A flea collar killed the Invisible Cat

[jmowreader]

I wrote about the Invisible Cat (also known as The Little Black Menace) a few times--the one who hid for a few days after we got her.

When we got the cat, she had a lot of fleas. My wife sent me to the store to get her a flea collar.

The cat started acting all sluggish and twitching a little a few days after we put it on her. I took her to the vet, and $50 later I was told that I probably caught it in time, the poison should work its way out of her system.

This morning, my wife came downstairs to find the cat dead on the floor.

This has happened a few times, but my wife keeps insisting on putting the damn things on the cats. After this cat (she got it from a good friend of hers and now she has to go to her friend and tell her that the cat's dead) died, she's finally sworn off buying flea collars. About fucking time.

Don't put flea collars on your cat.

[Little Wing]

1. Your wife ain't too bright

a few times?

[jmowreader]

4. A few times.

And I keep telling her what the fucking problem is, and she won't fucking listen, at least not until now.

The fucking problem is that a flea collar is a strip of rubber impregnated with nerve gas. No shit, that's what's in them.

As my sig points out, we lost four cats to these little slices of hell: Dickless Darrell, Geddy, Titty Boy and this cat.

Geddy was the worst: she put the collar on the cat. Two days later I got a phone call at work: the cat started drooling and twitching, then threw up, then died. I went to a computer, found a webpage about chemical warfare and printed it out in case she ever thought about buying a flea collar again. Didn't work. "Oh, I put them on my cat in Centralia and never had a problem." Well...some cats are affected by flea collars, some are not. "Affected" is a nice way to say "killed dead."

Today I was flat out: no more flea collars. She never said okay before. Today she did.

[tigereye]

2. never had a problem with em

when we had cats.

But I can imagine there are terrible chemicals attached to em. Sorry about your kitty.

[MonkeyFunk]

3. How awful...

I'm sorry for your loss.

But I doubt the flea-collar killed her.

[jmowreader]

6. She was fine before the flea collar went on

A while after the collar went on, her legs started twitching some and she looked slightly disoriented. Both symptoms of nerve agent poisoning.

Before we put the collar on, she was just fine.

[MonkeyFunk]

12. My grandmother died

shortly after eating Jello.

[China_cat]

9. Flea collars today are about 10 times stronger

than they were a few years ago. They've killed quite few animals. Dogs as well as cats.

Frontline, Advantage, Advantix or Revolution are safer products and do a much better job.

[Eurobabe]

17. Don't be so sure of that

We've had several people in the pets group who have lost their cats to flea collars.

[ThomCat]

5. My vet has never recommended flea collars.

It's been well known for decades that they can kill pets. x(

there are much safer ways of dealing with fleas.

[jmowreader]

8. Yeah, like what we're going to do this year

This year I'm going to get a bag of diatomaceous earth and work it into the floors.

Diatomaceous earth, the ground-up shells of...well, diatoms...works by sanding the exoskeletons off fleas when they walk through it. It works well.

Combine it with some brewers' yeast sprinkled over the dry food and garlic in the wet, and the fleas don't stand a chance.

[LynneSin]

7. When I rescued Abbott, that's all he had - was a flea collar

He hasn't worn one since. Those things are nasty

[idgiehkt]

10. "This has happened a few times" ?????

:wtf:

[AirmensMom]

11. That's sad.

:cry:

I would never use commercial flea products on our cats. People think I'm :crazy:, but I just don't believe in putting chemicals on my animals. I'm sorry it took so much heartache before your wife learned. :(

[Flaxbee]

13. I'm so sorry about your little guy

and you must be a saint. I'd have kicked my spouse to the door for doing that "a couple of times". I'm sorry, but how cruel and stupid of her.

[Arugula Latte]

14. That's horrible.

Poor little thing. :cry:

[mockmonkey]

15. Another problem with flea collars

Our Cat Cinnamon's former owner had a flea collar on her and she got her leg caught in-between the collar and her neck. The skin got torn and then infected and she had to have surgery and a drainage tube put in. Luckily she is fine today.

[redwitch]

16. do not put ANY flea remedies from the grocery store on your pets.

get meds from the vet, they won't kill your pets or make them sick. Hartz products are HORRIBLE.

[InvisibleTouch]

18. Flea collars are toxic.

I found a lost little dog once who had a flea collar not only around his neck, but another around his waist. And he still had fleas. First thing the vet did when I brought him in, was cut off those damn collars.

The topical products that you apply between the shoulderblades (TopSpot, etc.) are pretty good. Even safer, but more messy, is Sevin Dust, which is made to kill pests on houseplants, but makes a great flea powder. You brush it into the coat. It's safe even for young puppies and kittens, and also much-used to kill mites on reptiles - safe even for hatchlings when properly used (expose them only for a day at a time, and remove the water dish during that time).

How sad to hear about your cat. :(