Ask any cat owners how to get rid of fleas in cats and you can expect a whole long list of advices on what to do, what flea treatment products to use and what to look out for. However, when you mention about kittens with fleas, expect to get some blank looks on the faces of whom you have approached.
Not surprising though. Why? You’re asking. This is because, kittens, especially very young ones, those that are less than 6 weeks old are extremely "fragile". Their immune system are not fully functional yet and as such, one wrong use of a harmful product on them may very well kill them on the spot.
If such, then can we just leave the fleas on them and wait till they are old enough to use commercially available flea products on them? To answer this question, let me run through some of the harm that fleas may bring to kittens, why it’s not advisable to use commercially available flea treatment products on them and what’s available that are safe for getting rid of flea in kittens
Fleas are blood-sucking pest. They feed on its host blood and if left untreated for a prolong period of time, it’s host will end up with anemia. This is especially so for kittens which are very young and the constant loss of blood to these bloodsuckers will cause anemia to develop very soon. Many deaths from anemia due to fleas infestation have been reported. Fleas also bring along parasites like tapeworm, which would result in malnutrition and weight loss in kittens. As such, it’s important that fleas be rid off from kittens soonest possible.
Commercially available flea control products are plenty. We have flea spray, spot-on topical solutions, and oral de-flea tablet or suspension. These products contain an insecticide that kills off fleas. Often, pet owners assume that products that are available in the market must be safe and hence no problem in using them on kittens with fleas.
This is far from truth. Use of insecticides on young kittens is very dangerous. These chemicals could easily intoxicate them. Their liver, kidneys when affected could be fatal and as such it’s always wise to avoid the use of insecticides on young kittens as much as possible.
This leaves kitten owners not much of a choice but we still have the flea comb. Flea combs are specially made fine-tooth combs that can be used to trap fleas when brushing through the hair coat of cats and kittens. Though not easy as fleas are scrambling around, you can also pick off fleas from the kitten and throw them into a bowl of soapy water to kill them.
Great care must be taken in choosing a product suitable for kitten with fleas. Safety of the kittens should be the main concern and should never be compromised. Learn to read labels to decide on its appropriateness for use on kittens and at all times, use of insecticides should be avoided if possible.
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