prepare to start scratching!!

[LadyA]

I have two indoor only cats. That wasn't the intention when I took them as kittens from the Rescue run by my Vet's surgery! The intention was that, with a few weeks care, they'd be fine and could be off exploring during the day! Unfortunately, the tom turns out to be, well, "special". Loveable, extremely timid, the clumsiest cat I've ever come across, and what you could call just "slow". And he had some sort of gut infection that took over six months before we got it cleared! The female was only about four or five weeks old when she was found alone with one eye ruptured because of severe cat flu infection. So, she has one eye, but we assumed the sneezing & blowing gunk everywhere would clear. It hasn't! Seems she just has a chronic respiratory problem, and could be shedding the virus everywhere, so can't be let out to mingle with other cats.

So anyway, they are house cats. Never had their noses outside the door. But on Friday, I noticed the tomcat scratching a couple of times. Vaguely thought "Oh yeah, you are due to be groomed, aren't you." Saturday, his scratching was worse, and it was obvious that something was really bothering him. Out came the comb, and UGH!! He was absolutely crawling with fleas! And of course, it was not just a weekend, but a Bank Holiday weekend here! I gave him a thorough combing and drowned lots of little black bodies! And combed him another couple of times over the weekend. And yesterday got stuff from the vet to treat them both. The vet said "Where did he get fleas? Did he get out?" He came to the conclusion that a visiting cat owner (and I suspect who!) must have brought them in. Anyway, both cats treated, but the interesting thing was that although the tom was alive with them, I didn't find any , nor any evidence of them, on the female! And they are always cuddled up together. Maybe she's such a grumpy bum that even the fleas don't want to go near her!!

So, I guess even if they aren't out, they will be treated regularly from now on anyway! I spent yesterday afternoon thoroughly vacuuming and then steam cleaning the furniture in the living room, and thanking heaven that I don't have any carpets!!

 

[Margaid]

I had a similar problem when I collected my three kittens Lady A; they obviously came with just a few fleas which multiplied rapidly and the only thing that worked was Stronghold which is only available from the vet. I had to spray all the carpets ... Now I only have one cat who lets me comb him regularly and there's never been any sign of fleas.

Years ago we had two cats, a tom with very short fur and a female with slightly longer fur, but not what you would call long haired. He was a right little flea bag who hated being combed and hated the spray so in those days the only answer was flea powder. The female loved being combed so it was easy enough to catch and kill the odd flea that ended up on her. Maybe it's something to do with gender - the three kittens were all male and were too young to be neutered, although the other tom had been "done" about six months before he picked up the fleas. I had to spray all the carpets on that occasion too!

 

[Hen-Gen]

Never had that experience but I do remember being regularly checked by the nit nurse at primary school. And having scabies when I was about 40. Young folk today would think we were really insanitary!

 

[LadyA]

I had a similar problem when I collected my three kittens Lady A; they obviously came with just a few fleas which multiplied rapidly and the only thing that worked was Stronghold which is only available from the vet.

These two would have been treated for fleas at the vets before I took them home. Any kittens they are handed in, they always flea & worm treat, and if they are old enough, neuter. And if you take a kitten from them, you have to bring it back to be neutered when it's old enough. My two are now 11 and 12 months old. I always used Stronghold on my other cats, but this time used a treatment called BravEcto, which lasts for three months. It's expensive, but at least they are done now until coming in to Winter, when hopefully, they might not need it!

 

[Marigold]

My vet has tried to get me to use Bravecto on my dog but i've heard a lot of horror stories about it. Hundreds of dogs worldwide have had very severe reactions to it and even died. Because it's taken internally by mouth, it affects all the organs in the body, not just the skin, and whilst most animals are apparently OK, the initial dose has to be high in order for it to be effective for several months. There's a Facebook page called Does Bravecto Kill Dogs?
https://www.facebook.com/groups/411371212394679/about/

(Quote "This Group is a place to talk about Bravecto and any potential impact it may have had on your dog or cat. Since starting this group in August 2015, we have had numerous posts worldwide detailing side effects after administration of Bravecto. Some of the most common are diarrhea, vomiting, blood in stool, seizures, kidney and liver concerns, skin issues, and death.

We have obtained FDA and EMA reports of adverse events that many veterinarians don't have even though they sell this product. The EMA and FDA reports are consistent with the side effects reported here. We will continue to get updated reports as they are available.

We also help people report symptoms to Merck and the FDA, as well as other governmental agencies worldwide and provide support to those with animals experiencing side effects after administration of the chewable or topical."

I do use Advantix spot on treatment for my dog, which is effective against ticks as well as fleas, because being a terrier she's always got her nose in hedges and holes and it's so difficult to remove ticks from her face and ears. I only treat her between April and September, and the other six months I don't use anything and so far she hasn't had any fleas in the colder months. I don't like using any organophosphate treatments but I reckon minimum use of an effective monthly spot on that deals with ticks is probably the least worse way to go. I used to use Stronghold but it doesn't do ticks.

 

[Margaid]

I don't like using organphosphate treatments either Marigold but needs must ... One of the semi-feral cats where I used to live got a tick on/in his head. I'd read somewhere that if you gripped them with tweezers and twisted them round and round in one direction they came out without breaking. To my amazement it worked - but it's the only time I've had to deal with one.

