else. It's worth saying that since the beginning the fleas weren't visible on her, she wasn't scratching particularly badly which makes me hope it wasn't too bad...

Now... will this be ok? I am very anxious about everything usually, and need some reassurance that this is not a huge deal and that with my precautions they will go... I haven't seen them around nor on the cat, haven't been bitten, but I'm worried!!!

Help

balletshoes

once you've Skooshed the house, your cat will a lot more protected - fleas don't live on your animals, they live in your house once they're brought in. Skooshing kills the fleas at various stages of their development.

KiKi

Don't panic! New kittens often have fleas - I felt AWFUL when I realised my cats were covered in them when I first got them 12 years ago. The chances are that what you've done is enough, including the spraying is enough...they haven't had time to reproduce, yet.

But, continue to give the right dose of Advocat to your kitten, and spray again as recommended on the flea spray. As we're coming into Winter, that should be enough.

Fleas do lay eggs, though (very tiny ones, you won't see them) and they may hatch next year, hence you spray as per the can instructions to make sure they are absolutely gone. Your cat may pick them up from other cats, though, so chances are you'll have to do this every year or so at some point!

I don't recommend Advocat-ing constantly, though - they do become immune.

meritaten

the advocat may be enough - but I prefer the 'belt and braces' approach as I am paranoid about fleas/insect bites. as I am allergic to them.
I used Staykill a few weeks back to treat the carpets in the house (fleas don't 'live' on a cat they just feed on them and prefer to lay their eggs in your carpets). its ok, but the product I used previously for my last cat was better. its called 'Acclaim' and you can get it online.
if your cat has had a flea infestation then I would recommend 'worming' them. fleas can somehow cause cats to develop worms. a good wormer is 'Drontal', but other treatments are available. they should contain piperazine (funnily enough that is used to treat worms in humans too!
as you can probably guess I am a bit OTT about fleas and worms! and it has taken me at least six weeks to get really confident my cat and home is now flea free. Treated the cat, treated the home and treated the cat again and wormed him!

ozma83

thanks everyone!! I am literally sitting on the edge of my couch, getting a backache because I don't want to lean with my back against it in case the cat has left anything on it (I have the cushions covered with a fabric cover until the others dry and I can wash these ones...!) - I am that paranoid!

My boyfriend is going around the carpet with sellotape to check if he can pick up any dead ones... in all this the cat is having the time of her life, she thinks it's a game or something and she is so cute and I want to hug her, but I am still eeked out by the fact that she might have fleas on her!!!

How long after applying Advocate should I assume all the fleas are dead?

meritaten

I would say it would kill adult fleas within 24 hours - but I haven't used Advocat and the info leaflet which came with it should tell you.

I DO urge you to treat the home too. yes, its a Faff but it only needs doing once a year! and gives additional protection.

ozma83

Is cleaning the carpet, washing bedding and clothes she came into contact with, and spraying floor and cat house and scratching post enough?

We're still finding insects - just found one which wasn't dead but dying... is this normal?

balletshoes

ozma83 wrote: »

Is cleaning the carpet, washing bedding and clothes she came into contact with, and spraying floor and cat house and scratching post enough?

We're still finding insects - just found one which wasn't dead but dying... is this normal?

if you follow the direction on your Skoosh can, then yes, as well as doing everything else you've done. I use Indorex, once a year. The instructions on that says to pay particular attention to spraying skirting boards as well as carpets and soft furnishings etc. And do the whole house, not just where you think your cat has been.

iammumtoone

yes it quite normal to still be finding them, don't panic they will go if you have followed the instructions. Have you sprayed the house yet? once you have sprayed the house, vacuum lots, morning and afternoon, this will encourage the eggs to hatch, then the fleas will die as soon as they come into contact with either the sprayed carpet or the cat who is treated. Ideally you want all of the eggs to hatch so this will mean you will see them for a few days, as if the eggs lye dormant they could hatch next year, which is why it is important to follow the instructions on the house spray as you will need to spray again at the recommended time even if you have not seen any.

Good luck its not nice to think of them but they will go and unfortunately its one of the pitfalls of having animals. However the joy and pleasure will will get from your pet far outweighs the very occasional inconvenience of fleas.

ozma83

Thanks. How many cans do you need? I have a small 1 bedroom house...

balletshoes

ozma83 wrote: »

Thanks. How many cans do you need? I have a small 1 bedroom house...

again, it should say on the Skoosh can what area it covers. One 500ml can of Indorex is enough for a 3-bed house.