Chicken bald back

[Gertie]

Hi all

 

Grim, but my cat has had a tick twice now. I use frontline, which says it treats flea and ticks. Am I doing something wrong? How come these hideous things are attaching themselves to my pet!?

 

I bought a tick remover from the vet, but my cat freaks out if she is combined so it's tricky to use it. What else can I use to stop them getting on her? Any ideas from the wise?

 

Many thanks

Edited May 2, 2012 by Guest

[Eggasperated]

I use the Frontline spot-on every 4 weeks and that seems to keep my cats tick free, and we do get quite a problem as we get deer in the garden regularly and they seem to be carriers.

We do also have a tick remover but only have to use it at the beginning of the season if we don't start treatment early enough.

[The Dogmother]

I use Frontline Combo and never have a problem with either the cats or dogs. I have a couple of O'Tom tick removing hooks for use on hoomans.

[Gertie]

Yep, that's what I've done! Monthly frontline since they were going out, she had it on last mid feb, I did her again mid march. Does it not work on some cats maybe? I've got my Tom o twister thingy to hand, she just sat on me - facing the wrong way of course. Got a good look at it but she has a 6th sense and knows as soon as I want to do anything. She ran away Putting the frontline and a new collar on is a nightmare and take her to the vets is horrendous as she gets sooo stressed!

 

Argh!!!

[Eggasperated]

I don't know what the solution is then . But I do sympathise as I've got a cat which is a nightmare to treat and take to the vets - she has to go in a crush cage to have any injections and howls all the way to the vet. I have also caught her going out and rolling in the grass after I've put on the spot-on to try and rub it off .

[superkitty]

When my cat picked up a couple of ticks a few years ago my vet advised that I change to Advocate spot on, which is a wormer as well. Haven't had a tick on him since, hurrah!

[Chucky Mama]

You need to use Frontline monthly. Bear in mind that a spot on like Frontline will not prevent ticks from attaching initially, what it does is kill the tick after attachment within a time scale that prevents it from transmitting disease. They are revolting little creatures though and if you can't bear the thought of waiting for them to die, I would get an O'Tom tick hook which removes them quickly and easily.

[Chucky Mama]

When my cat picked up a couple of ticks a few years ago my vet advised that I change to Advocate spot on, which is a wormer as well. Haven't had a tick on him since, hurrah!

Advocate does not kill ticks, only fleas and the larval stages. It will also not treat tapeworm which is common in cat (and dogs). Advantix is the spot on made by the same comapany (Bayer) that will repel fleas and ticks, it also will not kill tapeworm

[superkitty]

best I get some more worming pills!! Thanks, I didn't know that...and the lack of ticks since I started using it is obviously just a coincidence then. Might not take everything my vet says as gospel going forwards

[Chucky Mama]

Some vets do promote one particular brand of spot on dependant on the best offer they can get from a particular drug company. No spot on will kill fleas, ticks and all common worm species, they all miss on or 2 out. You are by no means the only one to have been caught out

[The Dogmother]

I use Frontline combo for the crawlers and Profender for worming as neither of them are easy to give tablets to.

[Chucky Mama]

Yes, not cheap but cheaper than having shredded hands and a chomped up tablet that gets spat out anyway. A perfect wormer for cats that wont take tablets

[The Dogmother]

I've ended up with that after having to use gardening gloves and one of those pill dispenser things

[Gertie]

Thanks all for your knowledge. If I can get close enough I'll have a go with the Tom twisty thing, she's just had frontline combo on last week so maybe the tick will die & fall off (hope)!

 

In the meantime I have the tick remover on my beside table for when she comes to bed tonight. Wish me luck...!

 

....juse edited to say she passed out on my lap & I managed to get it off with the tick twister. It looks as though it is dead, so I guess the frontline did the job after all!

[Gertie]

Oh help! I keep finding ticks in the house. I found 3 today but there are bound to be more I can't see. I don't understand why as I treat the cats with frontline, but I found a live huge tick on my cat today. I got it off with the Tom tick twister.

 

There are deer & sheep in the garden, so not much I can do. Do ticks breed in the house?

 

Thanks

[Lavenders_Blue]

Please forgive me if I'm talking rubbish, as I don't know much about cats. But I know for dogs Frontline Combo is a much better flea/tick treatment than the 'bog standard' Frontline. It has to be bought from the vet. Is it the same for cats? If so, it might be worth getting the Frontline Combo rather than regular Frontline and using it monthly to prevent ticks. Apologies if this is what you are already doing. Yuk yuk yuk to ticks in the house - hope you can get this sorted!

[The Dogmother]

Yes, I understand that's the case L_B. I use the combo on all of mine, mainly because I walk the dogs through 'deer areas'.

[Gertie]

Does anyone know why frontline combo is better than ordinary frontline? The one I use monthly says it treats fleas & ticks!

 

I boiled all bedding & spent hours hoovering. Not seen any more since. Off to pets at home for flea/tick household spray just in case. Will try to get combo stuff at p.a.h but if not defo going to vets! I'll have to try & find my cats every day to check them, but now the sun is shining I hardly see them... They're sitting in the fields with the deer & the sheep

[Lavenders_Blue]

I believe that the ticks and fleas are becoming resistant to the chemicals in Frontline, but Combo has different chemical ingredients which the fleas and ticks are not (yet?!) resitant to. Combo needs a prescription from the vet to purchase, so if your PAH has a vet you may be able to get hold of some, but it won't be stocked on the shelf.

[The Dogmother]

My understanding (will happily be corrected by chucky mama) is that combo contains the element which renders the fleas etc sterile so that they can't multiply in your carpets and soft furnishings. You used to have to use a separate product called Program to use alongside the flea drops or collar.

[Chucky Mama]

First of all there is no point at all switching from Frontline to Frontline Combo for ticks, the action and efficacy are the same. Secondly there is no resistance to Frontline. Some vets say this to pursuade people to by Combo which is only available on prescription, it is naughty Some people think this because year after year they have failed to treat their homes and the flea burden within the home then reaches a critical point making flea control a real issue. Combo is better for fleas as it has an impact on the larvae in the home which standard frontline doesn't (this is why an environmental spray in required) This is the only difference between Combo and Standard Frontline, that and the fact that one requires a prescription and the other doesn't.

 

In respect to the tick problem. Here is the life cycle. You need to treat your cat monthly with Frontline or similar and ensure that you are applying it correctly. If you have a larger that average cat or a cat that is fairly inactive you may need to use a larger pack size. You can phone the Merial helpline (makers of Frontline) if you are concerned 0870 6000123. One of their veterinary advisors will be able to reassure you.

[Gertie]

Thank you everyone, and thanks Chucky Mama for the reassurance.

 

I AM doing everything right! Thankfully I've not seen any more ticks in the house. I've spent ages reading about their life cycle. But i do have a larger than average cat, so I will check the dosage as I've noticed some of the packs seem to have more in than others. I did get the ordinary frontline from the vet, but I also bought some from an online vet shop thingy.

 

One last question... Is there a household tick spray available? I have a product called Indorex which I keep incase there are any fleas in the house.

 

Thank you!

[Chucky Mama]

Indorex will kill any unwanted crawlies associated with your pets. Ticks don't tend to be an issue in the home though.

[The Dogmother]

Yes, you have to be careful to by the right dose of Frontline for your cat's weight; I have two cats, one is tiny and t'other is a thumping great BSH cream tabby, so I buy the dosage for the bigger cat as I understand that it doesn't matter if the smaller mog gets the same dose.

[Gertie]

Great! I'm armed with knowledge & a range of products... Hopefully no more ticks!

 

Many thanks for all the help

 

Gertie xx