I find the idea of your visitor having fleas on her clothes and not knowing it quite bizarre Lady A - when my cats have had fleas I've been bitten!

 

[LadyA]

The Bravecto I got was a spot on, that you put on the base of the skull, just like the Stronghold, Marigold. Maybe different for cats? I normally use either Stronghold, and used to use stuff called Advocate too, but Toria is barely 3kg, so I don't think Advocate would be suitable for her. I'm not sure I'd use the bravecto again, because although Atticus, the tom, had no reaction at all, Toria seemed to find it very irritating, as if it was stinging. She was doing that thing of running from room to room, as if trying to get away. I had my last cat do that when she got a chemical burn on her back. Something dripped on her when a tin burst on a shelf in the garage, where she was noseying around. Took about four months in a buster collar to heal!
Even with something regularly used though, they can have a reaction. My vet took pics once and sent them to the manufacturers of a reaction one of my cats had to Stronghold, even though he'd had it regularly. Just that one time, he got a very irritated looking, bald patch. The vet sent the pics with the batch number from the pack, just in case. But he said occasionally, they can have a reaction.

 

[LadyA]

I find the idea of your visitor having fleas on her clothes and not knowing it quite bizarre Lady A - when my cats have had fleas I've been bitten!

Well this visitor, tbh, I would say their home is crawling. They have an ancient dog and an even more ancient cat who is unable to groom herself anymore and won't let anyone else do it. He doesn't treat them, and they are surrounded by fields, long vegetation etc. His home is cushioned with cat/dog hair. He's an older man in poor circumstances, and tbh, I would say he wouldn't connect it, if he was being bitten.

Mind you, even though Atticus was absolutely alive with fleas, and spends his evenings lying on my lap, I didn't get any bites, thankfully!

 

[Margaid]

That would explain it then Lady A.

Just to keep the record straight I'm only talking about two or three bites at most because by that time I've taken action to deal with the problem. I've never had a flea jump off a cat onto me - it's always been well away from the cats, which is why they bite. If they've lost their natural host and need "food" they will bite anything that's likely to provide it. I suspect in my case it's ancient fleas that fall off the cat.

 

[bigyetiman]

This has all reminded me of The Good Life episode when Margot Leadbetter found she had fleas.
Mu daughter bought a stray dog home from the stables (the same one that caught fire Sunday, by strange coincidence) and that was running alive with fleas, everyone got bitten except me. Talk about mammoth clean up project

 

[LadyA]

That would explain it then Lady A.

Just to keep the record straight I'm only talking about two or three bites at most because by that time I've taken action to deal with the problem. I've never had a flea jump off a cat onto me - it's always been well away from the cats, which is why they bite. If they've lost their natural host and need "food" they will bite anything that's likely to provide it. I suspect in my case it's ancient fleas that fall off the cat.

Yes. I think it really helps that I have no carpets at all in the house, and the two rugs I have are very thin and easily beaten out.

 

[Hen-Gen]

It’s odd how fashions change isn’t it LadyA. We grew up with Lino and it was the height of luxury to have carpets. Nowadays, unless youre the kind of conscientious person who removes their shoes at the door, carpets are seen as dirty things that have no place in the modern home. Certainly laminate floors make life easy!
Despite having a dog and previously a cat or two I’ve never encountered a flea. This is not due to some rigorous programme of medication - just random luck.
I’ve read that some dogs have bad reactions to some treatments, particularly Border Collies, one of which I have now. Though I’m not a great advocate of alternative/holistic medicine I do wonder whether some additives to the diet have some effects. From time to time I do give my dog a treat of barely stewed lamb with a grated carrot, a tin of sardines and a crushed garlic clove. Two minutes cooking time. The resultant grey, greasy mess looks very unpalatable but I’ve always found that dogs seem to love it. I’m sure cats are much more fastidious but you never know.

 

[LadyA]

It’s odd how fashions change isn’t it LadyA. We grew up with Lino and it was the height of luxury to have carpets. Nowadays, unless youre the kind of conscientious person who removes their shoes at the door, carpets are seen as dirty things that have no place in the modern home. Certainly laminate floors make life easy!

We never got carpets in, Hen Gen, because my late husband was severely asthmatic. I remember reading one time that, no matter how diligent you are about vacuuming etc., a carpet will double its weight over it's lifetime, because of ingrained dust/dirt that you just can't get out! I have had laminate laid in the bedrooms, and there's semi solid wood flooring in the living room. It was so cold in the bedrooms for years, because there was just early 1980s lino down on concrete floor. No insulation or anything, and the lino in those days was so thin! I've still got the vinyl that we had fitted in the kitchen when we bought the house in 1999. I'd love to have it replaced, maybe with laminate, but tbh, it's so much trouble! Having to shift the cooker, the fridge/freezer! At the time, we bought the absolute best, Armstrong Rhinofloor, which was very expensive, and blew our budget, but I wanted something that would last! It's got a couple of surface punctures, where knives/screwdrivers were dropped, but it still looks fine.