Is this a flea?! *update: still itchy*

[Sowa]

*update*
So Clover is still really itchy. She is always biting at the side of her belly by the top of her leg or scratching. She seems very uncomfortable. I've been checking for flea's, haven't seen any since she was treated. I feel by now the bites should be going away. I don't feel Zeke is near as itchy. I've been giving them both allergy meds for about 3-4 days now. I hate seeing her uncomfortable. Could it be something else? Should I do something else? I don't want to give her a bath since she was treated with Advantage recently. Is it normal to still be sooo itchy? She was never itchy like this before I found the flea.
*/end update*

So the dogs have been pretty itchy lately. Zeke is always itchy. He has a skin thing. So I didn't think much of it. But Clover has also been itchy the last few days. I didn't think much of it. I thought maybe dry skin or something. Her leg would go crazy whenever I scratched her so I thought maybe I'll look for fleas or bites.

I found this crawling on her! :eek:
http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x258/darktora07/IMG_3196n_zpsecb526c5.jpg

Pleassse tell me this isn't a flea D: I've never had fleas on my dogs before so this is pretty gross!

Urg. So what do I do to get rid of them? How do they get them in winter? Wouldn't being outside be too cold? Will they live in my sheets? Clover's been sleeping on my bed...I'm thinking of them crawling on my when I sleep. Will just a plain wash get rid of them? (they don't live on ppl do they?)

How long will it take for them to die? I found some Advantage in my cupboard. I have no idea how old it is. It doesn't seem to have an expiration date. Could be a year old? Could be more or less? Can I still use it? I'll get more stuff tomorrow. Should I bath/flea collar them or will the advantage be enough?

Sorry for the all the questions. I feel so bad for the dogs not looking into this sooner! They have never been a problem. Can they jump from person to person? My nieces cats apparently have them pretty bad. I never saw her or the cat recently but I did see my sister over the holidays (who had been to see the cats)

I feel bugs crawling all over me now!

[Sowa]

So I just read advantage doesn't expire if it's in the tube, with the seal unbroken. It's still in the originally packaging in the box so I'm going to go put it on all of them right now. Lucky I have just the right amount. 2 large ones and a small one for the cat

[Karen]

Yup, looks like a flea ... I would definitely wash blankets and sheets, and anywhere she has been lying ... and sprinkle any carpets with flea powder and vacuum ... they can get in the carpets and it becomes a nightmare! And yes, they will bite people - my sister once had a house that had fleas in the carpet when she moved in, and as she is allergic to flea bites, before they realized it, her skin looked like someone attacked her with a big pink marker making polka dots!

[chocolatepuppy]

THAT IS A FLEA, FOR SURE!!! I am just getting rid of a flea infestation. Three months of fighting them!:rolleyes: I hadn't seen a flea in nearly 20 years and BAM, fleas! I am told the same by many, hadn't had fleas in years and now they have them. We had no winter last year, that's why I suppose they were so bad this year. My dogs were on Frontline for the summer but I have never used flea meds on my cats because they don't go outside. It always worked, until now.:rolleyes:
Treat the dogs and cat and wash all their bedding, vacuum frequently and throw out the bag. Good luck.

[sasvermont]

I usually buy the largest size Frontline Plus and give it out according to size of animal. I buy it on Ebay and it is much cheaper. They give you a siringe with a plunger, a little bottle and the encased Frontline Plus as you would buy at the store. I empty the encased stuff, one by one, as needed, into the little bottle. I keep it all in the fridge. Works for me. BUT I do it all year long! No breaks. NO FLEAS either.:eek:

P.S. I do the same for the cats, with cat worthy Frontline Plus.

[Sowa]

She was on the couch for a few minutes the other day. How would I clean that? Just vacuum? What about my truck? I guess it's too cold for them to live out there anyway.

How long will it take them to die after I've put the treatment on them?

[Freedom]

Yep that be a flea. Ugh.

