Have you noticed little black spots crawling back and forth on your cat, or you’ve noticed little black specks that come off them when you give them a nice pat? These are signs of fleas, or flea dirt, which are the excretions of an adult flea. They can definitely be identified if you put a spot of water on the black dots and they turn a blood-red colour. In this case, you need a flea treatment for cats.
Flea Treatment For Cats
Flea treatments for cats comes in two readily available and effective forms, spot-ons or oral tablets. Both are great at preventing fleas from living on your cat and removing fleas that are already living there.
We highly recommend Bravecto, Advantage and Advocate. There are other good treatments like Revolution, Frontline and Seresto that will get the job done and leave your cat feeling happy and flea-free!
Spot-ons are applied at the base of the neck directly onto the skin. Once applied they will begin to kill off any biting adult fleas, reducing the infestation until it disappears.
For cats that have a particularly severe infestation, we can recommend Capstar tablets, which destroy adult fleas for immediate relief. Please call us on 5576 0400 for advice on the best treatment for your cat.
Treating Your Environment During Flea Infestations
Treating the environment your cat lives in is just as important as treating your cat when trying to completely eliminate fleas. Each female flea can lay as many as 2,000 eggs, which are often deposited into your cat’s surroundings.
Most commonly these insecticides will contain a substance called pyrethrin or Permethrin, which is actually a natural extract from chrysanthemum flowers. While pyrethrin is naturally sourced it is still toxic to dogs and especially cats, so take when using sprays and washing additives and always read the instructions of use thoroughly.
A Guided Step By Step For Flea Treatment For Cats:
- Remove your cat to a place that can be easily cleanable but separate from the rest of our house, like a laundry or bathroom.
- Apply the spot-on treatment or the oral flea tablet as directed on the pack.
- Vacuum as many areas as possible, focusing on the ones where your cat has been.
- Wash any fabrics in a hot wash. You can use flea treatment spray or flea bomb topically on carpets and furniture. Always give it time to dry before re-introducing your cat back inside and read the instructions of use carefully.
- Comb the dead fleas out of your cat’s fur with a flea comb. This limits the amount of dead fleas they may ingest through grooming and will help keep your cat feeling more comfortable.
Following these steps will help to keep you ahead of the flea infestation, however it may need to be repeated if your cat or their environment still has fleas.
If your cat is showing signs of irritation from the treatment or sprays then please talk to one of our friendly team members on 5576 0400. You can also book online with us via our website!
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