How to deal with flea infestation

[kimmycup1]

Hi everyone, I wasn't sure if this was the right place to put this thread so please let me know if it isn't.

I have indoor only adult cats and kittens of 2 different ages. Somehow my adult cats got fleas, they live in the basement (it's fully furnished, all carpeting with heating and air conditioning), my dad is allergic to cats so they have their own space down there. We noticed over a month ago that they have fleas so I bought some products from Adams and advantage spray. I used the Adams product first on them, and it killed a lot of fleas but I was still seeing some so a few weeks later I tried the advantage spray and liked the results better, but 2 weeks later I was finding fleas on them again. I'm also using Adams home spray, it comes in a regular spray bottle and I've been spraying the carpeting and couch and vacuuming often. I know it takes awhile to get rid of fleas so I don't expect immediate results, but the fleas have now gotten upstairs. I have 1 adult cat living in my bathroom, she was sick as a kitten and I couldn't get the adult cats to accept her once she was well enough to meet them. I also have kittens that are 4 months old and 7 and a half weeks old. So a couple days ago I found a flea on Ella, my cat who lives upstairs so I sprayed her right away and found one more afterwards that was dead from the spray. I haven't found any since on her, but I just found a live one on my 4 month old. I've been extremely careful when I'm around my adult cats, I tuck my pants into my socks and always check myself over outside before I go near anyone else. I've been wearing white socks so that I can see if any fleas jump on me and I guess the color attracts them so I'm able to pick them off and put them in soapy water. I'm very upset that the fleas have made their way upstairs and know that they probably hitched a ride on me. All of the cats that can be sprayed have been sprayed. The kittens are just under 8 weeks and the spray I have says 12 weeks and older. I know they make topicals for kittens over 8 weeks and 1.5 lbs but I'm basically out of money. Desiree, my 7 week old, had an abscess develop when she was young, so she had to go the vet, and then shortly after being off antibiotics, she started showing signs of having a urinary infection, so I took her back to the vet and she was on antibiotics again. All of this cost over $500 and my bank account is just about empty. I would like to buy a topical for them but it will be awhile before I have money since they aren't cheap.

Any suggestions on how to prevent the fleas from spreading any more? Feel free to tell me if I'm doing something wrong or if there is something else I should be doing, but please don't be harsh. We've lived here for 16 years and never once saw a flea, my cats were born to ferals but we've always checked with flea combs for ticks and never saw any evidence of fleas, so I'm not sure how they got them. We have over 2 acres of land, so it would be really hard and expensive to spray outdoors.

I'm sorry for this being so long, my main question is, what can I do to prevent fleas from getting near the young kittens? What products are best without being too expensive? They'll be 8 weeks in a few days, Desiree is a little small for her age (about 750 grams, she was born small but eats and gains well) but I did have some issues with the Adams spray making the older kittens foam at the mouth and the adult cats are acting a little off after their spray yesterday. I hate using these types of products but I know it's necessary, so if anyone has experience with something they know is safe that won't cost a fortune I'd be so grateful to hear about it

 

[maggiemay]

I don’t put chemicals on my cats. I have had great luck with food grade diatomaceous earth. I put some of the powder in a cotton tube sock, close with a rubber band, and softly rub all over their coats. It’s so fine it sifts through the sock. You have to be careful around their faces - don’t want them inhaling it. It won’t hurt them if they lick their coats. I’m attaching a photo of the product on Amazon. I believe Home Depot also has a version called Safer Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth. But be very careful, it must say FOOD GRADE to be safe for your pets. You can put it across door sills and window sills, in bedding, etc. DE is tiny little fossils, the structure kills fleas by piercing their shells. I love it, hopefully you will find it as effective as I do.

 

[kimmycup1]

Forgot to mention that one been washing their bedding in hot water and also, I jav

I don’t put chemicals on my cats. I have had great luck with food grade diatomaceous earth. I put some of the powder in a cotton tube sock, close with a rubber band, and softly rub all over their coats. It’s so fine it sifts through the sock. You have to be careful around their faces - don’t want them inhaling it. It won’t hurt them if they lick their coats. I’m attaching a photo of the product on Amazon. I believe Home Depot also has a version called Safer Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth. But be very careful, it must say FOOD GRADE to be safe for your pets. You can put it across door sills and window sills, in bedding, etc. DE is tiny little fossils, the structure kills fleas by piercing their shells. I love it, hopefully you will find it as effective as I do.

