Along with kitten season (which I dread) we also have flea season arriving. Even if your cats are indoor only cats, keeping them safely flea-treated is imperative.

When I rescued Torah who was crawling with fleas and even though her health was hanging on the edge, I flea treated her with my vet’s help. The fleas didn’t all die at once and some escaped. I found one in my car as well the other day which didn’t thrill me. I detest fleas. I have seen the damage they do to a young kitten. They are hardy species and have been a constant companion to both man and animal since the dawn of man. Interestingly, if an animal doesn’t build a nest- such as a beaver or seal, they don’t have fleas. This has nothing to do with the fact that both mammals are aquatic, because anyone who has bathed a flea-ridden cat knows that fleas can swim quite well and water alone does not kill them. Once they have found a host, the female flea can suck enough blood from that host to form her abdomen into the shape of a tiny pea. If you think about how tiny fleas are, that is a lot of blood.

In my multi-cat home during flea season, I save a tremendous expense each year by buying Large Dog Size Advantage and using this to flea-treat my cats. I also never purchase this product off of store shelves, or online. I always buy from my vet. They know the proper way to store it, plus (God-forbid) if something adverse should happen, I am covered because most clinics have the company’s guarantee on the products they buy.

In most instances, dog related health products are not safe for cats. But if you use the REGULAR Advantage, NOT the other products introduced later: K-9 Advantix or Advantage for Multi-Dogs your cats will be safe.

This doesn’t mean that you should rush out and buy a tube and apply it to your cats immediately- NO NO NO! There is a formula breakdown to use for this product and here it is:

If your cat is nine pounds or better you will need .8 mL (point 8) of Regular Large Dog Advantage.

Under 9 pounds (EXCEPT for KITTENS) .4 mL (point 4). Kittens should always be flea-treated by your vet with Kitten Advantage and no other product!

1 box of Large Dog Size Advantage contains 4 tubes. Each tube holds 4.0 mL of Advantage. One tube will treat five cats weighing 9 pounds or up. One Large Dog Size Advantage package will last your cats over 20 treatments.

Since it is not a good idea for you to just squirt the tube on your cat and try and figure out if you are giving the correct dosage- get a syringe from your vet. With fine needle-nose pliers break off the very tip of the needle to blunt it. Take a piece of sandpaper, and remove any rough edges. Just be sure you still have an injection hole so you can draw the flea treatment into the syringe. If your cats vary in weight (and they probably do) get two needles and treat each the same way.

With a black tip indelible marker, mark off the .8 and .4 on each syringe. The reason being- after a few uses, the factory marks will fade away and you won’t know how much to draw. Because the needle tip has been blunted, you can use this tip to apply the right amount of Advantage to your cat(s).

I have found that applying Advantage works best at feeding time. This eliminates the need for catching, scruffing or holding a squirming cat and cuts down on how often I get scratched in the process!

I buy the stinkiest fishiest wet cat food I can and just dump it into the feeders. When the cats come running, I just work my way down the line squirting every kitty’s neck with the flea treatment. The strong fishy smell helps cover-up the chemical smell of the Advantage and it works like a charm.

I rotate the flea treatments every month- Advantage then Frontline because fleas can build up resistance if you use the same product over and over. Tomorrow I will put the Frontline formula on my blog.