Allergies to Flea Dip

Signs

• Owning an outdoor kitty necessitates the use of flea treatment. Flea dips are an effective way to treat flea infestation. If you follow the directions on the flea dip container, or have your pet treated by a competent vet, usually your cat will have no reaction. Reasons to suspect that your cat is allergic to her flea dip include: skin redness, excessive itching, or loss of hair due to scratching.

Treatment

• If you do notice that your cat's skin becomes irritated after flea dipping, you can wash it off by using a mild detergent such as a dish washing liquid and generously flushing with water. Washing your cat with dish detergent and using a flea comb can be effective ways to kill fleas if your pet is allergic to flea dips. There are a multitude of dips, flea collars and other topical medications on the market. Check the label on alternative products to make sure they do not contain the same chemicals as your cat had an allergic reaction to.

Additional Reactions

• Flea dips leave a bitter taste on your cat's skin. She won't like it! But she is probably not having an allergic reaction. If she licks herself right after the flea dip, she may become nervous, nauseous or have excessive drooling. Try giving him milk or tuna juice from a can to remove the bitter taste.

How it Works

• Flea dips kill both fleas and their eggs, and can be administered both at home and by a veterinarian. If you choose the home method you can buy flea dips at your vet, online, in pet stores or grocery stores. You might want to wear gloves to protect yourself from scratching. Carefully following the instructions so you do not make the solution too strong, fill a sink with enough water to submerge your cat in the water and treatment. Keep submerged for as long as instructed. Do not rinse off. Wrap your probably angry kitty in a towel. If you do choose to give the dip at home you might want to use a friend to do the actual dipping, so that your cat does not blame you for her unpleasant experience.

Warnings

• Make sure that you are using a flea dip that is made specifically for cats. Flea dips made for both cats and dogs are fine, but dips made just for dogs can be harmful to your pet, and could cause tremors and seizures in cats. In addition, if you have a very small cat it might be a good idea to dilute the solution. Never use flea dips on cats under 12 weeks old, and be sure to read the label to know how long to keep your pet in the solution.