My Man has FLEAS

Dollface thread.

OP, he's beautiful. But it also reminds me that it's October and it's when a bunch of fucking assholes adopt black cats and then abandon them once the month is over.

No!!! He’s lived next door for years. Tho our relationship just started, out of the blue.

They keep him mainly as an outdoor ratter, I suspect. This is a wooded area in Central California. I dropped hints I could adopt him if their house gets too small, but this was not taken up.

Play him this, OP.

There is a flea spray used on kittens you should get. It's not systemic like the flea meds or drops; it will just kill the fleas.

Don't use any chemicals/drugs, as you don't know how they might react if/when the neighbor does something. Far simpler and more fun for the cat -give him a good combing every day with a flea comb. Keep a bag handy to deposit any hair and/or fleas. Cat's love to be groomed, and you will keep the fleas down to a minimum. Unfortunately with an outdoor cat you'll never be fully rid of them.

That’s a very cute cat and cute story. You’re both lucky. I like R6‘a response. Seems a good compromise—additive but not intrusive to your neighbors’ efforts.

Oh-dearing myself for the stupid apostrophe that has no business in " Cats love to be groomed..."

I plead distraction watching an episode of Murder She Wrote in honor of the late, great Angela Lansbury.

So many kittens from DL will be named Angela this year!

Today’s trick is he really likes this one fuzzy blanket made of that soft synthetic stuff. He kneads it with his paws like it’s a mom. So I put that down under him for his nap and now it’s in the washing machine.

This might help as I look for the right kind of comb.

The only thing I would trust if the cat already is on flea treatment is Capstar.

I have fleas in my cunt.

I second capstar. I buy the version for dogs and then cut the large pills into smaller pieces of “cat size” mg. It’s the same price but five times more doses this way.

I dissolve a tablet in water then mix with a small amount of wet food. The small amount ensures it all is ingested.

Beautiful cat! I wish I had a visitor like him. I work from home and that would be so nice.

The easiest, healthiest, and most enjoyable way to rid a cat of fleas is sit with kitty on your lap while you groom her with a pair of tweezers.. Just go through her fur methodically and when you come across a flea just crush it with the tweezers.

Hint: Fleas’ favorite spots are under the chin and on the belly (primordial pouch). Make a game of it: The hunt! The chase!! The KILL!!!

I second R6 about the flea comb. However, get a bowl and pour in some rubbing alcohol. Clean the fur and fleas from the comb and drop them into the bowl. They'll suffocate pretty quickly and then you just dump the entire mess into the garbage. I used this method successfully for many years with my cat.

Here ya go OP. Thanks for caring for him. If he's truly already getting medication, don't use this as too much can be harmful. I would ask the girlfriend whether she's really giving something. Just be honest and say you want to help.

Ooohh, what a cutie, OP! It's been 14 years since my black cat Lexie Mobutu died, and I've been wanting another solid black cat ever since, but all the rescues that've I have had since him are other-colored.

My current vet told me unless cat is elderly or FIV-positive, or otherwise immunocompromised, it's not tooooo dangerous to give a topical flea treatment more than once a month, especially in high flea conditions (hot weather, areas with multiple urban wildlife numbers [raccoons and/or possums], etc.).

It amuses me that he occasionally gets into somewhat dramatic sleep postures.

This is him dreaming he’s performing an operatic aria, I suppose!

I love him - he's gorgeous. He must truly enjoy your company or he wouldn't bother with you.

He also needs worming monthly for tape worms especially if he eats rodents.

Thank you!

Chewy has pet shampoos that kill fleas. I use them on my cats

I love black cats. They look like tiny panthers

The cat needs a good bath with a flea shampoo. You need to leave the shampoo on him for at least 5 minutes. That will kill the live fleas and the eggs.

If he is in misery from all the fleas you (or the owner) can give him a flea pill like CapAction. You get 6 pills for $25.00. They start killing the fleas within 30 minutes. But I warn you, after you administer the pill the cat will get very hyperactive within the next hour and run around like a whirling dervish making the weirdest sounds. But that dies down within an hour or two. The pills won't kill the eggs though.

