Fleas on Kittens

by Jane

I have a 14 wk old female kitten. On my cream bedding I've noticed lots of tiny brown dots, some about 1mm long, some slightly curled.

I can brush them away, they dont move, yet my kitten does not scratch herself at all. I checked her and saw a few tiny brown dots, but not many.

I have noticed this before about month ago but it just stopped. What can this be? I also have an 18 month old cat that doesn't have anything on him.

They are both indoor cats.

Editor Suggestions Fleas on Kitten

Tiny brown dots/particles on a cat and bedding indicates a parasitic infestation, however fleas or other parasitic infestations are usually characterized by severe irritation and progressive loss of a cats body condition.

Tiny brownish particles, which range up to 0.5 – 1mm of size suggests that these are either the advanced larval stage or pupae stage of fleas. Since, you groom your cat regularly and there is not a large population found on the cats coat, fleas are not able to complete their life cycle, and cannot grow to adult stage, and are eliminated before any harm is caused to your cat.

The life cycle of fleas in indoor cats is usually completed in 3 – 6 weeks, but it may take up to 52 weeks to become an adult if the conditions are not suitable for them.

During the egg, larval or pupae stage, fleas do not move or cause any damage to the host. Similarly, they are never able to be transmitted to another host, except in low numbers.

It seems that you are having a kitten flea infestation problem, but your hygienic measures and regular grooming is preventing clinical symptoms to occur.

Regular grooming and improving hygienic measures surely helps to eliminate cat fleas (or any stage of life), but the objective of complete eradication can never be achieved this way.

We suggest you use a quality natural shampoo for bathing both of your cats such as Clean Cat Shampoo. Use a disinfectant in your home that is formulated to kill fleas in your home and outdoors when sprayed, such as Benzarid.

Additional measures, such as thoroughly washing clothing and bedding are important. Also be sure to wash all of your cats belongings. Use a quality detergent for the purpose.

A homeopathic remedy can also help to maintain skin and coat condition such as Skin and Coat Tonic.

Follow these steps with a focus on thoroughly cleaning and disinfecting the home, and the kitten flea problem should go away.