Flea Circus
For the past couple of weeks, Joxur's been scratching and grooming more than usual. At the same time, I started itching, and I noticed what looked like bug bites. Putting two and two together, we realized that Joxur had picked up fleas; since he's an indoor cat who hasn't lived with other cats for almost a year now, we figure they must have come from the mice.
We got some Hartz flea stuff on Sunday and put it on him. By Tuesday, they were still there, and poor Joxur had a ton of what looked like black dandruff on his skin. I tried to wipe some of it off with a warm washcloth--which came away a little brownish-red. I actally held him down in the sink and got him wet, and noticed that the water swirling away was definitely brownish red.
So...to Google, where I learned that the black stuff is, essentially, flea shit. It looks like blood because, well, that's what fleas eat. We tried--without much success--to at least keep Joxur off the bed, because the fleas are also eating me alive, using their special Nancy Bug Detector that lets all biting insects in the vicinity home in on me.
Today I stopped by the pet store and bought some flea shampoo. telesilla posted about the instructions on the bottle, which read as if they were written by someone who's never seen an actual cat. Being a fan of "getting it over with", I suggested that we try it tonight.
I got in the tub and turned the water on while Ruth brought the cat in. I held him down--or tried to--while she washed him. Tag-teaming him worked pretty well-if you discount the yowling of a soul in torment--and we escaped with only minor injuries. We now have 20 pounds of sopping wet, bedraggled, extraordinarily disgruntled--and still flea-ridden--cat.
We got some Hartz flea stuff on Sunday and put it on him. By Tuesday, they were still there, and poor Joxur had a ton of what looked like black dandruff on his skin. I tried to wipe some of it off with a warm washcloth--which came away a little brownish-red. I actally held him down in the sink and got him wet, and noticed that the water swirling away was definitely brownish red.
So...to Google, where I learned that the black stuff is, essentially, flea shit. It looks like blood because, well, that's what fleas eat. We tried--without much success--to at least keep Joxur off the bed, because the fleas are also eating me alive, using their special Nancy Bug Detector that lets all biting insects in the vicinity home in on me.
Today I stopped by the pet store and bought some flea shampoo. telesilla posted about the instructions on the bottle, which read as if they were written by someone who's never seen an actual cat. Being a fan of "getting it over with", I suggested that we try it tonight.
I got in the tub and turned the water on while Ruth brought the cat in. I held him down--or tried to--while she washed him. Tag-teaming him worked pretty well-if you discount the yowling of a soul in torment--and we escaped with only minor injuries. We now have 20 pounds of sopping wet, bedraggled, extraordinarily disgruntled--and still flea-ridden--cat.