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Don't Ask posted:Our vets have told us that Frontline (and Advantage) aren't really effective anymore, fleas are mostly resistant to them nowadays. We also had a small flea infestation that we weren't able to resolve using Frontline. My cat had the same thing some weeks ago, the internet said one of each pair will fall out on its own, and it did. If they're still there two weeks from now, you might want to see a vet.
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Aug 7, 2020 21:34
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The only flea topicals I've used are Revolution and Paradyne, both have worked incredibly well for my cat for a couple years now.
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Aug 7, 2020 21:36
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One of my cat looks much like this and he absolutely hates brushing and combing. Any suggestions on how to get around this? He's old and his self-grooming is basically useless, if not counterproductive. He will just pull out tufts of belly fur and eat them if unsupervised, only to hack them up later. I can trim excess paw fur and pants while he sleeps, but he wakes up easily so that doesn't solve the combing issue. He is slightly more tolerant of slicker brushes, but they only get rid of loose fur that I can just as easily collect by petting him with damp hands (fun, fun). De-shedders like the Furminator are useless and he hates them anyway. This style of comb is the only that works to keep his fur from sticking together and matting, but again, he really hates it. If I catch him unaware and am careful to pull slowly so it doesn't tug hard, he'll maybe allow 10 seconds before starting to squirm or trying to jump away. Cuffing the back of his neck doesn't do a whole lot. I give him treats afterwards but he eats them warily and almost spitefully.
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Aug 7, 2020 22:09
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eXXon posted:One of my cat looks much like this and he absolutely hates brushing and combing. Any suggestions on how to get around this? He's old and his self-grooming is basically useless, if not counterproductive. He will just pull out tufts of belly fur and eat them if unsupervised, only to hack them up later. have you tried those silicone grooming gloves? Our medium-hair cat was suspicious at first but now she hops on your lap as soon as you grab it, it's like a massage and she loves it. We also have a slicker brush and the furminator, but those are only necessary if she's shedding her winter-coat, and even then she only tolerates those.
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Aug 7, 2020 22:43
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Farten Barfen posted:
wouldn't it be better to use a flea-comb in the mean time? idk your cat, but I wouldn't want to subject mine to regular baths, especially if the advantage is on the way.
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Aug 7, 2020 22:45
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Regular old Dawn dishsoap (the blue kind with no added scents or anything) is safe and will murder fleas and might be less horrible than the flea shampoos. One thing you should remember to do is make a "collar" out of soap around their neck before you start dipping them because otherwise the fleas can retreat to the cat's face which is Not Great, since you don't want to get their face wet. But yeah it's probably a situation where they're getting re-flea'd from the environment. Not much you can do until your topical flea meds arrive, except wash everything in hot water and vaccum a lot as others have mentioned. Flea combs are super helpful (use it while you're bathing him) to get them out of the fur.
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Aug 7, 2020 23:16
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InvisibleMonkey posted:wouldn't it be better to use a flea-comb in the mean time? idk your cat, but I wouldn't want to subject mine to regular baths, especially if the advantage is on the way. I'm talking about one more bath between now and when the frontline gets here. The shipping says it'll be here on the 12th but I've usually found that stuff shows up 2-3 days earlier than quoted from Walmart.com (I looked on Amazon but a few people reported that they received the dog formulation instead and I don't even want to risk that headache) Edit: Ordered a flea comb though. He's literally never actually had a real flea problem before in ~6 years so I'm somewhat ill-equipped. That topical poo poo is amazing and I'm gonna stock up on some of the other brands mentioned here just in case. Farten Barfen fucked around with this message at 23:34 on Aug 7, 2020 |
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Aug 7, 2020 23:26
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InvisibleMonkey posted:have you tried those silicone grooming gloves? Our medium-hair cat was suspicious at first but now she hops on your lap as soon as you grab it, it's like a massage and she loves it. We also have a slicker brush and the furminator, but those are only necessary if she's shedding her winter-coat, and even then she only tolerates those. No, I haven't. Are they any good at de-tangling? That's the main thing I'm after; picking up loose hairs is secondary.
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Aug 7, 2020 23:33
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slicker brush is great for detangling. Removing loose hair will also cut down on future tangles. Depending where the tangles are, you could feasibly trap him partially in a laundry bag as a last ditch. Does he like food/a particular toy? I know he's old, but trying to build a "you let me brush you get a treat" association might still work.
