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#1
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Flea Dip for 7-week-old kitten
Noreen Cooper writes:
Sorry to be so long-winded. I guess I'm feeling a little insecure in my ability to care for a semi-feral cat. The basic reason for my post is to find out from the experts here all the things I should do health-wise for the kitten. I'm planning an immediate trip to the vet but the bigger concern is how to de-flea a kitten. Are there any flea dips which can be given to a 7-week-old? Or are there other methods you'd suggest? I'd consult with the vet about chemical treatments. Besides being de-flea-ed, fleas spread tapeworms so the kitten might need to be wormed, too. One thing you can definitely do, though, even before you take the kitten to the vet, is give it a good grooming with a flea comb. Have a dish of soapy water handy to drown the fleas in, otherwise they will just hop right back onto the kitten (or onto you). I would keep the kitten as isolated as possible until you are sure it is flea-free so that you don't get fleas infesting your house or your other cats. When I adopted a slightly older stray kitten some years ago (he was about 3 months old), he was loaded with fleas, too, and I kept him in my spare bedroom at first and gave him the flea comb treatment two or three times a day. I had given him a cardboard box with an old towel to sleep in, and I changed and washed the bedding every couple of days and treated the box itself with flea spray. And once I got all the fleas exterminated from the kitten and decided it was safe to let him out into the rest of the house, I flea-bombed his room to get rid of any other fleas that might still be lurking there. IIRC, it took about a week or so. One good side-effect of all that grooming is that it very quickly got the kitten socialized to me and accustomed him to being handled, BTW. -Sandra |
#2
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Noreen Cooper writes:
Sorry to be so long-winded. I guess I'm feeling a little insecure in my ability to care for a semi-feral cat. The basic reason for my post is to find out from the experts here all the things I should do health-wise for the kitten. I'm planning an immediate trip to the vet but the bigger concern is how to de-flea a kitten. Are there any flea dips which can be given to a 7-week-old? Or are there other methods you'd suggest? I'd consult with the vet about chemical treatments. Besides being de-flea-ed, fleas spread tapeworms so the kitten might need to be wormed, too. One thing you can definitely do, though, even before you take the kitten to the vet, is give it a good grooming with a flea comb. Have a dish of soapy water handy to drown the fleas in, otherwise they will just hop right back onto the kitten (or onto you). I would keep the kitten as isolated as possible until you are sure it is flea-free so that you don't get fleas infesting your house or your other cats. When I adopted a slightly older stray kitten some years ago (he was about 3 months old), he was loaded with fleas, too, and I kept him in my spare bedroom at first and gave him the flea comb treatment two or three times a day. I had given him a cardboard box with an old towel to sleep in, and I changed and washed the bedding every couple of days and treated the box itself with flea spray. And once I got all the fleas exterminated from the kitten and decided it was safe to let him out into the rest of the house, I flea-bombed his room to get rid of any other fleas that might still be lurking there. IIRC, it took about a week or so. One good side-effect of all that grooming is that it very quickly got the kitten socialized to me and accustomed him to being handled, BTW. -Sandra |
#3
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"Noreen Cooper" wrote in message
... I'm not sure what I'm getting myself in for but here goes. Bear with me as I summarize a bit of background info. I didn't grow up with cats but my son has always been a huge cat lover. When he was younger, I felt the need to guarantee the temperament of our home kitties and decided upon the Scottish Fold breed. We couldn't be happier with our two cats, one straight-eared and one folded-eared. The folded-ear cat has never once bit my son, a very easy cat to maintain. I've read quite a few books on cat care over the past five years and am the primary caretaker of our two family cats. My son is now 8 and while visiting a friend, he found out a feral mom had dropped five kittens into a backyard down the street. He fell instantly in love with one of the kittens and I decided to let him have one. The kittens are relatively well-socialized by the neighbor children; the mother, aunt, and grandmother all look out for them; the 6-week-old kittens are still nursing; but the family who presently fosters the brood feeds everyone but does leave the kittens out all night. Hence the kittens are quite covered in fleas and Advantage is prohibited until at least 8 weeks. (As an aside, this family has paid to have both the feral grandmother and aunt spayed at their own cost but have yet been unable to catch the mother). I have heard that it is better to adopt feral kittens earlier since the longer they stay with their mother, the more they will shun humans. I've noticed a huge difference in just one week where at 5 weeks the kittens were blissfully playing and ignoring any humans standing around to 6-weeks where they are running away. I invite any comments from the group but we were thinking of taking the kitten one week from now, at 7-weeks-old to begin socializing it into our family. What the foster family plans to do is try and place the remaining four kittens in pairs as litter mates. Since we are over there almost every day, the odd-out kitten at least knows us. Sorry to be so long-winded. I guess I'm feeling a little insecure in my ability to care for a semi-feral cat. The basic reason for my post is to find out from the experts here all the things I should do health-wise for the kitten. I'm planning an immediate trip to the vet but the bigger concern is how to de-flea a kitten. Are there any flea dips which can be given to a 7-week-old? Or are there other methods you'd suggest? I guess I'm also wondering how the semi-feral kitty will get along eventually with two very over-domesticated cats. The straight-eared fold is indoor-outdoor and the folded-ear is indoor only. The plan right now is to take the semi-feral kitten inside for a month or so and then allow her access outdoors but bring her in at night. Noreen Since the kittens are used to people, I'd leave the kitten with its mother until it is a full 8 weeks old. It's better for the kitten anyway to remain with its mother as long as it can. That way, the kitten can be given Advantage when you bring it home. Also, you don't have to use the whole tube. Good luck, and enjoy your cat. Bill |
#4
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"Noreen Cooper" wrote in message
