Need safe flea medication for senior Cat.

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maryjoandsmokie

Member Since 2009
Fleas have been brought into my house on someone's shoes.
My senior Cat, Fluffy now has fleas and i don't know a safe medication to use.
My Vet suggested comfortis but I have read about many Cats and Dogs dying
after using this medication. I have used advantage and it has not gotten rid of the fleas.

Could someone tell me a safe flea medication for an older Cat?
Many thanks!
 
there is a pill called cap star that kills the fleas on the cat but has no residual effect-
the pluses -- it is in and out of the system and safer than long term flea treatments.
the negatives -- you will probably have to do several days in a row to kill all the fleas depending how bad they are.
That being said I personally think it is a better choice to do cap star for several days if needed because if you use frontline or revolution etc.... if kitty has a reaction you cant get it out of the cat-
cap star is in and out in about 12 hours.
you can get it online-
if you decide to do a topical frontline is the only 1 that I know of that does NOT go into the blood stream-it stays in the top layer of skin and is most tested with minimal reactions.
 
Just for information and not saying this could happen to anyone else's cat but I treated my cat with the AdvantageII topical and within 24 hours he had an ataxia.. He didn't lick any of it and it didn't drip anywhere else on his body. He started having seizures within a few days and had them every 4 days thereafter. I had to put him on phenobarbital but he kept having the seizures until after the 30 days that the Advantage was out of his system. He remained on the pheno for 6 months to make sure he wouldn't have any more. Terrible time and very expensive hospital stay. He was ok with the regular Advantage but they added a pesticide when they changed it to Advantage II. A neurologist at a teaching hospital for animals told me there is a possibility this could happen with any of them. I've been looking for a natural flea repellent that doesn't have any pesticides or nerve damaging chemicals but haven't found anything yet that has a good record of getting rid of fleas. I have to frequently give him a bath in the summer months with a natural pet shampoo.
 
Fleas have been brought into my house on someone's shoes.
My senior Cat, Fluffy now has fleas and i don't know a safe medication to use.
My Vet suggested comfortis but I have read about many Cats and Dogs dying
after using this medication. I have used advantage and it has not gotten rid of the fleas.

Could someone tell me a safe flea medication for an older Cat?
Many thanks!
Fleas have been brought into my house on someone's shoes.
My senior Cat, Fluffy now has fleas and i don't know a safe medication to use.
My Vet suggested comfortis but I have read about many Cats and Dogs dying
after using this medication. I have used advantage and it has not gotten rid of the fleas.

Could someone tell me a safe flea medication for an older Cat?
Many thanks!
Fleas have been brought into my house on someone's shoes.
My senior Cat, Fluffy now has fleas and i don't know a safe medication to use.
My Vet suggested comfortis but I have read about many Cats and Dogs dying
after using this medication. I have used advantage and it has not gotten rid of the fleas.

Could someone tell me a safe flea medication for an older Cat?
Many thanks!
I was very satisfied with the Revolution - but I am not sure if it is suitable for all ages. Never heard it was not.
Fleas have been brought into my house on someone's shoes.
My senior Cat, Fluffy now has fleas and i don't know a safe medication to use.
My Vet suggested comfortis but I have read about many Cats and Dogs dying
after using this medication. I have used advantage and it has not gotten rid of the fleas.

Could someone tell me a safe flea medication for an older Cat?
Many thanks!
Thanks, Tanya!
I have read that Revolution is unsafe for Senior Cats.
I have never used it.
 
I was very satisfied with the Revolution - but I am not sure if it is suitable for all ages. Never heard it was not.
I was very satisfied with the Revolution - but I am not sure if it is suitable for all ages. Never heard it was not.
I was very satisfied with the Revolution - but I am not sure if it is suitable for all ages. Never heard it was not.
Thanks Jayla.
Capstar worked well for awhile but now it is ineffective.
fluffy had no side effects.
 