I've heard about diatomaceous earth, and did consider it for at least the carpet, but I'm still not sure how safe it is. Not that chemicals are safe but I'd definitely need to really read up on diatomaceous earth before I'd use it

 

[maggiemay]

Best thing you can do is research FOOD GRADE DE. Read up on it, it is totally safe. Yes, you can use it on the carpet, leave for a while, then vacuum up (with cats out of the room - you do not want them inhaling it). The chemicals in most flea repellants are neurotoxins. I prefer something so safe farm animals are fed it and humans take it to help detox. Look up Wolf Creek Ranch. I used to order from them. Not sure that is possible anymore. Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth and Natural Pet Supplements and Vitamins for Animal Health and Nutrition

 

[kimmycup1]

Best thing you can do is research FOOD GRADE DE. Read up on it, it is totally safe. Yes, you can use it on the carpet, leave for a while, then vacuum up (with cats out of the room - you do not want them inhaling it). The chemicals in most flea repellants are neurotoxins. I prefer something so safe farm animals are fed it and humans take it to help detox. Look up Wolf Creek Ranch. I used to order from them. Not sure that is possible anymore. Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth and Natural Pet Supplements and Vitamins for Animal Health and Nutrition

I've read about it a bit and saw a couple times that cats should be bathed sometime afterward(one website I think said 12 hours after, not sure about the other website I was reading), and I don't think that's something my cats will do well with. The kittens would be easy enough but not the adults. I've also seen it shouldn't be used around cats under 2 lbs and Desiree is not quite there yet. Besides that and the bathing, I am interested so I will keep researching

 

[maggiemay]

I have never ever bathed a cat after using DE. If that were the case, I wouldn’t use DE, lol. Mine are all indoor cats with no fleas who go for occasional walks with their harness and leash. Those walks are the only time I use it, and then I bring them in and wipe them down with a Tushiewipe. It isn’t like you coat the fur with it. Did you see the homeopathic spray mentioned above? That looks very interesting. Anyway, some healthy, non-chemical things for you to consider.

 

[BlackCatOp]

While expensive, probably the only way to win the flea war is to have all animals on flea control for several months. I would suggest using Revolution or Cheristin. Unfortunately, the live fleas you see are only the tip of the pyramid. There are 90% more fleas at immature life stages that you don’t see. As far as treating the house, using a product with an insect growth inhibitor will prevent the flea eggs from developing (Precor 2000). Be careful with whatever products you use as cats are highly sensitive to Permethrin based insecticides. The area should be dry prior to the cats being let back in that area. (FWIW the topical flea medications target a neuro-receptor unique to insects. And I suspect your flea battle cannot be won without the use of topical flea application)

 

[Kflowers]

Vacuum every day, including corners and pull the cushions off furniture and use the long tool for in the joinings of the seat and arms. Closet floors and it wouldn't hurt to catch the floors of cabinets too. When done, immediately throw out the bag OUTSIDE, or dump the dust in the bagless container in the OUTSIDE trash. This may take several weeks.

 

[kimmycup1]

Both sprays that I'm using have insect growth regulator and it does help for awhile. I notice the fleas that jump onto my socks are usually small so they're probably fairly new and haven't had a chance to feed. I want to get something for my 7 week old kittens, I just worry about it causing issues. There are cheaper topicals than Advantage ll, but the reviews aren't as good so they may not work. Advantage I think is almost $60 for 6 treatments for adults, and for the kittens, the starting weight is 2 lbs. I think Frontline starts at 1.5 so that could work for the smallest kitten. Right now I could maybe buy 1 treatment each for the little kittens, which would hopefully last the full month. Has anyone had luck with cheaper versions of spot on treatments?

 

[Kflowers]

I know you're close but on the Chewy page for the Advantage for kittens it says
For use only on cats 8 weeks and older and weighing 2 - 5 lbs.

A week is a very long time in the life of kittens this age and growth changes are great, so I would say the difference between 7 weeks and 8 weeks is significant.