From one black cat’s human to another, OP it is VERY difficult to get good pics of them sleeping. They just look like comfy, furry, blobs of black cuteness. Good on you for snapping those pics!

Next time, try to catch him nodding off against some more contrasting colors. Like this…

Fleas will die in ANY sort of lather. No special shampoo needed. Put a good flea collar on him while he's visiting? Saresto. This thread makes me miss my stray pet cat, Cat.

"Cats: Agents of Chaos."

He seems to know the word “No.” He can be on chairs, but when I say No! he’ll take his paws off the tabletop or bookshelf he’s poised to investigate.

(Maybe all cats respond to that universal tone, though)

I’ve been brushing up on cat videos, and this one says they generally don’t like loud voices, sudden movements, etc. So I try to be soft and gentle and calm with him. But he’s very naturally affectionate. He walks through the door purring.

Dip a flea comb in a large bowl of flea-killing solution and comb. Repeat, so the fleas fall off the comb into the bowl of solution. When done, rub cat with a warm wet towel.

Dip flea comb in bowl of warm water with Blue Dawn dishwashing liquid. It gets through that waxy flea coating and they drown.

A flea comb is not enough unless a product is used with it. Otherwise, OP, you'll soon be flea-bombing your house.

R5

[quote]R30 Dip flea comb in bowl of warm water with Blue Dawn dishwashing liquid. It gets through that waxy flea coating and they drown.

Sounds good. But will the soap residue in fur be bad for his system when he’s grooming himself, later?

Kitty at R25 looks like a DL-er.

A beautiful cat but if he's an outdoor cat unless you get rid of the source of the fleas (who knows where that is) you'll probably never get rid of them unfortunately.

You don't comb the Dawn water into the cat's fur. You may as well just give the cat a good batch with flea shampoo as do that. You just use the comb to trap the fleas and then dip the comb into HOT water with Dawn, not warm. The combination of the hot water and the Dawn kills the fleas immediately. Just have some paper towels at the ready when you remove the comb from the hot water because you'll need to remove a wad of fur and dead fleas from the comb before you resume combing.

"batch" shb "bath"

Groom him with a flea comb and drop the fleas into a cup of hot, soapy water. If he's old enough, give him monthly applications of a flea med with Fipronil.

But the real problem is the carpet, where fleas lay eggs. I've had some success with flea carpet sprays (I sprayed some on the basement carpet and a couple spiders died, too).

In a month or so fleas will go into hibernation, because they hate any hint of chill.

Diatomaceous earth is a good (and nontoxic) solution for carpet.

Here's a thought - get your own cat or kitten and keep him/her indoors, safe from cars, other cats, dogs, coyotes...and fleas!

^^ but this one would still come over. I suspect he’s bored being away from people all day.

There are collars that are impregnated with something that will repel the fleas. It's good that you want to get rid of the fleas, but don't worry too much about yourself (in case you do). If given the choice, they will always prefer cat or dog to human.

Flea collars for cats are a complete waste of money. They simply do not work.

R33, usually I voice his as Kazoo from the Flintstones, “What is it NOW, dum-dums?”

But in the shade of a DL’er I’d say that look is more like a “Sure, Jan”

[quote]What can I apply topically that won’t have an adverse reaction with any monthly program a cat’s (perhaps) on?

Neem oil spray.

There are waterless shampoos that will kill fleas, you just rub them in, no need to rinse

[quote]R25 Next time, try to catch him nodding off against some more contrasting colors. Like this…

My interior is not quite as classy as yours, tragically, but here is Mr. Black on “his” chair. Well, he’s picked one in every room. This is the bedroom one. It’s actually a nice green India print… I just threw that sheet on it as per your suggestion[bold] : )[/bold]

Anyway, he has been keeping regular business hours here 9:00-5:00, mostly thinking Deep Thoughts while asleep. But if he were awake I’m sure that as a black cat, he’d wish you and all of DL a happy Halloween!

Aww what a cutie, Happy Halloween 👻 kitty.