I have read that Revolution is unsafe for Senior Cats.
I have never used it.
Hmm.. I can only add that we also tried several "at counter" remedies - whatever you could buy at PetCo or Petsmart. One was a cream/gel that you apply to skin in the scruff area and another one was a spray - to use topically at the same spot. I cannot remember its names but she was miserable - within a few afters after using it Ducia would be shacking, appeared to be in pain. We washed her right away but she was sick for a couple of days although she was young and strong then.

What I suggest is that you re-post your question tomorrow. You have posted yesterday and the weekends are usually slow in traffic - especially the Holiday weekends. Not so many people seen you post and could get a chance to comment.

I hope you had nice Mother Day and someone will give you an idea to help Smokie!:bighug:
 
I have som clients that use 1/2 dose of frontline that have been ok and was effective.... I know is still scary.
1 (a dog) had a horrible reaction with a full dose but is fine with 1/2-
 
there is a pill called cap star that kills the fleas on the cat but has no residual effect-
the pluses -- it is in and out of the system and safer than long term flea treatments.
the negatives -- you will probably have to do several days in a row to kill all the fleas depending how bad they are.
That being said I personally think it is a better choice to do cap star for several days if needed because if you use frontline or revolution etc.... if kitty has a reaction you cant get it out of the cat-
cap star is in and out in about 12 hours.
you can get it online-
if you decide to do a topical frontline is the only 1 that I know of that does NOT go into the blood stream-it stays in the top layer of skin and is most tested with minimal reactions.
Mm
there is a pill called cap star that kills the fleas on the cat but has no residual effect-
the pluses -- it is in and out of the system and safer than long term flea treatments.
the negatives -- you will probably have to do several days in a row to kill all the fleas depending how bad they are.
That being said I personally think it is a better choice to do cap star for several days if needed because if you use frontline or revolution etc.... if kitty has a reaction you cant get it out of the cat-
cap star is in and out in about 12 hours.
you can get it online-
if you decide to do a topical frontline is the only 1 that I know of that does NOT go into the blood stream-it stays in the top layer of skin and is most tested with minimal reactions.
there is a pill called cap star that kills the fleas on the cat but has no residual effect-
the pluses -- it is in and out of the system and safer than long term flea treatments.
the negatives -- you will probably have to do several days in a row to kill all the fleas depending how bad they are.
That being said I personally think it is a better choice to do cap star for several days if needed because if you use frontline or revolution etc.... if kitty has a reaction you cant get it out of the cat-
cap star is in and out in about 12 hours.
you can get it online-
if you decide to do a topical frontline is the only 1 that I know of that does NOT go into the blood stream-it stays in the top layer of skin and is most tested with minimal reactions.
there is a pill called cap star that kills the fleas on the cat but has no residual effect-
the pluses -- it is in and out of the system and safer than long term flea treatments.
the negatives -- you will probably have to do several days in a row to kill all the fleas depending how bad they are.
That being said I personally think it is a better choice to do cap star for several days if needed because if you use frontline or revolution etc.... if kitty has a reaction you cant get it out of the cat-
cap star is in and out in about 12 hours.
you can get it online-
if you decide to do a topical frontline is the only 1 that I know of that does NOT go into the blood stream-it stays in the top layer of skin and is most tested with minimal reactions.

I am sorry to hear about your Kitty getting so sick from advantage 11.
I used it on Fluffy and it used to help but now it does nothing. He never had a side affect.
I don't know what to do. If i give any flea medicine I'm taking a chance and he could die.
Have you heard about using Dawn dish liquid for a bath to get rid of fleas?
I'm gonna try it but i sure need a medication to help Fluffy!
 
Hmm.. I can only add that we also tried several "at counter" remedies - whatever you could buy at PetCo or Petsmart. One was a cream/gel that you apply to skin in the scruff area and another one was a spray - to use topically at the same spot. I cannot remember its names but she was miserable - within a few afters after using it Ducia would be shacking, appeared to be in pain. We washed her right away but she was sick for a couple of days although she was young and strong then.

What I suggest is that you re-post your question tomorrow. You have posted yesterday and the weekends are usually slow in traffic - especially the Holiday weekends. Not so many people seen you post and could get a chance to comment.

