Removing fleas from a cat at home is a rather laborious, but at the same time quite feasible procedure for almost every owner.
It is important to know that fleas are insects that are very sensitive to odors and poisons, quickly dying under the influence of insecticides. And most importantly, what distinguishes fleas from ticks and withers is that they are extremely mobile, and in an emergency they are ready to leave the animal in a matter of seconds. This must be taken into account.
Once you understand how to remove fleas from a cat at home, it is quite possible to carry out this procedure regularly, quickly and with very good results.
Let's look at this procedure in more detail.
If the cat has few fleas ...
In all cases of removing fleas in cats, special insecticidal agents are used, either causing the death of parasites or repelling them with their smell. Only sometimes, to fight fleas, you can simply bathe the cat, since these insects do not tolerate immersion in water and tend to move to those parts of the animal's body that remain dry.
This approach can be effective only when the cat has just picked up a few fleas, and they have not yet had time to breed.
However, if small black dots are found on the pet’s skin in large quantities - insect excrement, and white balls a quarter of a millimeter in diameter - eggs, and noticeable bite wounds and redness around them, this is evidence of a serious infection that needs to be treated quickly and actively.
So, to remove fleas from cats and kittens at home, there are several ways ...
Special flea collars
Collars are the easiest way to rid a mustachioed pet of fleas. The collar weighs quite a bit, and the animal quickly gets used to it. The entire product is impregnated with a sufficiently large amount of insecticide (each collar has its own type), from which the parasites on the cat's body die, and the survivors try to leave the animal.
As a rule, collars work for 2-3 months, after which the insecticidal substance is exhaled and the animal needs to buy a new product.
Flea collars are great for animals that are regularly and for a long time outside - in this case, the collar provides constant reliable protection for the pet.
In general, we can conclude that such a collar allows you to quite effectively remove fleas from a cat or a cat at home, as well as prevent re-infection of a pet when walking on the street.
On a note
Insecticide collars are also effective against ticks and lice. However, the duration of their effect is most pronounced against fleas.
There are few disadvantages of flea collars:
- the risk of developing skin irritation of the cat or kitten at the site of the collar. This occurs quite rarely, but even cases of the development of dermatitis from these funds have been recorded. Everything is individual here, and you just need to be careful, carefully testing the product for the first time.
- Difficulty getting used to the collar in those cats who have never worn it before - the cat may feel restless and uncomfortable in it.
Flea collars today are one of the most popular ways to remove parasites from a cat. On sale in the markets, in pet stores and on the Internet, there are products from different manufacturers, but the most famous are the following:
- Hartz - perhaps the most effective, but also expensive.
- Bolfo, universal collar for both cats and dogs.
- Diaz - has an increased service life, protecting the animal for five months. It cannot be used in conjunction with other insecticides.
- Kiltix - able to protect a cat for 7 months.
Flea collars should not be used on sick or recovering animals. They can be used for lactating and pregnant cats only with the permission of a veterinarian.
Flea drops for cats
These products are also very easy to use: from the ampoule, it is enough to drop liquid on the withers of the cat, or, according to the manufacturer's recommendation, at several points along the spine. This will already be enough for the parasites to get poisoned or escape from the animal.
All manufacturers try to make flea drops as safe as possible for the animal itself, so their use for cats does not threaten anything. However, in rare cases, the cat may experience allergic reactions to the drops themselves and even signs of mild poisoning.
Therefore, before active use of the product, it is advisable to test it in the minimum possible amount - apply literally half a drop of cotton wool on the cat's skin and observe for several hours the behavior of the animal and the condition of its skin at the site of application.
The most famous flea drops are:
- Hartz
- Frontline Spot on Cat
- Leopard
- Bayer Lawyer.
An example of how flea drops can be dangerous to a cat if used incorrectly
Flea Sprays
Of all the products, sprays are the most effective, but also the most toxic. You can quickly remove fleas from a cat at home with them - for this you need to process all the pet's hair from a can and then do not let the animal wash for several hours.
The owner himself must use gloves and a cotton-gauze bandage.
Sprays provide an almost instant effect - fleas die from them, without even having time to get out of the wool. They are no less effective against ticks. All sprays are strictly contraindicated for pregnant, lactating, sick, convalescent cats and kittens.
Today, cat lovers mainly use:
- Frontline
- Leopard
- Flea&Tick
- Delix.
Special flea shampoos
Although special flea shampoos are rarely used for cats, they nevertheless have a number of advantages:
- with them, the cat practically cannot get poisoned - the shampoo is completely washed off after bathing.
- Shampoo works in conjunction with water, which fleas also do not tolerate well.
- Flea shampoos almost never cause side effects.