ADVANTAGE II Flea Spot Treatment for Cats, 2-5 lbs, 2 Doses (2-mos. supply) - Chewy.com

Buy Advantage II Flea Spot Treatment for Cats, 2-5 lbs, 2 Doses (2-mos. supply) at Chewy.com. FREE shipping and the BEST customer service!

www.chewy.com

 

[kimmycup1]

I know you're close but on the Chewy page for the Advantage for kittens it says
For use only on cats 8 weeks and older and weighing 2 - 5 lbs.

A week is a very long time in the life of kittens this age and growth changes are great, so I would say the difference between 7 weeks and 8 weeks is significant.

http://[URL]https://www.chewy.com/advantage-ii-flea-spot-treatment-cats/dp/101834

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Yes, I wouldn't use Advantage on them until they are 8 weeks and until Desiree is 2 lbs. Sorry, I don't always write clearly, I didn't mean I would be using it on them at 7 weeks, just that I wanted to buy something so I have it ready. They will be 8 weeks in 3 days so even if I bought it online now, it wouldn't get here till they were 8 weeks anyway. I'd like to get something cheaper, I've just heard a lot of good things about Advantage.

 

[kimmycup1]

I had a quick chat with a vet on chewys website, just to get some recommendations for my budget and they recommended Frontline spray, fleabuster powder and I can't remember the name of the last product but I think it was something along the lines of "knockout spray". Has anyone had any experience with these lately? The Frontline spray is safe to use on kittens over 8 weeks, and she said it is much less toxic than the Adams product that I'm using and should last a month

 

[kimmycup1]

Bumping this, hoping to hear what flea products are working for other people on a budget

 

[blumarine916]

I used Frontline spray when Meffy was a kitten. She has a LOT of fleas on her tiny little body which spread all over my apartment and bit both me and my bf daily. Yes we had dozens of fleabites everyday. I don’t like the spray because my kitten would lick herself and start foaming at the mouth because it is bitter. I used the spot on treatment ever since.

As for the house, it took me 4 months to be finally rid of fleas. Mine is an apartment with tiled floor and no carpets. I didn’t use flea bombs or any insecticide. I just vacuumed and mopped with bleach every day, washed sheets, bedding every other day, washed all the rugs regularly…basically a thorough cleaning on every surface that my cat may get on until I stopped getting flea bites. Then I knew they were finally gone. It was tough but it was the cheapest thing I could do.

Both my cats are strictly indoors but they do get fleas every now and then. There are strays around our apartment area.

 

[kimmycup1]

I used Frontline spray when Meffy was a kitten. She has a LOT of fleas on her tiny little body which spread all over my apartment and bit both me and my bf daily. Yes we had dozens of fleabites everyday. I don’t like the spray because my kitten would lick herself and start foaming at the mouth because it is bitter. I used the spot on treatment ever since.

As for the house, it took me 4 months to be finally rid of fleas. Mine is an apartment with tiled floor and no carpets. I didn’t use flea bombs or any insecticide. I just vacuumed and mopped with bleach every day, washed sheets, bedding every other day, washed all the rugs regularly…basically a thorough cleaning on every surface that my cat may get on until I stopped getting flea bites. Then I knew they were finally gone. It was tough but it was the cheapest thing I could do.

Both my cats are strictly indoors but they do get fleas every now and then. There are strays around our apartment area.

Do you know if the Frontline spray worked before you switched her to the spot treatment? I finally was able to get the spray and plan on using it tomorrow morning. So far the kittens haven't had any signs of fleas so I'm just using it for prevention. The situation has calmed down with the adult cats and while I'm still finding one or two on my socks each day, we've only found a few on the cats in the last couple of weeks. I'm waiting for possible new eggs to hatch since it's been so quiet. Surprisingly, neither me or my mom have gotten any flea bites that we know of. I wear long pants tucked into my socks so I'm pretty safe but my mom walks around with no socks and her ankles showing and she said she hasn't gotten anything. I can't wait to get rid of the fleas so I can feel comfortable cuddling my cats again

 

[blumarine916]

The spray wasn’t effective enough because it is just on the surface of the fur. I changed to the spot on after a week with no difference. It is easier than chasing down a kitten to spray on something she hated. At least with the spot on, she can’t lick it off and it will remain there for 4 weeks.

My case was pretty bad because it got into our beds, clothes..etc. Lesson learned the hard way. I was so paranoid to even sleep worrying that the next morning I’m gonna see 15 flea bites on myself.

So it took about 4 months for the fleas to finally be completely gone.