Mr. Whiskers has fleas?!
It's neutering day!
Drop off by Uber went smoothly, aside from Ziggy's melodramatic yowling from his carrier.
The vet just called for authorization to treat Whiskies for fleas and tapeworm. Whaaat?? (He's our friend's cat who has been "temporarily" staying with us while they moved... almost a year ago)
How on Earth did he get fleas?! All my cats are indoor-only and I haven't seen any dirt on him. No scratching or crazy grooming, either.
I got out my trusty flea comb and thankfully none of the other cats have them. After the horrors of our Gawd Awful Flea Infestation of 2012, I check for flea dirt on the beds and nap areas at least twice a week.
Possible Suspects:
1.The goddamn mice
2. Stray cats lurking on the front stoop. There's a decent-sized gap under the door. The front door is in Whiskie's exclusive territory.
3. Do wild birds carry fleas? We've had a few get in the house through a broken dryer vent (now fixed). It took so long to evict one of them I put birdseed and water out for him. The birds were also in Whiskie's area.
3. The Dotard. Just because I hate him and he's gross.
Everyone is getting treated. I'm just glad it was caught before they spread and hoping Whiskie's tapeworm treatment isn't super expensive.
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and infested our cat/house. Took a mighty effort to control them, especially the eggs . Two carpet cleanings, sprays, cat treatment and on and on.
I remember going over to his apartment and the fleas jumping on me. It was horrible! The dog went to the vet for a flea bath and treatment while the apartment got fumigated. Poor doggie was so anxious about going to the vet that he couldn't pee all day. As soon as he got in the car and relaxed, he let loose. Mind you, this was a 100 lb German Shepherd, and he had plenty of pee.
There was a young GSD in the waiting room when I went to pick the boys up. He was so pretty but very shy. Probably nervous. A gorgeous Labradoodle (I think?) too.
I went with my friend's GF to pick him up. We started driving and heard this splashing sound. The splashing did not stop for several minutes! And that car was my friend's pride and joy. He even bought custom license plates for it! 
to shred any fleas or eggs that got sucked up. 
My SiL told me about that trick a few years ago.
I'm going with Advantage to kill the fleas off quickly before they spread to the other cats. That's what *finally* solved our Infestation of 2012. I even had some in the pet first aid kit, which is nice after paying that big vet bill today.
could also be 1 if the mice are a real problem. Check out those mice ultrasonic repellent devices. Worked for me. You have to get one for each room, though.
You won't have to get the tapeworm treatment until it's proven they have it. You'll know when you clean the litterbox. You don't want to have to give it to them unless you have to as I understand it's kind of rough on their system. It's not expensive--about $16 here.
I picked the cats up an hour ago and the vet charged $27 for the tapeworm med.
It was Profender. Looked it up online and the pet pharmacies all sell it for $13-$17. The other charges were very reasonable, so I guess they have to make their money on meds. At least they threw in free nail trims, lol!
They found the rice-like segments on his bum during his exam, which is what prompted them to check more closely for fleas.
It was our first visit to this vet and I liked them. Super nice staff, the doc obviously cares and likes cats, and a very clean (and beautiful!) office. Our awesome cats-only vet is just too far of a drive for simple/routine issues. This is third vet we've been to in this town and I think we've finally found a keeper.
I read up on various tapeworm treatments and they are very effective.
Glad you found a good vet. So important, and it sounds like you lucked out with the overall cost being reasonable.
One interesting thing I learned about fleas is that some people are not allergic to their bites and thus they can be oblivious to the problem when their pet has fleas. I know instantly if my one cat, who is indoor/outdoor but mostly indoor now that she's older, brings in a flea. That one flea will seek me out and bite me.
Consequently, I give this particular cat a monthly treatment. I keep track on my Google calendar and never miss an application. As long as I do this, I have no problem.
Years ago I tried spraying nematodes and even though I did it year after year, I never did get them to take hold.
