Fleas And Your Kitten

Fleas and your Kitten

When you look at the new feline addition to your home, it's hard to imagine that it could have anything like fleas. Unfortunately, it's not unheard of for a very young kitten to have fleas; it all very much depends upon the environment in which it lived before you brought it to live with you. For example, if the mother cat had fleas, then there's a huge possibility that all the kittens will have fleas. If there was another pet in the home such as another cat, or dog, then again, there's a possibility that even though the mother cat wasn't allowed out while she was nursing her kittens, fleas were brought in by the other pets. Even humans can bring fleas into a home on their shoes or clothes.

One of the first things you should have in your home is a flea comb. As soon as you bring the kitten home, take it to the bathroom and gently talk to it as you glide the flea comb through the kitty's fur. Pay special attention to the area at the base of the tail, or behind the ears – if kitty has fleas, you're bound to find one here. And at this point, one is all you need to find out that you have a problem that needs immediate attention.

In your kitty grooming box, you should have picked up something that will both kill off the fleas, and be safe for a newborn kitten. Have this ready for when you first bring kitten into your home and if you find a flea on your kitten, follow the instructions on the box or bottle. Remember that the kitten is already going to be feeling very insecure at this point, and so you must keep talking gentle to him and not frighten him more than necessary. It's much better if you can do this on your own without any other family members/pets in the room so as to keep the environment calm. Once he's clean, allow him to meet the rest of the family, but don't allow him back into the cat carrier, or onto any bedding/toys that had contact with him before you did the flea treatment. Make sure that you wash these all out thoroughly before he's allowed to have them back.

In most cases a kitten will not have fleas when it arrives in its new home, but taking a few simple precautions, so that you're prepared "just in case" he does, will make a potentially big job painless for both you and the kitty.