Hi,
I haven't found an answer about fleas that pertains to my individual situation, so please bear with me through the details...
We adopted a kitten from a Kitty Foster home late this past Saturday afternoon. The kitty spent the rest of the evening inspecting our apartment, and we let her hang out on our couch (although she didn't really stay there long - maybe an hour at most), a couple choice spots on our carpet, and she was on top of our bed for all of 2 minutes. I also held her for quite a while.
about 5 hours later, we noticed some fleas on her. We immediately bathed her and picked all the fleas off her that we could. We quarentined her in the bathroom. The next day my mother in law came with a flea comb and helped us to bathe the kitty again (her cries were breaking my heart and I couldn't do it as well as we should have). We quarentined her in the bathroom again the second night.
Because of some peeing behavioral issues, we and the kitty foster mom decided that the cat should go back to the foster home after only 40 hours of living with us. All in all we picked about 25 fleas off of her body and there were only a couple left on her as far as we could tell when she left.
I have sinced vaccuumed our carpets 3 times, vacuumed the furniture twice, washed any linens that kitty sat on and have sprayed an insecticide on the carpet and linens she layed on.
My question is:
Given the background information I gave, with the cat only being there 40 hours, being quarentined most of that time and me cleaning as much as I did, what is the chance I might still get a flea infestation?
I have had cats my whole life and never had to deal with fleas before! We plan to adopt an older, flea-free cat this weekend and I am very afraid there are still some fleas that will hatch and infest our new cat!
Thanks
Fleas in 40 hours?
Re: Fleas in 40 hours?
What is the "insecticide" you used on the carpet? One should never use direct "insecticides" on the premises when you have pets in the home. Most insecticides are toxic to cats, even residual traces.
I would not advise getting any new cat into the home without knowing what you used on the carpet and the amount used, the ingredients in the product, and whether it was safe or not, and whether it was allowed to air dry or not.
I'm curious, what were the urination behavioral issues, and what was done to address the issue?
Are you prepared for another cat who also might have issues? Please understand that any foster care environment, or shelter environment or other environmental change is extremely stressful for any cat, and it takes time, patience and committment to work through various stress factors for the cat.
As to the question, it would depend on if the fleas had a chance to lay eggs, if the cat had been treated properly, and whether or not the "insecticide" used in the home was appropriate to kill eggs and flea larvae.
I would not advise getting any new cat into the home without knowing what you used on the carpet and the amount used, the ingredients in the product, and whether it was safe or not, and whether it was allowed to air dry or not.
I'm curious, what were the urination behavioral issues, and what was done to address the issue?
Are you prepared for another cat who also might have issues? Please understand that any foster care environment, or shelter environment or other environmental change is extremely stressful for any cat, and it takes time, patience and committment to work through various stress factors for the cat.
As to the question, it would depend on if the fleas had a chance to lay eggs, if the cat had been treated properly, and whether or not the "insecticide" used in the home was appropriate to kill eggs and flea larvae.
..........Traci
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Ashleyn716
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Wed Sep 12, 2007 4:38 pm
Re: Fleas in 40 hours?
The peeing behavioral issue was that although she had been using her litterbox, she was also peeing on my husband's side of the bed. This is something we would have worked through, except that my husband ended up having a bad allergy to this long-haired cat.
The fleas and the peeing was a bit of a pain all within the first couple days, but with the allergies on Monday morning, husband had been pushed to the edge and convinced me that she should go back to her foster home. I had gotten pretty attached to that cat pretty quickly, and have been having a hard time losing her - but it's not fair to make my husband suffer either. Thankfully she is from a loving foster home that saves kittens from being euthanized. I could tell she came from a good environment because she was very social and affectionate.
Since my husband has lived with short-haired cats without a problem, that's what we are looking into next.
The insecticide that was used on carpet (after the kitten had left on Monday) was a Zodiac product specifically for carpet and upholstery that kills fleas, eggs and larvae. We had fans blowing in the rooms that it was sprayed, and it wasn't sprayed in any areas that couldn't dry well, such as in between furniture cushions or under the bed.
Having never dealt with fleas before, I trusted what I bought at Petsmart and was quite shocked to find out the horrible effect products like Hartz and Zodiac can do to a pet, whom the products are intended for! Unfortunately I didn't know this until after I had sprayed about 9 square feet of carpet, or what I considered to be the possible "flea hotspots". I did not spray it everywhere.
I sprayed the Zodiac product Monday night and with more vaccuuming, we were planning on meeting a new cat on Sunday afternoon. Do you still think we should wait longer before adopting? I have yet to see any adult fleas around the house, nor have I seen the "salt and pepper-ness" of flea eggs and waste. Unfortunately I also have heard they can be very sneaky fellows who hide very well in carpet
Oh - and we also did put a flea collar in the vacuum bag and tossed the vacuum bag after use.
Thanks so much for taking the time to read this!
The fleas and the peeing was a bit of a pain all within the first couple days, but with the allergies on Monday morning, husband had been pushed to the edge and convinced me that she should go back to her foster home. I had gotten pretty attached to that cat pretty quickly, and have been having a hard time losing her - but it's not fair to make my husband suffer either. Thankfully she is from a loving foster home that saves kittens from being euthanized. I could tell she came from a good environment because she was very social and affectionate.