... I'm not sure what I'm getting myself in for but here goes. Bear with me as I summarize a bit of background info. I didn't grow up with cats but my son has always been a huge cat lover. When he was younger, I felt the need to guarantee the temperament of our home kitties and decided upon the Scottish Fold breed. We couldn't be happier with our two cats, one straight-eared and one folded-eared. The folded-ear cat has never once bit my son, a very easy cat to maintain. I've read quite a few books on cat care over the past five years and am the primary caretaker of our two family cats. My son is now 8 and while visiting a friend, he found out a feral mom had dropped five kittens into a backyard down the street. He fell instantly in love with one of the kittens and I decided to let him have one. The kittens are relatively well-socialized by the neighbor children; the mother, aunt, and grandmother all look out for them; the 6-week-old kittens are still nursing; but the family who presently fosters the brood feeds everyone but does leave the kittens out all night. Hence the kittens are quite covered in fleas and Advantage is prohibited until at least 8 weeks. (As an aside, this family has paid to have both the feral grandmother and aunt spayed at their own cost but have yet been unable to catch the mother). I have heard that it is better to adopt feral kittens earlier since the longer they stay with their mother, the more they will shun humans. I've noticed a huge difference in just one week where at 5 weeks the kittens were blissfully playing and ignoring any humans standing around to 6-weeks where they are running away. I invite any comments from the group but we were thinking of taking the kitten one week from now, at 7-weeks-old to begin socializing it into our family. What the foster family plans to do is try and place the remaining four kittens in pairs as litter mates. Since we are over there almost every day, the odd-out kitten at least knows us. Sorry to be so long-winded. I guess I'm feeling a little insecure in my ability to care for a semi-feral cat. The basic reason for my post is to find out from the experts here all the things I should do health-wise for the kitten. I'm planning an immediate trip to the vet but the bigger concern is how to de-flea a kitten. Are there any flea dips which can be given to a 7-week-old? Or are there other methods you'd suggest? I guess I'm also wondering how the semi-feral kitty will get along eventually with two very over-domesticated cats. The straight-eared fold is indoor-outdoor and the folded-ear is indoor only. The plan right now is to take the semi-feral kitten inside for a month or so and then allow her access outdoors but bring her in at night. Noreen Since the kittens are used to people, I'd leave the kitten with its mother until it is a full 8 weeks old. It's better for the kitten anyway to remain with its mother as long as it can. That way, the kitten can be given Advantage when you bring it home. Also, you don't have to use the whole tube. Good luck, and enjoy your cat. Bill |
#5
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Noreen Cooper wrote in message ...
I'm not sure what I'm getting myself in for but here goes. Bear with me as I summarize a bit of background info. The kitten can be treated with Advantage, even though it is younger than the minimum age for on-label use. I would use a half-dose of the smallest size available (the kit is 7 weeks old, right?). We have used Advantage on kittens as young as 4 days (one drop), without ill effects. It is an off-label usage for Advantage, but in my working experience, it is safe to use in this manner. When faced with severe anemia and/or death, we took the chance, and it worked. Been using it like this ever since. Good luck, -L. (Posting from Toronto - I think I'm in love..) |
#6
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Noreen Cooper wrote in message ...
I'm not sure what I'm getting myself in for but here goes. Bear with me as I summarize a bit of background info. The kitten can be treated with Advantage, even though it is younger than the minimum age for on-label use. I would use a half-dose of the smallest size available (the kit is 7 weeks old, right?). We have used Advantage on kittens as young as 4 days (one drop), without ill effects. It is an off-label usage for Advantage, but in my working experience, it is safe to use in this manner. When faced with severe anemia and/or death, we took the chance, and it worked. Been using it like this ever since. Good luck, -L. (Posting from Toronto - I think I'm in love..) |
#7
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Noreen Cooper wrote in message ...
I'm not sure what I'm getting myself in for but here goes. Bear with me as I summarize a bit of background info. Sorry to follow-up my own post, but whatever you do, DO NOT flea-dip this kitten (or any cat, for that matter) with organophosphate-based chemicals. There is simply no reason to used the old-fashioned, outdated chemicals any more - Advantage works very well and is essentially non-toxic. If the kitten needs a bath, it can be washed with DOVE liquid soap - very diluted. Dry very well before using the Advantage. -L. |
#8
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Noreen Cooper wrote in message ...
I'm not sure what I'm getting myself in for but here goes. Bear with me as I summarize a bit of background info. Sorry to follow-up my own post, but whatever you do, DO NOT flea-dip this kitten (or any cat, for that matter) with organophosphate-based chemicals. There is simply no reason to used the old-fashioned, outdated chemicals any more - Advantage works very well and is essentially non-toxic. If the kitten needs a bath, it can be washed with DOVE liquid soap - very diluted. Dry very well before using the Advantage. -L. |
#9
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Sandra Loosemore wrote:
: One thing you can definitely do, though, even before you take the : kitten to the vet, is give it a good grooming with a flea comb. Have : a dish of soapy water handy to drown the fleas in, otherwise they will : just hop right back onto the kitten (or onto you). Thanks, Sandra. This may be a dumb question but by simply dipping the comb in the water, does that guarantee the fleas drown? Or do you need to keep the comb submerged for a period of time? I appreciate the detailed advice. Noreen |
#10
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Sandra Loosemore wrote:
: One thing you can definitely do, though, even before you take the : kitten to the vet, is give it a good grooming with a flea comb. Have : a dish of soapy water handy to drown the fleas in, otherwise they will : just hop right back onto the kitten (or onto you). Thanks, Sandra. This may be a dumb question but by simply dipping the comb in the water, does that guarantee the fleas drown? Or do you need to keep the comb submerged for a period of time? I appreciate the detailed advice. Noreen |
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