How to Get Rid of Fleas on a 2 Week Old Kitten

You must treat very young kittens with fleas to prevent them from developing anemia. According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, in addition to anemia, a cat or kitten infested with fleas can develop skin problems or other parasite infestations. To get rid of fleas on your two-week-old kitten, use natural methods as you cannot use most flea control products on kittens under six to eight weeks of age. Follow these simple steps to remove fleas from your little kitten safely and naturally.

Things You'll Need

  • Dish soap
  • Warm water
  • Flea comb
  • Vaseline
  • 6 oz. diatomaceous earth
  • 6 oz. borax
  • 1/4 cup salt
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Instructions

    • 1

      Check your two-week-old kitten for fleas by looking for small, black bugs moving throughout its fur. Use a flea comb to brush through the fur to locate the insects. If you find either fleas or flea dirt, which appears as brown dots, your kitten has fleas. You may also find flea eggs, which appear as small white grains.

    • 2

      Wash your kitten with dish soap to wash off and kill the fleas by drowning them. The soap will kill the fleas by removing the protective wax from around the lungs of the fleas, allowing water in to drown them. Wear gloves to protect yourself from the kitten scratching you. Use warm, not hot, water to wet your kitten down in a kitchen sink. Put a small amount of soap in your hand, lather it up, and carefully rub it through your kitten's fur, including around the eyes, nose and mouth. Avoid getting the soap in these areas.

    • 3

      Leave the soap to sit for up to five minutes, then rinse the kitten thoroughly with warm water to remove all of the soap residue. Dry your kitten with a soft towel and wrap it up to keep it warm. You can wash your kitten once per week.

    • 4

      Comb through the kitten's fur with a flea comb to remove any fleas still on it. Put three to four drops of dish soap in a cup of warm water and place it next to you while you brush the kitten. Apply some Vaseline to the comb to catch the fleas and dunk the comb in the soapy water to drown any fleas you find.

    • 5

      Apply a topical flea treatment to the mother cat, if you have it, to prevent fleas from jumping from the mother's back onto the kittens. Talk to your veterinarian about which treatments he recommends for nursing cats. According to the website Vet Info, you can use the topical treatment, Revolution, safely on nursing cats. Avoid over-the-counter products that could prove toxic to young, nursing kittens. If you do not want to use a topical flea treatment, you can bathe the mother, as you did with the kitten, weekly to remove fleas.

    • 6

      Mix 6 oz. of borax, 6 oz. of diatomaceous earth and 1/4 cup salt to make a flea-killing carpet powder. Add it directly to your vacuum bag and thoroughly vacuum all carpets in your home. The carpet powder will kill any fleas you vacuum up without having to sprinkle it on the carpet and possibly exposing your kittens to it. Dispose of the vacuum bag. Repeat this weekly to keep your carpets flea-free.

    • 7

      Spray areas directly outside your home with a garden sprayer filled with liquid dish soap. Set the dilution dial to 2 tbsp. This will kill fleas outside so you do not track them inside your home.

    • 8

      Wash all blankets and bedding for your kitten weekly to remove any fleas from these items.