I hope you had nice Mother Day and someone will give you an idea to help Smokie!:bighug:

I will surely do that! Thanks!
I hope you had a nice Mothers Day too!
 
Have you heard about using Dawn dish liquid for a bath to get rid of fleas?
I'm gonna try it but i sure need a medication to help Fluffy!

I have used Dawn on kittens too young to get topical flea treatment. You give the kitty a bath and the fleas die. It doesn't kill the eggs or any that are lingering in your house from where your cat has shed eggs. That means you'll have to bathe regularly and still may not get rid of all the fleas, just keep them more manageable-ish.

Since fleas cause worms I don't take the chance of creating more issues. (My cats are all indoor, but the dog will go out and occasionally bring them in.) if you're seeing them, they're like cockroaches... they've been there a while. Because seeing one means there are a bunch behind your walls.

I used to use regular Advantage but did not find the Advantage 2 to have the same success. My vet switched us over to revolution when we have an indoor outbreak. We haven't had any issues.

I've only resorted to Dawn because those kittens were too young for Revolution. Also, You have an older kitty, I don't know how she's going to manage regular baths. This may be quite a stressful situation.

I've had to tell my mother in law she couldn't bring her dog back over until she got appropriate flea treatment. She had been using the stuff you buy from the store without a prescription and it never worked. We always had an outbreak after their visits. And she was spending tons of money weekly on products that don't work.

I get being concerned over potential medical reactions particularly with an older pet. But it sounds like you're going to need to work with your vet or find a holistic practicing vet that can take your concerns into account to find a solution that works. (Idk if that means using a minimal dose to test for reactions, or finding a medicine that both of you are comfortable with that actually works.)
 
I have som clients that use 1/2 dose of frontline that have been ok and was effective.... I know is still scary.
1 (a dog) had a horrible reaction with a full dose but is fine with 1/2-

That is something to think about, Jayla. I'll talk to my Vet.
He wanted me to use comfortis but on the Internet the reviews show page after page of Cats and Dogs
who have died after using it. My Sons little Dog had a bad neurological reaction and was very sick along time.
He acted strange. Could not stop shaking, held his head high and tilted, would go out in yard at night
And not let anyone touch him.
 
The dawn shampoo does work, but as AlphaCat says, it can be stressful if he's not used to baths. Some swear by human grade diatomaceous earth. I tried it on my senior cat (24) and while I think it helped, I'm not sure how well it worked, and it was very messy. It may be worth looking into though. I also use flea traps, flea combs and lots of vacuuming.
 
The dawn shampoo does work, but as AlphaCat says, it can be stressful if he's not used to baths. Some swear by human grade diatomaceous earth. I tried it on my senior cat (24) and while I think it helped, I'm not sure how well it worked, and it was very messy. It may be worth looking into though. I also use flea traps, flea combs and lots of vacuuming.
Does that kill feral or repel?
I was never sure. I know @Bobbie And Bubba use it too.
 
We use Revolution on all of ours - have done for almost a year. We had been using Advantage II, but Roxi had an allergic reaction to it, though fortunately there were no lasting effects for her after the first few hours (the ER gave her a bath to get it all off). We'd been using Advantage II because Regan has skin allergies to Frontline, although when our ex-housemate tried using Frontline on his 2 cats it did absolutely nothing...the cats actually continued to get more and more fleas and I have heard that's becoming a more common problem every year. We've found the Revolution to be very effective - I only use it about once every 3 months as ours are indoor cats and we find we don't need it more often than that.
 
Does that kill feral or repel?
I was never sure. I know @Bobbie And Bubba use it too.

It's supposed to kill the fleas. I use it in my veggie garden and it does work on some insects, so it may at least help with fleas. My problem with it was the mess. I took DJ outside and rubbed it all over him getting it down onto his skin as best I could. Be careful to keep it away from their eyes and noses though (yours too!). I also tried apple cider vinegar on a cloth and rubbed against the hair to repel, he smelled like a salad, but it helped. I ordered some natural flea wipes from Amazon, but sadly DJ passed before they arrived so I haven't tried them.
 