You asked how long it will take. That depends on what you used. Here, refer to this chart: http://www.drsfostersmith.com/pic/article.cfm?aid=325

As you will see, some products kill adult fleas, some also kill the larvae. Some stop reproduction others do not.

BTW, keep an eye out for a few hours in case any of the pets has a reaction to the product. Oh, and be sure what you apply on a cat is FOR a cat; many of the dog formulas are toxic to cats, and vice versa.

Here is another chart: http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&A=545

[Kfamr]

Fleas are terrible and a constant battle in Florida. I have tried many topical products but none of them have worked. I have been trying a combination of things. My current ammo is bathing the dogs weekly, Comfortis (http://www.comfortis.com), and spraying the yard/house with Ortho home defense. So far I have been winning.

[Sowa]

The vet told me to continue treating with advantage for 3 months and that should solve the problem. I'm going to wash everything and vacuum. Is there anyway to tell if the tube is for cats or dogs? I just bought some specific cat stuff and put on him. But I have another small bottle that wasn't in a box so I'm not sure if it's cat or dog. The tube looks similar to the one I just bought. Maybe has a different color but they both say Advantage 18. Neither of them say it's for cats. Just the box it comes in.

[Freedom]

Never used that brand; is there a toll free phone to call and ask? Maybe on the box of the other tube, or online? Or maybe your vet office staff will know?

[Sowa]

Also do I NEED to use a powder on my carpets to kill the fleas? I live in a pretty big house, with a lot of carpet. The vacuuming alone takes a while. Also I don;t have flea powder, and my vet didn't recommend anything to me.

[Sowa]

Wow I am so mad at my sister and niece. My nieces cats have had fleas for months now. She doesn't care. She told me my dogs couldn't have gotten fleas from her cats because cat fleas and dog fleas aren't the same and they won't travel between the 2 :rolleyes: Anyway, I told my sister to treat her cats to be safe. She basically said she didn't care and what's the big deal about fleas? I feel so bad for my nieces cats. Can you imagine being itchy ALL the time? Zeke has been rubbing himself against the trees to relieve himself and Clover's paw goes crazy when I scratch her. Obviously they're very uncomfortable. I can't imagine owning a pet, loving it. And then not caring when it's sick or uncomfortable. They said it's too expensive to treat so they're just not going to. they feed it crappy food and won't neuter them or take it to the vet. WHY do people like this feel the need to own an animal?!

[Jessika]

It can take a few months to fully "de-flea" the home. Reason being is there are a couple different life-stages that fleas go through, the most annoying and resistant is the pupae stage. They can live in this stage for MONTHS in your home in the furniture, carpet, etc, and will hatch when conditions are right. I strongly recommend leaving your pets on a flea preventative for at LEAST three months straight as well as vigorous vacuuming and washing of everything that can be washed. Daily vacuuming is key with emptying the waste into a dumpster OUTSIDE of the house.

At my clinic we have been seeing a TON of pets who have been on Frontline religiously come in infested with fleas. I see you're using Advantage so that, to my knowledge, is still working fine.

Good luck! :(

Also, there is no difference between cat and dog fleas. Ctenocephalides felis is the scientific name for the common flea, but just because it's falled "felis" does NOT mean they are exclusive to felines. They affect both cats AND dogs.

Another edit to add... DO NOT USE PRODUCT FOR DOGS ON YOUR CATS unless it is specifically marked to do so. If you're unsure if its marketed for cats or dogs, DO NOT USE IT. Some products have feline and canine specific lines and if you use the wrong product on the wrong pet, you can have serious side effects or even death. Your best bet is to purchase new product that you know which species it is for!!!!

[chocolatepuppy]

Is there anyway to tell if the tube is for cats or dogs? I just bought some specific cat stuff and put on him. But I have another small bottle that wasn't in a box so I'm not sure if it's cat or dog. The tube looks similar to the one I just bought. Maybe has a different color but they both say Advantage 18. Neither of them say it's for cats. Just the box it comes in.

I have a few tubes of Advantage for cats that someone gave me. It's for small cats and I can only use it on Tessa. It says Advantage small cat on the tube and on the foil on back it says [For Use ONLY on Cats weighing 5 to 9 lbs.]

