Flea Treatments On Cats
We all want out cats to have that “just walked out of a pet portrait” look, with shiny coat and bight eyes. But it is an unavoidable truth that our little heroes will, on occasion, pick up fleas. Spring is a time of year when they become susceptible to infestations, but with the milder winters we’re having, cats can be affected all year round with this problem. In some cats it can also become quite serious, causing an allergic reaction or transmitting disease.
It has been estimated that the average household contains in the region of 20,000 flea eggs at any one time, which will develop into adult fleas in a matter of weeks! Fleas increase numbers so readily, that just 200 fleas will become ten thousand in a matter of six months.
To avoid the problem becoming an epidemic, you’ll need to treat your cat and your home. So what treatments are available to you?
Types of treatment
There are several remedies to go for; spot-on medicines, collars, ‘electric shock’ combs, sprays and tablets. What you decide to use will be governed by what’s easiest for you and your cat:
One of the easiest methods to use are flea collars. They’ll be able to protect your cat for up to four weeks. Even so, some owners are uncomfortable having collars on cats.
Medicines that require the owner to put drops of the medication onto the back of the neck provide a very effective treatment plus on-going protection from fleas for up to 5 weeks, although this can be tricky on some cats. You will need to make sure you get the correct type, as some are designed for dogs and others for cats.
Special combs that send out an electric shock can be used to kill fleas. However, you’ll need to be diligent with the comb and repeat the routine over a long period to make sure you get all the fleas. The combs can also ‘buzz’ when being used, this may put some cats off.
Sprays are inexpensive, but cats need to be over 3 months or over before it’s used on them. It can also be quite difficult to treat your cat thoroughly.
Tablets are a very quick and thorough way of ridding fleas on your cat, but not everyone is as good as the vet at administering the pills!
Rob Tyrrell is an artist and pet owner that creates fine quality pet portraits. If you would see samples of his pet portraits from photos, visit his web site www.robtyrrell-petportraits.co.uk