This is already enough to endure the terrible cries of a pet once and force him to take a bath.It is advisable to carefully comb out the cat after such a procedure in order to remove the parasite larvae remaining on the coat with a comb.
Popular flea shampoos today are:
- Rolf Club
- Delix
- Shampoo B
- Demos Lux
- Flea&Tick Cat Shampoo.
On a note
For cats that love or are accustomed to bathing, shampoos are the best solution for flea problems. Even if the cat is constantly on the street, bathing her once a week will guarantee that fleas will not breed on her.
Injections and pills
For home use, these drugs are the least suitable: the animal may have an atypical reaction to the drug, the injection may be given incorrectly, and in general, the introduction of the drug inside is not the easiest procedure.
As a rule, such agents are used in veterinary medicine when it is impossible to treat the animal externally.
In addition, some companies today produce powders that can also be used to remove fleas from a cat at home, but in practice it turned out that they are less effective compared to drops and collars, since they are easily showered or licked by animals.
Getting rid of fleas in pregnant cats
The main feature in the anti-flea treatment of a pregnant cat is to prevent the drug from getting inside. Even if harmless to an adult animal, a flea remedy can affect the course of pregnancy and cause miscarriage or abnormal development of the fetus.
In this regard, the optimal means for removing fleas in a pregnant cat are:
- collars
- shampoos
- and with the permission of the veterinarian - flea drops.
The first two types of drugs do not affect the development of kittens in any way, while some drops can penetrate under the skin and into blood vessels, and from there into milk.
In any case, the easiest way is to put a collar on a pregnant cat, but do not forget to remove it later.
Shampoos for a pregnant cat at home should be used only in cases where bathing does not lead to stress for the animal.
It is important!
Removing fleas from a pregnant cat is the owner's first priority! If kittens are born from an infected mother, fleas immediately begin to bother them, causing itching and infecting them with worms. As a result, babies will grow more slowly and be generally more restless than their peers living with a clean and healthy mother.
If the cat is feeding...
Getting rid of fleas from a nursing cat is the most difficult. Even collars are not suitable here, since kittens can involuntarily lick or bite them when playing or looking for a nipple.
It is more advisable to use such drops that do not penetrate deep under the skin. When choosing a drug, you should ask the seller or veterinarian if it can be used for lactating cats.
The safest way to get rid of fleas in a nursing cat is to wait until the age of the kittens (3-4 weeks) when the cat leaves them for more than three hours, and after the next feeding of the babies, bathe the cat with flea shampoo, rinse it very thoroughly, and the pet dry gently with a hair dryer.
At the same time, the kittens themselves will have to be treated for fleas, since the parasites manage to infect them in the first days of life ...
Fighting fleas in kittens
Perhaps the only remedies for fleas in kittens are shampoos, which can be used only after the kids open their eyes.
Many manufacturers produce special flea shampoos for kittens, but experts unanimously argue that only proven and safe Frontline and Stronghold should be used, since domestic products contain time-tested insecticides and additives, which may not be the best way to affect the condition of the kitten. Few people want to experiment on their pets.
It is best to ask your veterinarian about how to remove fleas from a kitten at home, since in most cases it is convenient to combine the fight against parasites in kittens with helminth dressing.
Many cat lovers prepare anti-flea shampoo on their own: they buy the most inexpensive shampoo for kittens and add an ampoule of Neostomazan to it for every 150 ml. Such a mixture is guaranteed to be harmless to cubs, and when bathing kittens, it works just as effectively as expensive imported products.
Remember!
The best way to protect kittens from fleas is to get rid of the parasites from the pregnant mother.
Getting rid of fleas in sick cats
The fight against fleas in sick or recovering cats is the only case when amateur activity is strictly prohibited. It is never possible to know exactly how and to what remedy an animal weakened by the disease and receiving additional drugs will react.
Therefore, first of all, if fleas are found on a sick cat, cat or kitten, you should contact your veterinarian. Usually, in these cases, either special sparing shampoos and flea drops are prescribed, or it is recommended to wait until the pet recovers.
It should always be remembered that cats are generally cleaner than dogs, and therefore suffer from fleas less often.But at the same time, they are also more sensitive to various drugs, and therefore, before using any remedy, it is advisable to try it in small quantities, and only if the animal does not have any acute reactions to them, you can safely proceed to a full-fledged fight against parasites.
We wish your pet a speedy flea recovery!
Flea products for animals
Frontline Spray is ideal for flea control in lactating cats and newborn kittens (from 2 days old). Shampoo the first time usually does not help, and bathing several times is an additional stress for the cat family. The price bites, but keep in mind that even 100 ml is enough for 1-2 years, it saves time, the effect is 100%, and fleas do not appear within 3 months.
