effects of flea spray.....?

[yorkster]

does anyone know about the negative effects of flea spray on cats? What are the reactions?
my husband bought some, and I won't let him use it (actually, he did use it once) :eek:
my cats don't go outside, and I have never had a problem, but he insists that they have fleas. I would try the once-a-month drops, but don't know if they are any better.

[smokey the elder]

The over-the-counter flea sprays are not safe, I don't think. Advantage, Revolution and Frontline are all Rx and are applied once a month. At various times I've used all of these, and they are safe if used correctly. Ask your vet to be sure.

Good luck!

[Laura's Babies]

Nothing works as good as the Frontline and Advantage. NEVER use Hartz stuff on cats... That is some dangerous stuff and can kill your babies..

[lizbud]

Originally posted by smokey the elder
The over-the-counter flea sprays are not safe, I don't think. Advantage, Revolution and Frontline are all Rx and are applied once a month. At various times I've used all of these, and they are safe if used correctly. Ask your vet to be sure.

Good luck!


I don't think I would be comfortable using a flea SPRAY on
cats or dogs, It can't be good for them to breathe it or even
lick their fur afterwards. With the Advantage or Frontline the
stuff is put on the spots that make it harder to lick off. Just my
opinion. Good luck with this.:)

[catnapper]

I don't know why they still sell that stuff. There is a website somewhere that is trying to force the company to stop marketing and selling those flea sprays and over the counter drops (anyone know where it is?)

You can get Frontline, Advantage or Revolution from your vets. Once a month and the stuff is GREAT. Not one flea this year during the worst flea season we've had in years.

[yorkster]

Originally posted by catnapper
I don't know why they still sell that stuff.


when I told him that the sprays were bad for the cats, he said "they must be okay because they still sell them, don't you think?"
that's a good question- why DO they still sell them? :confused:
the label(s) also say things like 'non-toxic' and 'safe to use'

[yorkster]

are all the once-a month drops by prescription only? I could swear I've seen them on the shelves at our local Petsmart. :confused:

[QueenScoopalot]

If you go into any search engine and type the word "Hartz" you'll have more info than you can stand! It has caused deaths in many cats, topicals (drops like Advantage) and the spray forms as well. I'd stick with the safe stuff like Advantage and Revolution which many places now carry without a prescription. If you type those words into the search engine, you may find some good online sources, but beware of the fake stuff that's being sold as Advantage etc. :eek: ;) Better to just get it at your vets office. ;)

[yorkster]

Originally posted by QueenScoopalot
If you go into any search engine and type the word "Hartz" you'll have more info than you can stand!

I did just that, and it's even worse than I thought :mad: :(
I can NOT believe that they can even still sell the stuff..............it's PESTISIDES that's the main ingedient.
I googled 'hartz flea spray effects' and you would not believe how much came up- this is just one of many:


Please people if you value your pets like my daughter did, then you won't use any Hartz Products on your pets! After 1 day of using the Hartz Spray on our Himalyan cat, we noticed a difference that night. Our cat became confused, and her legs wouldn't hold her up. Her eyes darted back and forth, and had a little Saliva coming from mouth. Saturday evening on the 11th of Sept, she got worse. Called Vet, and she said the cat had all the symptoms of Hartz Flea Spray poisioning. Well, I don't think I have to say what I found when I woke up Sunday Morning. Our cat had died. We had her for 9 yrs and she was my daughters life. Oh, the vets that the Hartz company goes through said Oh, she was probably old. Well, I don't think 9 yrs is too old for a cat. They even tried to say that the sprays have alcohol in them, and it was probably that, which killed my cat not the pesticide. So, If you own a animal and love them as much as my daughter did, then go to your vet, and either get Advantage or Frontline. I have used them in the past, and it works.

[QueenScoopalot]

Scary isn't it? Spread the word, and hopefully others will listen, and eventually Hartz products will be taken off the market! ;)

[MySweetBoy]

I agree with everyone about not using flea sprays. Bad stuff!! I have been using Frontline Top Spot for years with no ill effect on my babies. Also, it not only takes care of fleas and ticks, but kills ear mites as well. I took in an abandoned cat about 6 weeks ago. She had ear mites terrible. It was hard to get near her ears because she was so miserable. I did some web investigating on the subject and came across a couple that recommended Frontline Top Spot (Not Plus). I'm happy to report that it does work.