I have used Dawn on kittens too young to get topical flea treatment. You give the kitty a bath and the fleas die. It doesn't kill the eggs or any that are lingering in your house from where your cat has shed eggs. That means you'll have to bathe regularly and still may not get rid of all the fleas, just keep them more manageable-ish.

Since fleas cause worms I don't take the chance of creating more issues. (My cats are all indoor, but the dog will go out and occasionally bring them in.) if you're seeing them, they're like cockroaches... they've been there a while. Because seeing one means there are a bunch behind your walls.

I used to use regular Advantage but did not find the Advantage 2 to have the same success. My vet switched us over to revolution when we have an indoor outbreak. We haven't had any issues.

I've only resorted to Dawn because those kittens were too young for Revolution. Also, You have an older kitty, I don't know how she's going to manage regular baths. This may be quite a stressful situation.

I've had to tell my mother in law she couldn't bring her dog back over until she got appropriate flea treatment. She had been using the stuff you buy from the store without a prescription and it never worked. We always had an outbreak after their visits. And she was spending tons of money weekly on products that don't work.

I get being concerned over potential medical reactions particularly with an older pet. But it sounds like you're going to need to work with your vet or find a holistic practicing vet that can take your concerns into account to find a solution that works. (Idk if that means using a minimal dose to test for reactions, or finding a medicine that both of you are comfortable with that actually works.)

Thank you.
We don't have holistic Vets here. Wish they did.
Do you know which flea medication is the safest to use? Advantage does not help.
I'm so afraid to use comfortis. Brevocto kills many pets too. There should be one just a little stronger than advantage.
 
The dawn shampoo does work, but as AlphaCat says, it can be stressful if he's not used to baths. Some swear by human grade diatomaceous earth. I tried it on my senior cat (24) and while I think it helped, I'm not sure how well it worked, and it was very messy. It may be worth looking into though. I also use flea traps, flea combs and lots of vacuuming.
The dawn shampoo does work, but as AlphaCat says, it can be stressful if he's not used to baths. Some swear by human grade diatomaceous earth. I tried it on my senior cat (24) and while I think it helped, I'm not sure how well it worked, and it was very messy. It may be worth looking into though. I also use flea traps, flea combs and lots of vacuuming.
The dawn shampoo does work, but as AlphaCat says, it can be stressful if he's not used to baths. Some swear by human grade diatomaceous earth. I tried it on my senior cat (24) and while I think it helped, I'm not sure how well it worked, and it was very messy. It may be worth looking into though. I also use flea traps, flea combs and lots of vacuuming.

Thank you. I will check into this.
 
Thank you.
We don't have holistic Vets here. Wish they did.
Do you know which flea medication is the safest to use? Advantage does not help.
I'm so afraid to use comfortis. Brevocto kills many pets too. There should be one just a little stronger than advantage.
I've never looked for one, so I'm not sure how to even go about that part. Most vets are better than my people medical doctors, so I trust their knowledge when I find a good one.
However, I've seen a couple animal web pages that contact with vets who answer questions over the internet. It seems one of those might be more on the holistic side...
Have you checked out Revolution with your local vet?
 
Thank you.
We don't have holistic Vets here. Wish they did.
Do you know which flea medication is the safest to use? Advantage does not help.
I'm so afraid to use comfortis. Brevocto kills many pets too. There should be one just a little stronger than advantage.
It's not exactly down to strength - it's how long a particular formulation and a particular active ingredient have been used, and whether or not fleas have built resistance to that. Revolution is the newest of the 3 veterinary recommended spot-on treatments and therefore is still more effective in most cases at the moment.
 
Thanks AlphaCat. I didn't check about Revolution. I thought it would be
Too strong since it lasts a year. He recommended comfortis. I'll ask him.