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Aug 8, 2020 02:57
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eXXon posted:No, I haven't. Are they any good at de-tangling? That's the main thing I'm after; picking up loose hairs is secondary. Maybe not, Katya doesn't tangle (at all?) so for us it just takes out a bunch of loose hair, which is super satisfying to peel off the glove in one hand-shaped mat. Farten Barfen posted:I'm talking about one more bath between now and when the frontline gets here. The shipping says it'll be here on the 12th but I've usually found that stuff shows up 2-3 days earlier than quoted from Walmart.com (I looked on Amazon but a few people reported that they received the dog formulation instead and I don't even want to risk that headache) Oh, I misread that as "regular soap-baths", in my defense it was quite late and the heatwave is turning my brain to mush. You did remind me to be more diligent with the topical stuff, we're bad at sticking to a schedule InvisibleMonkey fucked around with this message at 12:24 on Aug 8, 2020 |
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Aug 8, 2020 09:07
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Don't Ask posted:Our vets have told us that Frontline (and Advantage) aren't really effective anymore, fleas are mostly resistant to them nowadays. We also had a small flea infestation that we weren't able to resolve using Frontline. As far as I understand it flea resistance is extremely location-specific and everyone should be checking with a local vet before they buy stuff.
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Aug 8, 2020 12:01
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Do your cats get super twitchy after applying a topical flea-product? I just put some frontline on Katya and she's fully seeing ghosts.
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Aug 8, 2020 17:45
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InvisibleMonkey posted:Do your cats get super twitchy after applying a topical flea-product? I just put some frontline on Katya and she's fully seeing ghosts. Yeah. Its a weird tactile sensation in a sensitive place that they can't see or reach.
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Aug 8, 2020 18:51
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Well, I put her harness on because she kept trying to lick it off and now she has surrendered to the heatwave. 
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Aug 8, 2020 20:13
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Once or twice a week Harold throws up. Doesn’t seem to have any hair in it and it’s pretty much always almost entirely undigested food that looks recently eaten. Is this just him horking food too fast and upsetting his stomach? There doesn’t seem to be blood or such and only a tiny bit of liquid comes with it but I still worry 
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Aug 8, 2020 21:55
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So uh, my mom offered to pay to take my cat to the vet since he's still miserable (and it looks like he did actually stop drinking water after all) and the vet applied the topical stuff kind of incorrectly. It looked right when he was on the table at the vet's, but we got home and it's actually ON one of his shoulder blades instead of inbetween. It's in an area he actually can lick. Should I just wash it off and wait for my order of topical solution to arrive and reapply? So far we've just been chasing him around making sure he lays on one side so he can't get to it but that's not really tenable long term. Does this stuff become less dangerous once it dries? I cannot believe how much bullshit has been caused by loving lovely flea shampoo. Edit: I just cut up an old shirt and made him a cat shirt for the time being. We'll see how that goes Farten Barfen fucked around with this message at 22:31 on Aug 8, 2020 |
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Aug 8, 2020 22:08
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The cut up shirt is probably fine, anything you do is gonna annoy him so whatever, better to be an annoyed cat than a poison cat. There are those donut shaped cushions that are sorta like a cone but, in theory, a tiny bit less annoying to them. But honestly if I were you I'd just stick with the cut up shirt if it does the job.
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Aug 8, 2020 22:44
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A fun thing if you want to check for fleas in your environment is to make a DIY flea trap. Fleas don't stay on your animal the whole time, they jump on and off, so you can catch them when they go looking for their next meal. You need a large shallow pan* like a pizza pan. Put it on the floor somewhere central, and then fill it with warm water** that has a drop of dish soap*** mixed in. Then you stick a candle in the middle. I usually use a tealight in a votive candle holder because I think the glass makes a nice mouse-sized warm spot, but any candle should work. While you are at home and awake light the candle and let it go for at least 4 hours. Works best at night in a dark room. Don't leave burning candles unattended you goon. (Some people use electric tea lights instead of real candles.) Fleas are attracted to heat and light so hungry fleas will hop hop hop on over to the candle, thinking it might be a delicious mammal. Then they land in the pan of soapy water and drown. Later you go and count how many fleas you caught. It's fun and also gross. The trap won't actually kill enough fleas to make a difference, it's a monitoring tool. Do your flea mitigation stuff and reset the trap in a few days or a week, see if fewer fleas are caught. Any time your pet is acting itchy but you don't see any fleas you can set up a flea trap to check the environment.     * Largest, shallowest pan you got. If the pan is higher than an inch it could block the flea sightline to the candle, though that can be offset with a taller candle. ** I like to fill it in place because if you move a shallow pan full of water you'll probably spill. Water doesn't need to be warm, but it doesn't hurt. *** Soap breaks the surface tension of the water. Without soap the fleas can escape instead of drowning. Or if you are very boring you can also just buy an electric flea trap made with a warm light bulb that lures them to a glue trap. This deprives you of all the fun of macgyvering your own though. And I worry my dumb pets would stick their nose on a glue trap. On the plus side it runs for months without you needing to do anything. 
