Reptile & Amphibian Forums

are there any long term or short term negative side effects to giving a cat a weekly capstar? Capstar seems to be the only flea preventative that is not a pesticide.

Thanks,

Lisa

Capstar is not meant to be used as a flea preventative, but as a way of immediately killing fleas. It is supposed to kill fleas within 30 minutes of giving it.Therefore, it certainly is an insecticide. If you have a flea problem, I suggest you use frontline on the cats and dogs, vacuum your carpets and furniture, and spread borax, lightly, on the carpets and furniture, work it in well, and repeat each time you vacuum. The frontline will kill the mature fleas on the animals before they can lay any more eggs, and the botax will kill the larvae, but the eggs and the pupae will not be affected, so fleas will attack the animals as they emerge from the cocoons. Eventually all the cocoons will have opened and there will be no more fleas. Frontline will kill fleas for 2-3 months, so you do not need to apply it every month. Once the fleas are gone, they will only return if your cats, or dogs, bring in new ones, either by visiting a place where there are animals with fleas living, or if flea-carrying animals visit your house and drop flea eggs. So keep your cats inside, keep out other animals, and don't take your dog visiting where there are other animals.