Ear mites are microscopic bugs that can live in your cat’s ears. The only way to see them is through magnification. Proper treatment involves a careful and thorough cleaning of the ear canals, and application of ear drops and/or spot-on treatment with a drug called Selamectin. All dogs and cats in the household require concurrent treatment to prevent re-infestation between the pets.
Tapeworms are very common in cats. Cats acquire tapeworms by ingesting fleas carrying tapeworm larvae during regular self-grooming. Tapeworms are eliminated by applying a topical or oral deworming treatment. Don’t forget to prevent re-infestation by using monthly flea control too.
These are called tapeworms. Fresh tapeworm segments look like grains of rice, but when they dry out they look like sesame seeds. Tapeworms can only be eliminated with a drug called praziquantel which is not an ingredient in most over the counter deworming treatments.
We recommend prescription, spot-on products for ease and safety. If your cat does not tolerate a spot-on treatment (has a skin reaction or gets irritable after application), we recommend monthly oral Comfortis or a Seresto cat collar. If your cat has lots of fleas and flea dirt, we recommend bathing and drying before any flea product application. Our doctors recommend using Bravecto, Activyl, Revolution, and Advantage for topical flea treatment.
We do not have any recommendations on holistic flea treatment. Holistic flea treatments are not FDA approved and can potentially be harmful to your cat. You can use a flea comb daily to remove fleas from your cat. You can use a borate/salt compound to treat carpets (Fleabusters powder) in the environment to kill flea eggs and larvae by dehydration. This process can take weeks to be effective.
Unfortunately, even cats that stay indoors can get fleas. Fleas may be living in the outside environment and inadvertently brought into your home. Once you detect fleas, we recommend treating your cat for a minimum of three months to stop the flea life cycle and reinfestation.