I've never looked for one, so I'm not sure how to even go about that part. Most vets are better than my people medical doctors, so I trust their knowledge when I find a good one.
However, I've seen a couple animal web pages that contact with vets who answer questions over the internet. It seems one of those might be more on the holistic side...
Have you checked out Revolution with your local vet?
 
hanks AlphaCat. I didn't check about Revolution. I thought it would be
Too strong since it lasts a year.
This
http://www.1800petmeds.com/Revoluti...PUDaCVWLh4d-57V5di07avzgqleNyccA8BxoCzMnw_wcB
says it is monthly:
What is Revolution?
Revolution is a safe and simple monthly topical medication used to protect your pet from heartworms, fleas, and ear mites. It also protects dogs from ticks and sarcoptic mange and cats from roundworms and hookworms. Revolution for Dogs and Cats requires a prescription from your veterinarian. (3 Pack = 3 doses which lasts 3 months.)
 
I use DE (diatomacious earth) food grade. It is the only 100% natural, safe and effective flea treatment I know of.
It works for me so well, I don't ever have a problem with fleas any more and I don't "poison" my animals with commercial and very toxic flea treatments, we have too many chemicals in our environment which affect us and our companions so I made a conscious decision to avoid those as much as possible.
You might want to consider DE and do your Google search or if you would like more information from me I would be more than happy to elaborate.
 
Fleas have been brought into my house on someone's shoes.
My senior Cat, Fluffy now has fleas and i don't know a safe medication to use.
My Vet suggested comfortis but I have read about many Cats and Dogs dying
after using this medication. I have used advantage and it has not gotten rid of the fleas.

Could someone tell me a safe flea medication for an older Cat?
Many thanks!

My senior cat Sketch had a reaction to the Revolution. Very rapid heartbeat and respiration for about 24 hrs after application. Have decided not to use it going forward. Still studying poss more organic options. With the chemicals in these treatments I am surprised more cats don't have issues...some of the stuff is like nerve agents.
 
Please be very careful if you look into using essential oils. People assume they're safe because they're "natural," but they can actually be very toxic to kitties.
This is very true some essential oils are highly toxic for cats and the grade of the oil matters as well.
That being said many are very safe and helpful on physical and emotional levels. (used properly)
 
I've never looked for one, so I'm not sure how to even go about that part. Most vets are better than my people medical doctors, so I trust their knowledge when I find a good one.
However, I've seen a couple animal web pages that contact with vets who answer questions over the internet. It seems one of those might be more on the holistic side...
Have you checked out Revolution with your local vet?
Please be very careful if you look into using essential oils. People assume they're safe because they're "natural," but they can actually be very toxic to kitties.
Thanks for the information.
 
I found this.... never used it but may be worth giving a call or research??
I would be very wary of using this one. It contains cedar oil and some types are toxic to humans and animals. I did note their claim that they use only the non-toxic type and that it's carefully prepared, but I would make sure to do due diligence on researching for any issues that anyone has had with it. It also contains lemongrass oil - and lemongrass in all its forms is listed as toxic to dogs and cats by the ASPCA. The third active ingredient, rosemary oil, is generally thought to be safer but that may be irrelevant given that it contains lemongrass oil.
 
I am using a Seresto collar on Leo this year and it is working so far with no side effects. Ordered it from Chewy.
I use DE (diatomacious earth) food grade. It is the only 100% natural, safe and effective flea treatment I know of.
It works for me so well, I don't ever have a problem with fleas any more and I don't "poison" my animals with commercial and very toxic flea treatments, we have too many chemicals in our environment which affect us and our companions so I made a conscious decision to avoid those as much as possible.
You might want to consider DE and do your Google search or if you would like more information from me I would be more than happy to elaborate.

Thanks Marlena. I am looking into DE since it was mentioned before.
The EPA is supposed to be doing something about the sharp rise in Pet deaths from flea medication.
I don't want Fluffy to be one that dies from them.
 
My senior cat Sketch had a reaction to the Revolution. Very rapid heartbeat and respiration for about 24 hrs after application. Have decided not to use it going forward. Still studying poss more organic options. With the chemicals in these treatments I am surprised more cats don't have issues...some of the stuff is like nerve agents.

Jeff, Have you googled the reviews on Pets who have had bad side effects from flea medication?
Many have died. I don't want Fluffy to be one of them. There has been a great increase in bad
Reactions to flea medication. I'm glad Sketch is ok.
 
