# Wild cats and fleas



## Jessica84 (Oct 27, 2011)

I have a batch of wild cats that has been dumped on me over the years. I don't mind them because they keep the rodents down but when I say wild I mean WILD. There is no catching them. When they get hungry they hang in the back yard and I put food out and they wait till I'm gone to eat. I found ones batch of kittens and when I was showing my daughter I saw they are just covered in fleas BAD. It seems to be q bad year because usually I can get away with getting front line for the dogs once and this is the third time for them. Anyways I gave the kittens a bath in dawn soap but I'm sure they will get more in no time. I can't keep giving them a bath. But what can I buy for the adult cats and how would you suggest I do this  I feed them on top of a old rabbit hutch and I was thinking about spraying a bunch of pour on on it so when they laid there to eat it would kill them but I'm not thinking that would be ok for cats. Ideas?


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## goathiker (Apr 14, 2011)

Yep

step 1: Go buy a good flea powder and cover the feeding area with powder. 
step 2: Spray any area that they sleep with flea spray. Go light on this or they will smell it and move their sleeping area. 
step 3 put brewer's yeast in the food that you are feeding the cats. Dry food can be coated with a small amount of canned food to make it stick. Fleas hate the taste and smell of Brewer's yeast. When they smell it on the cats, they will jump off onto the flea powdered area.


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## Jessica84 (Oct 27, 2011)

Got it! And I happen t have a bunch of Brewers yeast thank you Jill


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## TeyluFarm (Feb 24, 2016)

Keep in mind most over the counter flea Meds can be toxic to cats. When I worked as a vet assistant someone brought in a cat they had sprayed with horse fly spray and she was seizing horribly.


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## TeyluFarm (Feb 24, 2016)

Of course, I will freely admit that may no longer be the case as its been 10 years since I worked for a vet. It has just been something that has stuck in my mind over the years.


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## Greybird (May 14, 2014)

I wonder if sprinkling some catnip in an area which has been dusted with flea powder might encourage them to roll in it?


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## Jessica84 (Oct 27, 2011)

Hmmm is there a certain ingredient I should stay away from? I know hertz brand is bad, or like you said at one time. I bought a flea collar for my cat, oh must have been 15 years ago and that poor cats eyes got so swollen he could hardly see. I'll probably get it from tractor supply so let me see what they have


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## Jessica84 (Oct 27, 2011)

Sorry greybird we wrote at the same time lol they are pretty good at sleeping on my bags of sawdust, and I think it's to hot for them to go to far out to hunt so IV been having to put cat food out every 2 days and they know that's where the food is. I could probably open one of the bags of saw dust and spray it down and even get a tray around here somewhere and fill with sawdust to stand In to eat. But I found this and I'm thinking, as long as it doesn't harm them, if it has a good pray on it I might be able to nail them when they come to eat. Maybe put a cage with food in it and trap them and spray them down. There's just no way I'm going to be able to rub any kind of powder on them. Well maybe if I wore welding gloves lol


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## Little-Bits-N-Pieces (Apr 7, 2013)

I would get some nitenpyram and mix it in some wet cat food. It will kill all the adult fleas. Lufenuron will kill the larvae and eggs. The lufenuron is expensive though.
And I would also powder the area.

ETA: That was for the catlings, not sure about the adult cats.


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## catharina (Mar 17, 2016)

My neighbor feeds 5 or 6 strays but won't provide any care at all. I get prescription flea pills from one of those mobile vaccine outfits. The tech has a soft spot for strays, so she gives me large dog size pills (some products are OK for both, but not all of them) & tells me how to divide it for 6 cats. BIG savings on an expensive product. I can't make them eat their own portions, so I mix the doses for all 6 cats plus one in a large can of food. I put it on a couple paper plates & sneak them into the neighbor's yard. I can tell when they need it because they're always in my yard (pooping but don't get me started!) My dog brings their fleas inside & suddenly I'm covered with bites. There's also a natural nematode product you spray on your yard that's supposed to kill the flea larvae.


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## TeyluFarm (Feb 24, 2016)

The pyrethrin in the spray could cause toxicity. I believe that is what was in heartz as well.


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## Jessica84 (Oct 27, 2011)

I saw this gallon of stuff to spray the yard down I think I'll get it too because that's where my dogs are as well and probably picking them up there.
And I'll stay away from that ingredient! I highly doubt I'll be able to afford anything from the vets office. The dog/cat vet we have is a little expensive. I got a pound puppy that ended up with kennel cough and well after a week of treatment she's is now a $1,000 dog, well and $80 to adopt her and have her fixed. But I think between the spray, yard spray and the yeast I should get them at least some what under control. I just never seen a poor animal covered in so many fleas before. Their poor stomach was just covered in them!


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## goathiker (Apr 14, 2011)

I like the Zodiac products from TSC.


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## Jessica84 (Oct 27, 2011)

Then that's what I will use!


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## catharina (Mar 17, 2016)

Thought I should mention that brewer's yeast gave one of my cats those urine crystals & she ended up with a bloody bladder infection. The vet said to quit giving the yeast.


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