My cat licked the advantage flea stuff and is being sick and l*****g his lips all the time. What should I do?

Question

He managed to l**k a tiny bit of the advantage flea treatment. He has been sick lots and keeps l*****g his lips now. I'm really worried that he's poisoned.

Answer 1

You should definitely call the vet and tell him or her what happened and explain your cat's symptoms.  Our cat ate insecticide once (not anything meant to be used on cats) without my knowing it.  When he came back inside, he was l*****g his lips a lot.  Then he started massively drooling.  I got him to an emergency veterinary hospital, and they saved his life.  So I think it's important to discuss this with your vet, and keep your eyes open for new symptoms (vomiting, diarrhea, and drooling especially).  I hope your kitty is OK.

Answer 2

The first thing we need to know is how long ago the cat licked the advantage.  You will probably want to take him to the vet just in case he may be poisoned.  Also, next time put the flea treatment right at the base of his skull instead of between the shoulder blades.  Then he won't be able to l**k it.

Answer 3

Call the vet and get the appropriate treatment if necessary.  Then you can stop worrying.

Good Luck!

Answer 4

The manufacturers of Advantage deliberately make it bitter tasting to discourage l*****g.

It can cause quite dramatic drooling and salivation because of this. A tiny l**k will not cause any lasting damage.

Edit: You don't say how long the vomiting has persisted. If it is prolonged it could be unrelated to the Advantage. In which case you need to see a vet.

Answer 5

you should probably take him to a vet.  try reading the package that the advantage flea treatment came in.  it should tell you what you have to do.  nest time try putting that stuff on him a little higher on his neck where he cant reach it.

Answer 6

Consult with your vet, but next time you need to apply it at the spot at the back of the neck that he cannot reach.

Answer 7

The manufacturers of flea treatments do tests with large doses of the treatment on the animals they are to be used on ...including ingestion tests -yes horrible to think about- but it does let us know that it is safe for them.

Backing up what Magpie said, they do make it bitter which causes stupid amounts of salivating and occassionally vomiting too. I wouldn't worry too much about him, just keep him inside till his symptoms subside so that you can keep an eye on him.

If he is a kitten though, vomitting a lot can make him dehydrated quite quickly, so keep an eye on that by pulling up his scruff and letting it go, if it quickly goes back to normal then he is hydrated, if the scruff stays up for longer than a couple of seconds by itself then he is becoming dehydrated, in which case if he is very young it may be worth taking him to the vets.

Offer him some cats or goats milk, it will help to keep him hydrated and make his mouth taste better.

He should be fine in a few hours if an adult healthy cat but don't be surprised if he has a little diarrhoea tomorrow.

Answer 8

Take him to the vet, if he is poisoned he needs urgent medical attention.

If you give him an Advantage spot-on, make sure its right on the back of his neck where he can't l**k it.

Answer 9

If you're at all worried about it, I would take him to the vet.  It's awful to worry about a pet.  But, we have a cat that licked off some flea stuff once and he started foaming at the mouth and running around like he was on fire.  He ran away and we couldn't find him.  Later on, though, he showed up and has been fine ever since.  I don't think that they would make Advantage too hazardous to your pets health, but if he isn't improving, you should take him to the vet.

Answer 10

SUPPOSEDLY a cat can ingest a large dose of the flea treament without it having lasting harmful effects, but if you know your cat ingested some and are noticing side effects that you think are related, I wouldn't hesitate to contact your vet just to make sure.  It could be temporary, but I wouldn't wait more than a day or so.