Capstar

[cat lover]

I am using Nitenpyram which has the same ingredients as Capstar on my cat. It controls the fleas on my cat better than Advantage or Frontline but one thing I don't understand about it. After giving my cat the Nitenpyram he seems to be tormented by the fleas for up to an hour and then he is contented. My question does anyone know what behavior of the fleas is causing this torment? Are they biting in desperation or just running around causing this behavior?

[pomtzu]

If you are using it monthly and on a regular basis, then your cat shouldn't have any fleas to start with, if it is working properly, other than before the very first treatment. Something doesn't sound right. Are you only using it after you see fleas on the cat??? If so, then that's a problem right there.

[Jessika]

Here is a FAQ I found: http://www.medi-vet.com/Capstar.html and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nitenpyram

Nitenpyram is meant for short-term flea control for flea infestations. It's not meant to be used as a monthly preventative since its effectiveness only lasts for 24-48 hours. If you're looking for long-term flea control, you may want to look into Revolution for your kitty, which also covers heartworms and ear mites, as well as one type of tick

As far as your kitty's reaction to it, it very well may be from the fleas reacting to the Nitenpyram and moving around. If its a heavy flea load, even moreso.

[pomtzu]

Here is a FAQ I found: http://www.medi-vet.com/Capstar.html and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nitenpyram

Nitenpyram is meant for short-term flea control for flea infestations. It's not meant to be used as a monthly preventative since its effectiveness only lasts for 24-48 hours. If you're looking for long-term flea control, you may want to look into Revolution for your kitty, which also covers heartworms and ear mites, as well as one type of tick

As far as your kitty's reaction to it, it very well may be from the fleas reacting to the Nitenpyram and moving around. If its a heavy flea load, even moreso.

That's good to know. When he mentioned Advantage and Frontline, I assumed that Capstar was also a once a month treatment. But you know what they say about assume...........

[cat lover]

Here is a FAQ I found: http://www.medi-vet.com/Capstar.html and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nitenpyram

Nitenpyram is meant for short-term flea control for flea infestations. It's not meant to be used as a monthly preventative since its effectiveness only lasts for 24-48 hours. If you're looking for long-term flea control, you may want to look into Revolution for your kitty, which also covers heartworms and ear mites, as well as one type of tick

As far as your kitty's reaction to it, it very well may be from the fleas reacting to the Nitenpyram and moving around. If its a heavy flea load, even moreso.

Well I have read all that information before but nowhere do I see what the buggers are doing to torment my cat for like I said up to an hour after ingesting the product. I have found that it will do the job just as well as Advantage giving it to him once a week but it hurts me to see his frantic digging at something the fleas are doing. Don't make sense that a dying flea would bite with his last breath.

[pomtzu]

But if he's getting it once a week and still getting fleas, then it seems to me it would be to kitty's advantage to get a once a month topical treatment and never have any fleas to torment him again. To me, the Capstar is definitely NOT working as well as the other treatments if he still gets fleas. JMHO of course.

[cat lover]

Well I just ordered Advantage. I will try it again but the last time I tried it it was not effective and I applied it once a month as directed.

[krazyaboutkatz]

Well I just ordered Advantage. I will try it again but the last time I tried it it was not effective and I applied it once a month as directed.

Where do you buy it? Some places are unreliable so they'll send you counterfeit flea treatment that can either harm your pet or won't be effective for fleas. Please read this article for more information: http://cats.about.com/cs/parasiticdi...rfeit_flea.htm. I've been using advantage for many years on all of my cats every month and it works for me. Good luck.

[maid25cats]

I copied below from the petco website for Capstar

Capstar® can be taken with or without food, and is safe to use with most other medications. Capstar® is ideal for breeders, boarding kennels, groomers, clinics, shelters or multi-pet households - anywhere exposure to fleas or reinfestation is emminent. An increase in itching may occur after given, due to the effect the medication has on the flea's nervous system.

If I use Capstar®, do I still need to use a spot-on like Frontline?

Yes - Capstar® is a quick kill solution, whose effects only last 24 hours, whereas a spot-on will give lasting protection for at least a month.
If I have treated my pets with Frontline, why would I need Capstar®?

I used this on mine once and had the same reaction.

[pomtzu]

Where do you buy it? Some places are unreliable so they'll send you counterfeit flea treatment that can either harm your pet or won't be effective for fleas. Please read this article for more information: http://cats.about.com/cs/parasiticdi...rfeit_flea.htm. I've been using advantage for many years on all of my cats every month and it works for me. Good luck.

You're so right - and all are not created equal, either.

One year I ordered Bio-spot instead of Advantix for the dogs from Foster & Smith, since it claimed to work the same. NOT!!! They got infested with fleas when I used this product. Foster & Smith refunded my money for the unused portion, but I was still left with a vet bill since I had to take them in for meds since they are so allergic to fleas, and also the cost of treating the carpets and furniture. So my money saving idea backfired, and ended costing me more in the long run - plus I still had to turn around and purchase the Advantix too.

[cat lover]

Where do you buy it? Some places are unreliable so they'll send you counterfeit flea treatment that can either harm your pet or won't be effective for fleas. Please read this article for more information: http://cats.about.com/cs/parasiticdi...rfeit_flea.htm. I've been using advantage for many years on all of my cats every month and it works for me. Good luck.

No conterfiet is not the problem in my case. Read this.
After a 20 month investigation in collaboration with (and initiated by) Bayer Animal Health,the EPA has "ordered retailers and distributors in a number of states to stop selling counterfeit Advantage products which falsely contain EPA registration numbers and labeling for Advantage." (Bayer Press Release) Merial, manufacturer of Frontline, has also been victimized, and is cooperating with the EPA investigation.

None of the material published by the EPA, Merial, or Bayer has indicated that the actual product inside the counterfeit packaging is counterfeit. However, the labeling may differ enough, and packaging may omit cautionary material, so that the wrong dosage may actually be used. It would appear that these counterfeit products have been repackaged in countries outside the U.S., relabeled to appear to be the genuine article, and then illegally imported back into the U.S. for sale to unsuspecting buyers. The relabelling (and often mislabelling) appears to be the real problem

[pomtzu]

No conterfiet is not the problem in my case. Read this.
After a 20 month investigation in collaboration with (and initiated by) Bayer Animal Health,the EPA has "ordered retailers and distributors in a number of states to stop selling counterfeit Advantage products which falsely contain EPA registration numbers and labeling for Advantage." (Bayer Press Release) Merial, manufacturer of Frontline, has also been victimized, and is cooperating with the EPA investigation.

None of the material published by the EPA, Merial, or Bayer has indicated that the actual product inside the counterfeit packaging is counterfeit. However, the labeling may differ enough, and packaging may omit cautionary material, so that the wrong dosage may actually be used. It would appear that these counterfeit products have been repackaged in countries outside the U.S., relabeled to appear to be the genuine article, and then illegally imported back into the U.S. for sale to unsuspecting buyers. The relabelling (and often mislabelling) appears to be the real problem

At one time several years ago, I was buying Advantix from an on line pet pharmacy located in Australia. It worked as it should and the pups never got fleas while on it, however, one day when I was reading the packaging that came with it, it stated "formula not approved for use in the U.S" (in very small print of course), or something to that effect. Even tho it was supposedly the Advantix brand and the website advertised it as that, it was not the formula sold in the states. Evidently fleas react differently to different formulas, depending on the geographic location. After that, I didn't buy from them any longer, and purchase only from a reputable source here in the states.

[catmandu]

I have advantaged all my Cats, even the hard to catch Scrappy Two, and of course she is the Cat who is most flea allergic.

[Laura's Babies]

I am thinking that if your cat keeps getting fleas, there must be a flea infestation somewhere that they go. I had a friend whos cats kept getting fleas, even after the monthly treatments. His vet told him to check around the house (inside) since they never went outside, she told him there had to be a bed of them somewhere in his house and he needed to find that and get rid of that bed of them.. He swore he didn't have any fleas in his house but looked, it took him several weeks but he did find it. It was just a old blanket he had thrown in a corner and forgot about and he said it was plum loaded with fleas... It took him some work to get rid of the fleas but he eventually did and the problem was solved.