I can never use any flea medication on Leo again after what happened to him. I was warned by a neurologist at a teaching hospital that there are no absolutely safe chemical flea preparations. So much for modern technology and chemical warfare on fleas. The 'inert' ingredients in some of these can cause reactions and we don't always know what exactly the inert ingredients are. I was told that my kitty possibly has a low threshold for seizure activity even though he had never had a seizure until the topical flea med was applied and has never had another one since the 30 days was up for the med to be effective. There is no doubt in my mind that these meds can be dangerous.
 
This
http://www.1800petmeds.com/Revoluti...PUDaCVWLh4d-57V5di07avzgqleNyccA8BxoCzMnw_wcB
says it is monthly:
What is Revolution?
Revolution is a safe and simple monthly topical medication used to protect your pet from heartworms, fleas, and ear mites. It also protects dogs from ticks and sarcoptic mange and cats from roundworms and hookworms. Revolution for Dogs and Cats requires a prescription from your veterinarian. (3 Pack = 3 doses which lasts 3 months.)

Thanks for the information, Larry.
 
I use DE (diatomacious earth) food grade. It is the only 100% natural, safe and effective flea treatment I know of.
It works for me so well, I don't ever have a problem with fleas any more and I don't "poison" my animals with commercial and very toxic flea treatments, we have too many chemicals in our environment which affect us and our companions so I made a conscious decision to avoid those as much as possible.
You might want to consider DE and do your Google search or if you would like more information from me I would be more than happy to elaborate.

Marlena, is it safe for my Cat to breath this? How do YOU apply
This to your Cat. I saw a video where it was applied to the
Cats chest, the tail and back of neck.
This looks like the best one to use.
Any special tips on how to make this easy to use?
Fluffy doesn't like to be messed with. LOL
 
Marlena, is it safe for my Cat to breath this? How do YOU apply
This to your Cat. I saw a video where it was applied to the
Cats chest, the tail and back of neck.
This looks like the best one to use.
Any special tips on how to make this easy to use?
Fluffy doesn't like to be messed with. LOL

Mary,
I apologise for not replying straight away as I did not check the thread, I was busy.
Rocky is a very easy cat when it comes to doing anything to him so I just dust him all over with DE using a soft plastic bottle with a narrow tip so when you squeeze the bottle the powder comes out and I spray it onto his skin and fur. It is important to try to avoid inhaling the dust but it is not harmful really.
The only tip I would have for you if your kitty is not very easy and relaxed is try to coax him with great tasting treats. Be slow and relax, give him lots of strokes and use calming voice.
You might want to do one area at a time coming back to it a bit later.
Good luck, I hope it goes well and maybe other members would have better ideas. I'm just so lucky that Rocky is extremely placid and trusts me so I don't really have experience of dealing with difficult kitties.
 
I'm going to have to jump in here. Inhalation of DE is harmful, even with food grade. It leads to changes within the lungs. Most are reversible given time, but when we treat regularly for fleas, the chance is never there for the changes to be reversed. The recommendation we have is to use it for environmental control only...and preferably on the outside perimeter of the house only. The issues with applying it directly to cats are two-fold. Firstly it can cause skin irritation and dryness. Which may not be a major health concern, but is certainly uncomfortable for our kitties. It can also irritate their eyes. The second, and more concerning issue, is that because cats groom themselves (and usually immediately after you apply something like this where they feel that their fur has been "messed up"), they are going to be inhaling it from the grooming process no matter how careful we are to avoid inhalation during application. Also important to note is that even food grade DE will contain a small percentage of the crystallized form of DE - necessarily because you don't find one without the other. For food grade, the crystallized portion has to be below a certain percentage, but that doesn't mean there is none...just that there isn't much. There are a couple of studies that I've linked here (there are more available), but personally, I don't find the idea of chronic inflammation due to regular use, granuloma formation or potentially even emphysema harmless in the least. And the study that found that was conducted using synthetic amorphous silica only...where the DE that we can buy also contains a small amount of crystallized silica which is known to be more problematic.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11876495

https://pets.stackexchange.com/ques...th-using-diatomaceous-earth-as-an-insecticide
 
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