I don't know if collars will help a pregnant cat who already has a kitten!
Having visited the basement, an absolutely domestic cat dragged itself with fleas. Walks in a collar, will it help ...
Just bought a kitten and found fleas.It is difficult to buy a collar in the city of Luhansk, the veterinary services bombed, I don’t know what to do.
Alexander, wormwood can be removed. Make a decoction of wormwood and apply on the kitten's skin. In order not to lick, put on a collar. Wash off after a couple of hours. You can also decoction of garlic - crush 2-3 cloves, pour warm water over night, let it brew, also apply to the kitten's skin and wash off after a couple of hours. You can rinse with water with wormwood.
One nuance, with these means, fleas jump from the animal, so it is advisable to be side by side in order to prevent them from running away. I lay wormwood grass near the cat's bed. Yes, and pour garlic with 3-4 cups of hot water, not warm.
Why garlic?
Yesterday I rubbed the cat with a decoction and spread the wormwood everywhere ... In the meantime, it didn’t help, what should I do?
Comrades, I want to share my discovery! 2 months ago my husband gave me a kitten. Since we live in a private house, he picked up fleas in the yard. They bathed in special shampoos, dripped drops - it was useless. One exit - to the street, and all over again. One evening we decided to bathe the kitten again. As it turned out, the shampoo was over, they began to wash with ordinary laundry soap, 72%. I always have it in my house, since I only wash dishes with them, I have a terrible allergy to all other means. And O MIRACLE! It's been a week now and no fleas. Good luck and health to you and your pets!
Hydrochloric acid also helps
Well, dissolve in it with your humor.
Well done guys, I love it! ))
Tar soap helps too! Good luck in this difficult task! 🙂
Thank you and good luck
And how many times a week should you wash a kitten with tar soap to get rid of fleas?
Be careful with tar, the cat can get poisoned.
People, what to do when swimming? How to remove fleas on the face? I bathe for the second time, they just attack the ears, nose, and after bathing they live safely. What to do, how to get rid of, the animal is suffering ...
That's also interesting
To pull everyone out of the muzzle and neck by hand ... Otherwise, washing is useless.
When my cat gets fleas, I immediately wash her with flea shampoo. And so I try to prevent fleas from wearing ultra. My cat mostly stays at home, so I don't bathe her often. We wear a collar.
I bathed several times with shampoo - nothing happened ... So now there are fleas in the house, all my legs have been bitten. Who has experienced this? How to rid an animal of fleas and how to get them out of the house?
Olga, buy Butox at the pet store, it helps a lot! She just brought them out.
Be careful with butox! You need to keep the proportions. Our veterinarian generally prohibits the use for cats, birds, etc. Our cat was poisoned with butox and they barely saved him - he took 5 droppers and 20 injections. Butox is used for large animals and for the treatment of premises for cows, pigs ...
I have the same trouble, so I'm sitting on the Internet and looking for tools that can help. Almost the whole family has bitten legs + it’s also uncomfortable in front of the guests.
If the house is private, then put wormwood under the floor, and the problem is gone, for a long time. This is the only thing I've been saving for years.
It can still be seasonal fleas from the basement or attic, we ourselves had this.They bought a CLEAN HOUSE spray, sprayed the whole apartment and left for 3 hours, then washed. Every year in September we had it. That's the only way they got rid of it.
Here I have the same problem. Were you able to manage somehow? Tell ))
I etched fleas in the house with dichlorvos. That's the only way they were saved.
They sell a drug called Delcid. A good tool. But when my cat takes a walk, it starts again. There ampoules are used for agricultural purposes. Sold in a pet store.
We bought BUTOX, treated it 3 times already, fleas disappear for 2-3 days and reappear. Tell me how to get rid of? I have small children, it's dangerous, they bite.
Have you managed to get rid of fleas? Tell me how? From the kitten now fleas wagon in the house. The youngest son was generally bitten, covered in sores, even on his cheek. That's terrible.
But look: I found a cat on the street, beautiful straight. So, I brought it home, and at home (I rent an apartment) there are even more fleas, they settled on it - now there are some black things on the back and on the head, there are a lot of them, and there are a lot of fleas. I washed - did not help. What is the probability that the cat will be cured of these fleas? She just can't sleep at night, they bite her. Tell me everything, how to do it? The vet is expensive!
Laundry soap is the safest way to get rid of fleas. Pull it out of the muzzle with your hands.
I dripped drops, and put on the collar, still the number of fleas does not decrease. I don't know, nothing helps. I even bathed, but the cat still itches ...
