ed itself. It then lays hundreds of eggs which fall from the cat to hatch in the nearest convenient and sheltered place – your home! For every one flea that you can find on your cat at any given time there will be thousands of flea eggs in the environment developing into fleas, and thousands of immature fleas roaming your home! Simply killing the fleas on your cat thus only kills a fraction of the entire flea population. It is important to aim flea control not only at the few mature fleas currently on the cat, but to: 1. Prevent fleas jumping onto the cat, 2. To kill or remove all eggs and fleas from the environment, 3. To kill all fleas that do manage to get on the cat, and 4. To prevent those fleas that do get through the defences from laying viable eggs.
There are very effective methods of flea control, which are extremely safe for you and your cat. It is no longer necessary to use the dangerous or toxic older dip substances on your cat. Again, it may be important not to rely on a single agent or method to prevent fleas in your home and on your cat. Your vet now stocks very safe, easy-to-apply sprays or skin drops which are effective at killing all fleas on the cat and prevent fleas from getting onto the cat. These products may be effective for a month or more after a single application, even if the cat is bathed often. For effective flea control the environment (the home) should also be treated to get rid of immature fleas and to prevent eggs from hatching. Dedicated environmental sprays and foggers are available to do this job very effectively, with only one or two applications per year. Carpets should also be vacuum cleaned regularly, floors swept, and the dust disposed of into the dustbin. Finally, if a flea still managed to get onto your cat, you can prevent it from laying viable eggs by using a monthly tablet or even a six-monthly injection available from your vet. By using a combination of these methods, completely effective flea control can be exercised. Depending on whether your cat has contact with the outside or other cats or is confined to a flat, fewer or more of these control measures would need to be instituted. Your vet will be able to advise you on the best methods specific to your needs.Leave a reply →