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Aug 8, 2020 22:51
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Farten Barfen posted:So uh, my mom offered to pay to take my cat to the vet since he's still miserable (and it looks like he did actually stop drinking water after all) and the vet applied the topical stuff kind of incorrectly. It looked right when he was on the table at the vet's, but we got home and it's actually ON one of his shoulder blades instead of inbetween. It's in an area he actually can lick. Should I just wash it off and wait for my order of topical solution to arrive and reapply? On the shoulder blade should be fine. It needs to get absorbed through his skin so his blood becomes toxic to the fleas. If the vet used Revolution, licking some of it off is fine because then it helps kill intestinal parasites. It's never dangerous to the cat - it's an insecticide that can't get past the blood/brain barrier, so mammals are immune while invertebrates keel over.
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Aug 8, 2020 22:59
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Yeah from what I understand, the Frontline/Revolution/etc. is applied in a spot where the cats can't lick it not so they won't get sick from licking it, but so it has a chance to absorb and do its thing before they lick it up. They're inevitably going to lick some of it, since it absorbs into the entire coat, especially if you have multiple cats that groom each other. The only time it's dangerous is if you use the wrong kind - adult Frontline on kittens, dog medication on cats, etc. Maybe he's allergic to the medication? Rotten Red Rod fucked around with this message at 23:59 on Aug 8, 2020 |
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Aug 8, 2020 23:56
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That's all very useful information. I suspect I'm a loving idiot. Either way he looks adorable in his little lovely shirt, I'll take it off in a bit. He's been a fantastic sport for all of this. Thanks for all your help everybody, here's a picture of him in his lovely shirt! 
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Aug 9, 2020 01:28
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Farten Barfen posted:That's all very useful information. I suspect I'm a loving idiot. Either way he looks adorable in his little lovely shirt, I'll take it off in a bit. He's been a fantastic sport for all of this. I found cheristin to be extremely effective. 1 dose cleared my cat. It also smells horrible.
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Aug 9, 2020 06:20
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Deteriorata posted:On the shoulder blade should be fine. It needs to get absorbed through his skin so his blood becomes toxic to the fleas. If the vet used Revolution, licking some of it off is fine because then it helps kill intestinal parasites. It's never dangerous to the cat - it's an insecticide that can't get past the blood/brain barrier, so mammals are immune while invertebrates keel over. Interesting, didn't realise that's how it worked. So it's like this comic, but functional http://nedroid.com/2011/07/mosquitoes-mo-problems/
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Aug 9, 2020 10:01
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My cat got one of her hairs in her eye. What do I do to stop myself from poking her eye a bunch to get it out.
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Aug 10, 2020 01:04
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BaronVonVaderham posted:*laughs in hairless Sphynx* oh poo poo! I'll have to tell my friend to try the shower cap. Her suzee is the same, have to wipe her butt and bathe her or she gets greasy feeling. She also has butt cheeks, which makes me laugh everytime. Sweet cat, but very dumb. She's a rescue from a back yard breeder, not her fault.
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Aug 10, 2020 03:09
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Farten Barfen posted:I've got a question about my cat. Please use Cherestin or Bravecto, brands like Frontline and Advantage are not effective. Combined with a flea comb and perhaps diatomaceous earth spread around and good vaccuming if your house has an infestation.
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Aug 10, 2020 03:28
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There's history of some cats having severe reactions to cherestin, sometimes fatal. I wouldn't use it. Revolution seems to be the popular working treatment around this thread, I use it as well.
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Aug 10, 2020 06:08
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Can you link that? The rescue group my sister works with as well as both the vets I've used in the last three years have recommended it. It's been great for use in my cat and we've discussed it here before in the thread and no one has said anything like that.
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Aug 10, 2020 06:22
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Gaj posted:My cat got one of her hairs in her eye. What do I do to stop myself from poking her eye a bunch to get it out. Humbert Humbert would recommend you use your tongue... Maybe try and get her to blink a lot so it moves off the surface?
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Aug 10, 2020 08:54
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Everyone please congratulate Peridot for finally achieving snuggle time with Pepper, something she's been working very hard on since 2016!
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Aug 10, 2020 15:58
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Organza Quiz posted:Everyone please congratulate Peridot for finally achieving snuggle time with Pepper, something she's been working very hard on since 2016! Good job!