But what if the children found kittens, but there is not much money? How to remove fleas?
People! Having cats in the house is a lot of positive emotions, but often the negative prevails over the positive, and we live like that.
I once visited a friend, she smeared the puppies with vegetable oil, the fleas died. The dog licked the puppies, and everything, everyone is healthy. Try vegetable oil.
What is vegetable oil?
This is sunflower oil.
And she also smeared the dog with plain oil?
Kosik ran to the basement to run, and then returned. I scratched his neck, and even my fingers got stuck in lumps, and from there they jump, but right at me! Now I'm going to buy all the bodyagu and wash this vile sheepfold. Sorry, first time. I scratch myself!
I myself, probably, now with shampoo and drops ... Up to the collar. Terrible, I've never seen this before. I thought it was just the wool tangled, but there ...
Kosik tore the skin off my hands, how angry, but now he is happy ... I have never seen such a person in my life)) And also, when you drip BlochNet, wash your hands, I seem to have poisoned myself. I thought he would get mad at the collar, but on the contrary, he wears a “tsatski” type. Bottom line: sadomasochistic shampooing (with the deplorable loss of your favorite towel), as well as pouring incomprehensible liquid from a tube (I repeat, wash your hands), well, and hysterical pursuit of a wet pigtail throughout the apartment (have pity on the furniture) will bring joy and love to your pet. And fleas, it seems, are not there yet, but I'm watching.
We used insecticidal drops for the foundling. They just applied it and that's it, then after two days they washed it out of the wool of the dead. Bought Dana Ultra Neo for cats. We read that they act on the larvae - do not allow them to develop. While we are waiting for the second wave, perhaps we will not wait. Drops on fipronil and two other substances (thiamethoxam and pyriproxyfen).
We have a domestic cat, we only go to the vet, where do the fleas come from? I can’t get it out, and “Bars” dripped, spread the wormwood in the apartment in the corners, processed everything with “Combat”, bathed the cat with shampoo, and after a while the fleas reappear. I can not get rid of, all the legs are bitten. Please tell me the best way to get rid of this problem.
You have seasonal fleas! The cheapest and most effective way is dichlorvos. Spray into the water in a bucket and wash the floor with it. Pour the floors abundantly (if there are no rugs) and leave for 3 hours.
Faced this problem, and my daughter is also allergic to bites. I removed it with butox, but it is necessary to fill in all the cracks, microcracks in the floor, carpets and under them, baseboards, etc. These reptiles like to hide in the most inaccessible places and can spend more than one winter in the cold, while there is no food, and under favorable conditions they become more active. For complete removal, she processed the house three times within a month, drove everyone out, sprayed, ventilated. Played with all my heart. But she won.
Thank you all for reading.
To be honest, I use dichlorvos to remove fleas from a cat and also in the house. You just need to carefully wrap the cat in a towel so that it does not inhale. And then rinse very well. Repeatedly.
It's probably the flea remedies gone bad. I live in my house, constantly keep a cat so that the mice do not become impudent. Only 3 days ago I took a flea capsule leopard, smeared it - zero effect. Yesterday I put on a collar. Itches, poor thing, incredibly, I don’t know how to help, I think to go to the veterinarian to give her an injection, I don’t have the strength. Previously, this was not the case, I smeared it with a capsule - and everything is ok.
I didn’t defeat something fleas at all in any way (
We also have a big problem. The cat is thoroughbred, does not go outside.We live on the 5th floor, far from the basement, the entrances are constantly washed with bleach. Where they came from is not clear. We went to the vet, they squealed, but it didn't help. After buying drops of 3 types. Once dripped - they did not even leave her for a day. After a week more dripped, the same situation. Another week passed - I washed it with flea shampoo, effect 0. After another one and a half weeks, I still dripped - they still torment the animal. What to do? Collar? But I think that I won’t be able to wear it, because they bought a decorative collar, the cat went crazy, I had to take it off.
What if you shave your cat? Will this help get rid of fleas?
The cat brought home fleas. We diluted ordinary salt with water in a spray bottle. But very strong concentration, and sprayed the whole house! Removed all access to open water. And that's it, there are no fleas. They die from salt. Everything is cheap and very effective. Quiet life to all without these monsters.
Sorry, I'll add: after the salt procedure, give time to fleas, salt paralyzes them, and if there is no water, then they die. We stood for a day and a half, then vacuumed, and that's it. Sometimes we repeat the procedure - once a year, it's a very real disgusting thing, these tenants ... I just don't want to see them again. And for cats, dogs - all this is not burdensome in any way, and not chemistry. Good luck everyone!
How to help a cat with fleas and ticks?
My floors with bleach.