Jessica asked 8 years ago
I brought home an abandoned cat; didn’t realize it had fleas. I have another cat so I took it to the vet ASAP. I purchased a single dosage of Revolution for both. I have vacuumed the house (all the nooks and crannies I could possible reach) right after cat’s trip, washed all fabric (that can be put into the washer) and put them away until the room is flea free.
She’s only been in one room since her arrival so I think all the other parts of my house is good(of course there could be a possibility of cross-contamination via clothes). I vacuum the house once a week, is that enough? That’s the best I can do since I am still in school and work. I plan to purchase a flea shampoo to wash them both later in the week.
Is there anything else that I can do to ensure that I get rid of all the fleas? Furthermore, when can I start introducing the two of them to each other? Should I wait until all the fleas are gone? How can I tell that my house and the cat will be flea free?
Adam Retzer Staff answered 8 years ago
Hello Jessica,
Vacuuming and laundering are the best preventative measures to take. It would be a good idea to vacuum the infested cat’s room more than once weekly, just to ensure any potential immature stages are removed before they have a chance to reach adulthood.
Using a flea comb is a good way to catch an infestation early. However, since you’ve already treated the cats, no adults should survive on them. It’s probably best not to shampoo the cats if you already treated them with Revolution. The water immersion may reduce the efficacy of the treatment, and the Revolution is more effective than shampooing (because of its month-long efficacy).
How long did the cat go untreated for in the home? If the fleas went unnoticed for even a few days, then it’s likely immature stages are developing in the environment. They will eventually hatch into adults and try to re-infest the cats. If this is the case, a second (and possible third) monthly treatment of Revolution is a good idea (once 30 days has elapsed from the first dose). This will ensure any emerging adults from the environment don’t survive and restart the infestation.
Since both the cats are treated, you should be able to introduce them to each other.
Another good option for prevention is spraying the floors with an insect growth regulator (IGR). These compounds mimic insect hormones and prevent eggs and larvae from reaching adulthood. The nice thing about IGRs is they are considered safer than traditional insecticides and they stay effective for up to 7 months indoors. Look for the ingredients pyriproxyfen (Nylar) or methoprene (Precor). Martin’s IGR makes a good size for indoor use.
To check to see if your cats and home are flea free, a flea comb can be used on the cats, and a flea trap can be used in the environment. Both of these methods are useful for assessing flea populations and determining when an infestation is over. Usually it takes around 8 weeks before they are completely gone (unless they were caught early before eggs had a chance to fall into the environment).
Jessica
replied 8 years ago Thank you for your detailed response! I greatly appreciate it.
I took my new cat, Meka, to the vet and received her flea medication on her third day at my house. So both my cats went untreated for two days. With that being said, since I caught it pretty early, do you think my house was infected badly?
I am unable to vacuum more than once a week due to my busy schedule; I come home late at night.
Are IGRs toxic to cats? How often should I wash my beddings? Is once a week sufficient?
Jessica
replied 8 years ago Can I use IGR on fabrics that cannot be washed? For example mattress and electric bed warmers?
Jessica
replied 8 years ago Would using the Bissell Pet Hair Eraser Handheld Vacuum do the trick for unwashable fabrics if I cannot use IGRs on them?
Also, when I purchase IGR, do I have to spray my entire hardwood floor or just the corners? I noticed that Precor breaks down in sunlight, hence why it cannot be used outdoors. When I spray this stuff do I need to keep my window blinds down until they dry?
How many flea traps should I purchase? Do I only need to purchase flea traps for rooms that the cats occupy the most? They are quiet pricey and I can’t afford to purchase one for every place in the house.
I found some flea dirt on my cat, but I treated them both with topical medication as mentioned before. Does this mean that the medication did not work???
I apologize for the multiple comments. I keep forgetting something after I post it. It would be nice if there was an edit function!
Adam RetzerIf you caught the fleas within 2 days, the problem should be fairly contained. Though, some eggs likely fell from the cat in the areas where it slept, rested, and groomed. These areas should get the most of your attention. If you can’t vacuum the house more than once weekly, at least try to get these hotspots a few a time a week.
IGRs are considered less toxic than other insecticides. This is because they specifically target the endocrine system of insects, mimicking insect hormones. Thus, they don’t affect mammals as much. Many flea medications for cats and dogs (e.g. Frontline Plus and Advantage II) are formulated with IGRs in them, as they sterilize female fleas.
Does your cat sleep on your bed? If not, then there is no need to wash your bedding, because there shouldn’t be any fleas developing there. If your cat has slept on your bed, I’d recommend washing the bedding, and then preventing the cat from having access to it until the infestation is past.
Washing pet bedding and rugs weekly is still a good idea. Flea eggs will fall anywhere the pet has access to, especially where the cat rests.
It’s probably not the best idea to spray chemicals (even safer ones like IGRs) onto items like bedding that you will be in contact with often. Plus, fleas shouldn’t be on these items unless the cat has access. Restricting access is an easier solution.
Using the handheld vacuum on unwashable fabrics will definitely help. It should remove most of fleas from the items.
Flea larvae are negatively phototactic, which means they actively move away from light. On hardwood floors, immature fleas develop in cracks, crevices around baseboards, corners, and other places where debris collects. Most of the flea eggs will fall and develop in rooms where the cat spends the most time. These rooms, and hotspots within the rooms, should be targeted with the IGR.
Precor does degrade in sunlight, but there shouldn’t be much of an issue when spraying indoors. You don’t need to worry about closing your blinds. Studies have shown that flea larvae will avoid areas of the environment that get a lot of sunlight (e.g. they won’t be found in carpeting that gets a lot of sun). These are the same areas where the Precor will lose activity the fastest.
Flea traps aren’t very usual for a control method. I only mentioned them because they are good for assessing flea populations and for determining when the infestation is over. You would only need one or two, one for every room that seems to have many fleas.
Finding flea dirt does not necessarily mean the medication isn’t working. When fleas acquire a host, they feed almost immediately and soon begin defecating. The insecticides used in flea drops can take up to 24 hours to kill all the fleas, though most die within a few hours. Thus, the fleas may have time to feed, but they shouldn’t have time to reproduce before they die.
I could add an edit function, but it would require users registering with the site and I figured it would be more inconvenient for them. I may do this in the future though. Thanks for the comments.
I should mention that my house is hardwood making things easier