This flea infestation has set me back well into the hundreds of dollars! :( I thought it was great when I didn't have to pay a natural gas bill this past summer due to the mild winter last year. The money I'm now spending on Frontline and a lot of washing and vacuum bags far exceeds what I saved on my gas bill!:rolleyes: Thank goodness we have cold and snow now!;)

[krazyaboutkatz]

I'm sorry to hear that this has happened. All of my cats are indoor only so I used to think that I wouldn't ever need to use flea treatments on them. Well I was very wrong. California has very mild winters so fleas can live all year long. I also live in a condo complex so if my neighbors pet has fleas, then they can just jump onto the hallway carpet and get into my condo. I now use advantage year round on all of my cats. I've been buying the largest dog size and then I measure it out according to how much my cats weigh. One of my former vets recommended this to me to help save me money. I buy it online from entirelypets.com. They have many sales on it throughout the year. Ever since I've been using it, I've never had any more fleas. I hope that you'll be able to get rid of them quickly. Good luck.:)

I also wanted to mention to you that many fleas carry tapeworm so you also need to be on the lookout for this. If you ever see something on your pet or in their bedding that looks like rice, then it's probably tapeworm. Your pet would then need be treated for it. My cat Sky got them before I adopted him because he had been treated for fleas but not tapeworm. I later had to treat him with drontal pills and then retreat him a few weeks later. Hopefully the fleas you have don't carry tapeworm.

[Sowa]

I haven't found anymore fleas on Clover so I think most/all the adults are gone. She is still really itchy though. Will this last much longer for her? Also does it take a month for the pupae or whatever to hatch? If they hatched before the month is over then I'm assuming the advantage won't still be working so why is it a monthly thing?

[Jessika]

There can still be fleas that you just don't see, but yes the flea allergy from bites can last a few days... if the itching is still really bad (ie scratching/chewing themselves raw) then maybe consider a vet visit for an injection to help with immediate relief. Remember: all current fleas on your pet may be gone, but they may be being exposed to, reinfested and/or bit by new fleas from the environment trying to hitch a ride so even if they aren't physically on your pet anymore, they may be hopping on, biting, and dying... which causes itching to start all over again.

The pupae can lie dormant for MONTHS before hatching. It's a survivability tactic if conditions aren't favorable for hatching. That's why its important to keep your pets on a preventative for a few months consecutively as well as adamantly cleaning your household for a few months. The advantage works throughout the month; it isn't like a dewormer that gets rid of all current pests and then you get reinfested as the month goes on. If a new flea jumps on them at the end of the month, the product should still work to kill them. Granted, the percentage of effectiveness starts to decline the closer you get to the end of the month and I dont know what it is specifically with Advantage but it should still, theoretically, work.

[Karen]

Is there any way you could give your niece flea collars for her cats or something so her kittens don't continually reinfect your dogs? If they don;t treat their cats fleas, the cats will be uncomfortable, and their own home can become infested, of course. I'd avoid visiting there if I knew the cats had untreated fleas. I agree, it is just irresponsible of them.

[Sowa]

I wouldn't even be surprised if I got them a flea collar that they wouldn't use it. They don't seem to think it's a problem she (my niece) was laughing at my mom when she was telling them to treat their cats. I don't have any extra cash right now anyway. I just started a new job, maybe after I a few checks I can try that.

Zeke has an appt tom at the vet. (because he seemed extra itchy but I guess I know why now lol) Still taking him though because he has raw patches and seems really uncomfortable :( I hope they can give him something other then the steroid type stuff that just makes him pee all over the place. It never seems to work well for itching...

[Sowa]

bump

[Karen]

One one's histamine level is up, one can stay itchy for days after the initial whatever it was that caused it is over, as the immune system is in hyperdrive.

I say that as an allergic human. I have been told most people's mosquito bites don't
a) swell up to 1/4" or more across and turn hot pink or
b) still itch a couple days later, but that's my body for ya!