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Aug 10, 2020 23:17
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Mordja posted:Thing is, the litter I'd bought--some generic, lightweight clumping one--has been making me sneeze something awful so yesterday evening I went and got these pellety, pinewood things which seems to have instantly cleared up my dust allergy or whatever. Glad to know I'm not the only one. Switched from wood pellets to generic clay/gravel stuff, and my dust allergy flared up something awful. Didn't think it was possible, but switching back to the wood pellets cleared it up.
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Aug 11, 2020 10:57
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Hey all, we adopted an adult cat (1.5 years old) from a shelter 5 days ago now, not sure about his background but he was surrendered after his last owner couldn't look after him, had no vaccination record and fleas (which the shelter got rid of). We think he also has some kind of cat flu as he's been sneezing and swallowing a lot, but took him to the vet and got some antibiotics a few days ago and while he's still sneezing his coat does seem to be smoother and less greasy which is good. I am a little concerned about his behaviour though. We kept him confined to a laundry with his food, water, litter and a cat tree with some toys for a few days, he would spend all day hiding in the hole at the base of the cat tree and only come out sometime in the evening to sit on the window sill, we've practically never seen him actually move. When he's been on the window sill we've patted him and he's been very affectionate, rolling around, bumping his head into us etc. But during the day when he's in his box he's absolutely not interested in coming out. We've since opened up the door of the laundry to the hallway but again to our knowledge he's never even poked his head out let alone walked down the hall. He also seems to have zero interest in playing. So far we've been indulging him a bit, bringing food to him while he's hiding etc. because we're concerned about him eating enough while he's sick (we suspect he had a sore throat based on his frequent swallowing and some weight loss) but I'm concerned that allowing him to hide in the box under the cat tree forever and bringing food to him while he's there will mean that he never gets over his fear of moving around, especially while we're around. I've been thinking about putting some extra blankets into the hole he hides in after he comes out at night to take up some of the space in there which would force him to slowly be more out of the hole than in, but I'm not sure if this would just stress him out further and I don't think he's fully recovered from whatever cat flu he's got yet either. Thoughts? Our first cat was totally different, absolutely no issues running around and playing from day 1, so we don't really know what to do with what appears to be a very timid cat who is still super affectionate in the rare occasions we find him out of his hidey hole.
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Aug 12, 2020 01:39
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Blackhawk posted:Hey all, we adopted an adult cat (1.5 years old) from a shelter 5 days ago now, not sure about his background but he was surrendered after his last owner couldn't look after him, had no vaccination record and fleas (which the shelter got rid of). We think he also has some kind of cat flu as he's been sneezing and swallowing a lot, but took him to the vet and got some antibiotics a few days ago and while he's still sneezing his coat does seem to be smoother and less greasy which is good. Give him time. He'll be fine.
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Aug 12, 2020 01:59
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Yeah don't force him out. If he's being affectionate and using the litter box, he's just adjusting to not being in a shelter.
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Aug 12, 2020 02:16
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He comes out at night when the house is dark and quiet. Probably. Test by leaving out a bowl of yummy food on the other side of the room from his hidey hole when you go to bed.
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Aug 12, 2020 02:24
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Yeah, don't force him out, but don't bring food directly to him either. Put his food/water/litter in a logical spot somewhere in the house, that he'll have to venture out to use, even if it's just at night when no one's around. If a cat is hungry it will eat, I promise you. He might be a timid cat forever. That's ok! Don't make his safe spot uncomfortable intentionally as an attempt to force him to socialize. Much better to always allow him to have that area to retreat to - he'll be a happier cat for it.
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Aug 12, 2020 02:59
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I really don't understand his behavior, all day he lies in the hole under the cat tree but generally seems awake then like clockwork just after the sun goes down he jumps up onto the window sill and is just sitting there, apparently sleeping. It's not like he runs back into the hole if we catch him out at night, we've been sitting here with him for a while now and he's just chilling on the window sill, we can even go up and pat him and he's fine, but he won't budge from there for as long as we've watched him at night and he won't budge from the hole under the cat tree all day. It would make more sense to me if he always ran back to his hiding spot when we came in.
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Aug 12, 2020 08:40
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Blackhawk posted:It would make more sense Yes . . . but cat. 
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Aug 12, 2020 08:49
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If he's still recovering from being ill he might be less active than he normally would, but if he's not running away from you, accepts pats etc, then maybe this is just how he is - a very lazy and/or timid cat 
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Aug 12, 2020 09:16
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