Since my husband has lived with short-haired cats without a problem, that's what we are looking into next.
The insecticide that was used on carpet (after the kitten had left on Monday) was a Zodiac product specifically for carpet and upholstery that kills fleas, eggs and larvae. We had fans blowing in the rooms that it was sprayed, and it wasn't sprayed in any areas that couldn't dry well, such as in between furniture cushions or under the bed.
Having never dealt with fleas before, I trusted what I bought at Petsmart and was quite shocked to find out the horrible effect products like Hartz and Zodiac can do to a pet, whom the products are intended for! Unfortunately I didn't know this until after I had sprayed about 9 square feet of carpet, or what I considered to be the possible "flea hotspots". I did not spray it everywhere.
I sprayed the Zodiac product Monday night and with more vaccuuming, we were planning on meeting a new cat on Sunday afternoon. Do you still think we should wait longer before adopting? I have yet to see any adult fleas around the house, nor have I seen the "salt and pepper-ness" of flea eggs and waste. Unfortunately I also have heard they can be very sneaky fellows who hide very well in carpet
Oh - and we also did put a flea collar in the vacuum bag and tossed the vacuum bag after use.
Thanks so much for taking the time to read this!
Re: Fleas in 40 hours?
I would steer clear of any insecticide products inside the home, ever. Flea bombs are an option, but when used, all family members and pets should be out of the home when used, and not to return for 24 hours or so.
I'd vacuum three times a day, but the problem may still be the carpet since you sprayed with a Zodiac product (and the furniture as well, a new cat would undoubtedly be on the furniture). Call your vet, tell him the product and it's ingredient and ask for advice on how to rid the environment of it's residue. You do NOT want to use a harsh chemical cleaner to get rid of residue since you'd only be compounding the problem. Ask the vet for help and tips.
Depending on how much you sprayed and how much residue is left, will depend on when you should bring in a new cat into the home. Please call the vet about this.
The problem with purported allergies: many people think they are allergic to cats, when in fact they are not, but rather allergic to other things in the environment. It is also not fur the person is allergic to, but dander, which is dried saliva on the cat's skin, accumulated through grooming. Using a hepa-filter in the furnace, vacuum cleaner, etc can help greatly as well as an air purifier as long as it's a reputable brand and tested for safety.
Another problem. At least in children, when the child is exposed to an animal early on, that child has less of a chance of being allergic to the pet, because the immune system has responded and eventually becomes immune or, the symptoms are so much less severe. This is why pets are needlessly relinquished, because the person's physician never bothers to rule out other allergens and doesn't work with pet owners to keep the environment liveable, thus, the ability to keep the pet. There are also numerous medications one can use to lessen the severity of allergies. My concern is your husband thinks he was allergic to the long-haired cat, when in fact he could be allergic to something else entirely. And, if he truly is allergic to cats, a short-haired cat isn't going to be non-allergic! Even if he was allergic to the previous kitty, grooming, bathing even (although not recommended), etc could have been initiated.
If you adopt another cat from the same foster home, chances are, you will have fleas to contend with again. Providing of course this is where the first cat got the fleas from. Talk to the foster home and find out what they are doing to keep fleas out of the home, are the cats treated approopriately (by a vet with safe products), etc.
I'd vacuum three times a day, but the problem may still be the carpet since you sprayed with a Zodiac product (and the furniture as well, a new cat would undoubtedly be on the furniture). Call your vet, tell him the product and it's ingredient and ask for advice on how to rid the environment of it's residue. You do NOT want to use a harsh chemical cleaner to get rid of residue since you'd only be compounding the problem. Ask the vet for help and tips.
Depending on how much you sprayed and how much residue is left, will depend on when you should bring in a new cat into the home. Please call the vet about this.
The problem with purported allergies: many people think they are allergic to cats, when in fact they are not, but rather allergic to other things in the environment. It is also not fur the person is allergic to, but dander, which is dried saliva on the cat's skin, accumulated through grooming. Using a hepa-filter in the furnace, vacuum cleaner, etc can help greatly as well as an air purifier as long as it's a reputable brand and tested for safety.
Another problem. At least in children, when the child is exposed to an animal early on, that child has less of a chance of being allergic to the pet, because the immune system has responded and eventually becomes immune or, the symptoms are so much less severe. This is why pets are needlessly relinquished, because the person's physician never bothers to rule out other allergens and doesn't work with pet owners to keep the environment liveable, thus, the ability to keep the pet. There are also numerous medications one can use to lessen the severity of allergies. My concern is your husband thinks he was allergic to the long-haired cat, when in fact he could be allergic to something else entirely. And, if he truly is allergic to cats, a short-haired cat isn't going to be non-allergic! Even if he was allergic to the previous kitty, grooming, bathing even (although not recommended), etc could have been initiated.
If you adopt another cat from the same foster home, chances are, you will have fleas to contend with again. Providing of course this is where the first cat got the fleas from. Talk to the foster home and find out what they are doing to keep fleas out of the home, are the cats treated approopriately (by a vet with safe products), etc.
..........Traci