Hopefully it will subside.


Do you want me to ask the vets about this on Friday's radio show?

[cloverfdx]

Have you treated the house, yard, their bedding etc?

Some dogs just have flea allergies. Harri does, we keep on top of treating everyone though and making sure bedding and stuff is always clean. If he gets realy bad then it is off to the vets.

[Sowa]

I washed all the bedding, vacuumed the floors etc.

Karen, if you don't mind I'd appreciate hearing what they have to say!

[Jessika]

As previously mentioned, one bite can cause it to flare up. All it takes is one bite. So if there are still fleas in the environment, and/or there is still exposure to fleas (from the cats?), there is a good chance that, eventhough you're using preventative and there are no live fleas on your pets, that a flea from the environment is jumping on the dog, biting, then dying/jumping off because of the preventative.

It will take a few months to completely clear the environment from a flea infestation due to the life cycle of the flea, and the fact that the pupae can lie dormant for months. That's why vigorous vacuuming and bathing of bedding is instrumental for getting rid of infestations. In the meantime, more eggs are hatching, and they're looking for a host until they jump on your dog, bite it, causing allergies, and hopefully dying before laying eggs.

You mentioned wanting to go to your vet, but did you take them? Just curious to know what their treatment was. In our pets we will usually give a steroid injection for immediate relief... but you mentioned you didn't like the side-effects. Maybe they can give a different steroid, or a lower dose? Assuming you haven't been to the vet or they haven't already treated them.

Honestly, if they're still THIS itchy after being to the vet, I would call the vet back and say they're still miserable even after treatment, what else can you do to help relieve their symptoms?

[Sowa]

As previously mentioned, one bite can cause it to flare up. All it takes is one bite. So if there are still fleas in the environment, and/or there is still exposure to fleas (from the cats?), there is a good chance that, eventhough you're using preventative and there are no live fleas on your pets, that a flea from the environment is jumping on the dog, biting, then dying/jumping off because of the preventative.

It will take a few months to completely clear the environment from a flea infestation due to the life cycle of the flea, and the fact that the pupae can lie dormant for months. That's why vigorous vacuuming and bathing of bedding is instrumental for getting rid of infestations. In the meantime, more eggs are hatching, and they're looking for a host until they jump on your dog, bite it, causing allergies, and hopefully dying before laying eggs.

You mentioned wanting to go to your vet, but did you take them? Just curious to know what their treatment was. In our pets we will usually give a steroid injection for immediate relief... but you mentioned you didn't like the side-effects. Maybe they can give a different steroid, or a lower dose? Assuming you haven't been to the vet or they haven't already treated them.

Honestly, if they're still THIS itchy after being to the vet, I would call the vet back and say they're still miserable even after treatment, what else can you do to help relieve their symptoms?

I did take my other dog to the vet. She gave him some type of wipes. I've never heard of them before. I think she said it's something new they're tying. He has a lot of sore spots that are raw now and the skin is really irritated. I'm not really sure yet if it's helping him. As for Clover she said to try the reactine, but so far it hasn't been helping.

[Karen]

Audrey, I will email you the audio files for the show when I get them, the two vets went into far too much for me to be able to take note. But as for Zeke still being itchy, he did mention some dogs are like me, and will continue to be itchy for days - some even weeks after the initial bite. Just make sure he's not chewing so much he gets an infection, if there's continued hair missing, you have to worry about that, and maybe bring out the "Collar of Shame" for a while.

[Sowa]

Thanks Karen

[Karen]

It's funny, he asked if I had ever had poison ivy, and I said, "No, but mosquito bites itch for me days after I get them," and he said it's the exact same phenomenon.

[Sowa]

The do itch for a while but I thought by now the itching should have died down a little :(

[Karen]

The do itch for a while but I thought by now the itching should have died down a little :(

Some of us have immune systems that stay on hyper-alert longer than others, which is why we itch long after everyone else has stopped. It can be maddening, but less so when we understand it. I got into the habit of NEVER scratching skin that itches, as that just seems to prolong it!