Linda

[smokey the elder]

Hartz products contain pyrethrin, which is used in bug killer. It is known to be toxic to pets. On a can of Raid, for example, it says keep away from pets, and do not let pets go near where you spray for awhile.

[Laura's Babies]

Depending on how many cats you have, someone posted instructions on how to use the large dog advantage on your cats to cut down on costs. That is what I am now doing and the vet was more than happy to help me with the instructions on the proper does for the size of cats.

Here is the part I saved on how to do it..

An X-large dog 6-pack of the blue (4ml) size from PetShed is $36 yielding 24ml at a net cost of $1.50 per ml

A dose for a cat under 9 pounds is .4ml and cats 9 pounds and over is .8ml

Does anyone have a dosage chart that breaks it down for smaller kittens? The free dose they will give to my two is the orange .4ml and they weigh 1.3 and 1.5 pounds so I guess it must be quite safe - is this safe to assume??

1ml=20 drops
.8ml=16 drops
.4ml=8 drops

Hope my math is all correct! I got the conversion from my memory from nursing school but double checked on a metric website

I am also NOT RECOMMENDING this - it is up to you but wanted to pass on what I found out. Measuring is tedious and the premeasured tubes are much easier to use. Also, the bulk would likely expire unless you use it often and regularly - but a good saving for rescue folks and the like.
I think that vet tech better get her information straight.

When I was at the vets with Poppy on wednesday, there was a guy there that needed Advantage for his cats. He has 4 of them.
The vet tech gave him the advantage for dogs and 1 tube is good to treat 4 cats. So he saved by doing it this way as where I am, 1 tube of Advantage for a cat is $13.45 and 1 tube for a dog is $15.00. So instead of him paying $53.80 for 4 tubes for cats, he paid $15.00 for 1 tube for dogs and as you said Debbie, it is the exact same thing.
I had to give our vet tech the lesson as well. She also was horrified when I said I wanted the four pack of over 50lbs for dogs. She knew we had cats! I told her it was the same thing and then she gave me the lecture on how cats and dogs have a very different central nervous system and blah blah blah. Then she read the ingredients on the package and was shocked. They are identical and it is only the dosage that is different. Just for fun she calculated the cost and if I had bought individual dosages it was going to cost me $97.00 but doing the breakdown myself it cost me only $30.00. She gave me two syringes and off we went. I will take that $60.00 savings anyday! A four pack for large dogs gives everyone in my house a dose of Avantage with a few drops to spare!
I'm lucky because my vet sells the tubes for $7.50 so it's cheaper for me to get it from them than to order it.
I have done this for the last few years and thankfully it makes it affordable for me to keep them flea free.

[thawks120]

DO NOT use flea sprays found in grocery stores, they are DANGEROUS at best. only use one of the drops from your vet. My personal favorite is Advantage. Now about you Husband, maybe HE is the one with fleas :D if you are in a flea rich area he could be bringing them in on his socks, or pant legs. Use the flea spray that he bought on HIM .. hehehehe:)

[countrygirl09]

for my cats i use advantage but either that or frontline (exept the spray) is very safe on cats.. if you don't use one of these be sure not to use bio-spot from feed stores. my friend did and her cat got really sick from it..

[yorkster]

Originally posted by thawks120
DO NOT use flea sprays found in grocery stores, they are DANGEROUS at best. only use one of the drops from your vet. My personal favorite is Advantage. Now about you Husband, maybe HE is the one with fleas :D if you are in a flea rich area he could be bringing them in on his socks, or pant legs. Use the flea spray that he bought on HIM .. hehehehe:)

I thought about it :D
yeah, fleas here are really bad this year- one of the worst years ever according to my vet.
I got some Frontline from the vet and used it a few days ago. they seem to be scratching a lot less already.

also- someone told me that it also helps get rid of ear mites :confused: