Continuation of free kittens in Butler

[Medusa]

Just a short note: vacuuming will NOT get rid of the fleas. Take it from someone who had her own house cleaning business. The vacuum cleaner, no matter how good or expensive it is, can spit out the eggs and shoot them elsewhere. In order for a house to be totally rid of fleas and the eggs, it has to be "bombed". Otherwise, humans will get infested, too.

[rebeccahowes]

I don't know if this will work or not, but my friends's mom told me to put moth balls inside of the vacuum and it will kill the fleas. I am going to try that until I can afford the advantage. Will see what happens. I hate getting fleas.

[Medusa]

I don't know if this will work or not, but my friends's mom told me to put moth balls inside of the vacuum and it will kill the fleas. I am going to try that until I can afford the advantage. Will see what happens. I hate getting fleas.

I've heard of that and don't know whether or not it's successful. It may kill live fleas but it doesn't prevent the vacuum cleaner from spitting out the eggs and shooting them elsewhere and it won't get the eggs that are imbedded in the cats' fur.

[Medusa]

I wanted to be sure about this so I conferred w/two friends, both of whom are exterminators; one has her own business. Both concur that bombing is the only sure way to be rid of fleas; one bomb per level should do it but, if the infestation is really bad, one bomb per room. Of course, all humans and animals must leave the premises for several hours.

[rebeccahowes]

I would love to bomb the house, but I don't think I will be able to get all seven cats out of the house because three are feral. We live by a busy road and I am scared they will get hurt if I let them all out at the same time. I am trying to save up enough money for advantage flea meds because they kill the fleas in the carpets and couches also. I used it once before last year and it was amazing. Hopefully, I can get some of the Advantage by next month. I am still working on the cat spays. The sixth cat goes today and the seventh cat goes next month. I am short money on the seventh cat so I am going to have to come up with that money and then start saving for flea control. Hopefully, everything will turn out ok. Love Rebecca

[Catty1]

I have $14 left in the bank. Even I was surprised!

Will have housecleaning money this week, so will donate a bit to you and Jen.

hugs!

[MoonandBean]

Let me know how much you are short for the 7th cat...

[rebeccahowes]

I just got the first feral cat home today from the vets. She was pregnant. Each cat has been costing an extra 20 when they are pregnant. This feral cat was easy to get in the cage and easy to get to the vets. We had a hard time catching the second feral cat today. My husband got all scratched up all over his arms. We finally got her in the cage and got her to the vets. She is probably pregnant too. She will be coming home tomorrow. That leaves one feral cat left. She will go next month after she is through weaning her kittens. The kittens have eye infections and I had to get antibiotics and eye drops for them. I have to put those in twice a day. My daughter gave me the money to get the kittens meds. I am down to 0 in my account after tomorrow. I have one feral cat to go and if she is pregnant, it will cost 65 dollars. Finally, I will have all six cats taken care of. Plus, my original cat that was already neurted makes seven. You have no idea how good it feels to almost have all my cats spayed and neurted. No more surprise kitties to find homes for. I hope the kittens eyes clear up so that they either don't go blind. That would be very sad and I probably would not be able to find them homes. I can only imagine what would have happened if all of my cats would have had kittens at the same time. That would have been three pregnant cats at once. Whoooo! Thank you guys all for your support and funding. Without you guys I don't know what I would have done. I would have become Tiger Ranch and that scares me so much. I promise everyone that I will not be taking in anymore cats. I put a big bowl of water and food out for the feral strays and homeless cats everyday. Finally, any advice on fleas would be appreciated. I cannot afford the advantage. It would cost 67 dollars a month to treat them through the summer. That definitely is not in my budget. I will keep you updated on the cat that comes home tomorrow.

[Karen]

Flea collars! And if they have boxes they sleep in, liberally dust the blankets with flea powder ...

[rebeccahowes]

I was going to put flea collars on everyone and I asked the vet if they would put the flea collars on the feral cats while they were asleep, but they said they would not work that great and the ferals could get hung up on a tree or fence or something. I have always used flea collars and they have always worked fine. Even if I do decide to use flea collars now, I have no way to get them on the ferals. I don't know what to do.

[carole]

Honestly Rebecca, flea collars are nowhere near as good as advantage, and of course a vet is going to tell you that, but in your situation i think it would be the way to go, don't worry about them getting hooked up you can buy ones that have a catch release, so if they get caught it will come off, of course then they need replacing, but it is the only thing you can do in your situation, they sell for around 3 to five dollars here in NZ, so i imagine it would be around the same cost over there.

You really do have a difficult situation, I would be especially worried about the infestation in your home,remember fleas can lie dormant for over a year as well,you have tried so hard and done so well with these kitties, i truely admire your strength and desire to help them out as you have.

I wonder if there is a non toxic flea bomb available out there, which is toxic to the fleas but not humans and the pets,maybe worth finding out, there are so many alternative products out there these days, i wish you all the best.

[rebeccahowes]

Thank you so much for your inspiration and advice. It makes me feel so better. I know that I will conquer this problem in time. I never imagined that my cats would be spayed. We will some how conquer the flea problem before it conquers us. I don't know how, but I believe an answer will come. Love Rebecca

[cristy]

I have 2 tubes of advantage and 2 tubes of Hartz Advanced Care Flea and Tick. Rebecca, if you send me your address I will throw these in the mail asap!

[Jessika]

OK I've just gotta say.... bless you for all of your hard work and dedication toward these animals. You ARE making a difference!

[krazyaboutkatz]

I have 2 tubes of advantage and 2 tubes of Hartz Advanced Care Flea and Tick. Rebecca, if you send me your address I will throw these in the mail asap!

I wouldn't use the Hartz flea and tick because it's caused many deaths in cats. I still don't understand why they continue to sell this brand. Here's more information about it:http://tippedearclan.wordpress.com/2...trol-products/.

Here are some natural ways to get rid of fleas:
Natural Flea Control

Many people don't want to risk endangering the environment (or themselves) by using chemical means for flea control. Some people have sensitivities to certain chemicals, others just don't want to do it. Ideally, you should compare flea control products to natural methods - sometimes the health risks to pets from having fleas are worth using a flea collar, powder bath, or other chemical methods. This page will give you some useful tips for getting rid of fleas holistically.




Natural Flea Control

First, it's important to note that fleas will survive the winter. You can't rely on the weather as a natural flea control method - fleas don't die off even in deep freezes. They won't bug you for a few months, but they'll be back to bite you again in the spring. You'll have to take more active measures to deal with them. There are a number that have been suggested.

Garlic - Many people swear by introducing garlic into their pet's food as a means of getting rid of fleas. It is known to strengthen the immune system in humans, so many advocates of natural flea control have suggested using it in pets as well. I do NOT recommend doing this - there is substantial research suggesting that garlic, in dogs and cats, can cause serious problems, even death in some animals. First, garlic has been demonstrated to cause anemia in some dogs and cats. This is a serious blood illness, and it's just not worth the risk to get rid of fleas. Second, garlic is extremely bad for your pet if it happens to be diabetic. Yes, many pets are diabetic - just like with humans, only their diet often keeps it from being a problem. Garlic, however, will aggravate insulin problems and may well kill your dog or cat if it happens to be one with a hidden diabetes problem. This is just too dangerous to do as a remedy without consulting your vet. At any rate, the risk from chemicals in a flea powder is far lower than that of garlic.

Environmental Control - One natural method of flea control that doesn't rely on doing anything to your pet is to control the environment. There are a lot of ways to do this - first and foremost, don't let your cat or dog outside. Cat fleas and dog fleas can only come from other animals - if your pet is an indoor animal, it likely won't have a flea problem. Prevention is the best method, and for cats at least, you shouldn't be letting them outdoors anyway. For large dogs, this won't be an option - you need to walk them, and they need to get out into the yard to play. But you don't have to let other dogs into your yard - that alone will go a long way towards getting rid of fleas.

You can also use natural flea control by trying various products that are designed to get rid of fleas without chemicals. For instance, one new product is a freeze-dried worm or nematode that eats flea eggs. Some people may be uncomfortable with modifying the environment in this way, but chemicals may be even worse. Talk to your veterinarian about this (as with all methods), there are several brands such as Intervention that can help you out without you really having to do anything actively.

Grooming - Regular grooming can also eliminate fleas without chemicals. Use a fine comb and go through your pet's hair - you can easily get rid of fleas this way naturally, and while it won't get them all, you'll spend quality time with your pet. With some pets, it may actually be a good idea to trim their fur. You can get a grooming kit that comes with clippers designed to cut fur to various lengths. Why do this? Because if you're only going to rely on natural ways to control fleas, then if you have a long-haired pet, it is harder to get the fleas out when bathing them or grooming them. Keep in mind though that it's only helpful to trim their fur if you're going to have the discipline to personally bathe and comb them. Trimming the fur only makes it easier for you to find and kill the fleas yourself - it doesn't do anything to get rid of them other than that. One of the weirder inventions I've seen recently is the flea zapper comb. This is a comb with a mild electrical charge that is supposed to kill off fleas as you comb your pet, but will be too mild to affect you or the animal. I haven't tried it and can't find any discussion of whether it works or not online, but it's pretty cheap so if you're going natural for environmental reasons or if you're a gadget junky you might check it out.

Herbal flea collars - There are many herbal flea collars designed to use various scents to drive away fleas. I am a little ambivalent about these, but they could be worth a try. Just check out the specific brand with a vet and make sure there is nothing to worry about with anything in it. The only one I've found easily available online is Petguard, which is designed to be environmentally friendly.

Diatomaceous earth - This is basically a non-chemical kind of soil designed to kill insects. It doesn't have any chemicals - it relies on tiny, sharp edges on the dirt that do damage to the exoskeleton of a flea or other pests. The fleas will then die of dehydration - they essentially leak water, and they can't replace it fast enough. It's a non-chemical means of natural flea control, but it can be rather messy to use. It's made mainly of fossils from water plants, so there isn't much risk in using it. It might not mesh well with your current soil though, and you should be careful if you have plants or gardens that it might affect negatively. If you're using it in the yard, get one of the larger bags so you can repeat the dusting if it rains, etc. However, one of the good things about it is that it's safe to use around your pet's bedding or other areas - you'll have to clean it up later, but it can be much better than setting off a flea bomb or a flea bath. Unfortunately, there's not much this will do about flea eggs, which could remain dormant for awhile. You can go with smaller bags of the earth if you're just using it indoors.

Vacuuming - One safe, natural method to get rid of fleas is to vacuum frequently. Unfortunately it's usually not 100% effective, which means while it will reduce the flea population it will rarely eliminate it. You can read up more here on getting rid of fleas with a vacuum cleaner.

Flea Traps - Basically these are more advanced versions of the little pads of glue you'd use for roaches. Because they have to be left out in the open, they have a grid over the glue that the fleas fall through. You can read more about flea traps here.

I hope that something will work. Good luck.