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HILL-DALE NEWSLETTER
COMPELLING STORY:
FLEA TREATMENT DOSAGE!
As a veterinarian, I am often called upon
in emergency situations that involve saving a pet’s life. The story
I am about to share has a very compelling lesson that should be shared with
everyone you know. Flea infestation is a common problem that is easily
avoided with the appropriate preventive. It is easily treated with the
right treatment. However, the wrong dosage of flea treatment can be
deadly.
Dottie the cat had just moved to the area with her loving family.
Sunday afternoon, her owners noticed Dottie had fleas! Wanting to take
care of the problem as soon as possible, they grabbed their store-bought
flea treatment and applied it to Dottie. What they didn’t realize until
about 12 hours later was that Dottie had received the family Labrador’s dose
of medicine. They found Dottie having seizures at about 4AM. When
she arrived at our hospital, her seizures were constant and very violent.
I immediately treated her with Valium, bathed her and began her on intravenous
fluids all with little effect. Dottie had a very tough fight ahead of
her. I had never seen a case this severe in all my years of practice.
At 7:30AM, Dottie was placed on continuous isoflourane gas anesthesia in order
to try and allow her liver a chance at detoxifying itself. When taken
off the gas later that morning, she immediately went back into seizures.
Dottie spent all day Monday in a peaceful sleep while her body worked overtime.
At 4PM, she was taken off the gas again and had improved slightly. She
was still having moderate seizures, so she was given another dose of Valium
to help her get through the night. Her situation was grave, but she
was still fighting. Dottie made it through her first night in the hospital.
Tuesday and Wednesday, Dottie continued having small tremors, improving slowly
though still not standing up on her own. On Thursday, Dottie stood
and took her “first” steps coming towards me eager for a head rub!
Friday morning, Dottie was sitting up on her own, had used her litter box
over night and was ready to go home.
Dottie is an extremely lucky kitty to have survived such a severe poisoning.
She had to relearn how to eat and drink due to some neurological damage, but
within two weeks she was back to her normal self. Dottie is happy to
be home.
The moral of this story: Cats are NOT small dogs. Cats bodies are
VERY different from dogs. They are extremely intolerant to certain
chemicals. Flea products are usually labeled, though sometimes not
very prominently. It is imperative to be certain of the dose you are
giving your pet. We at Hill-Dale offer a product called Revolution.
It’s applied on the cat’s skin and is totally safe. It prevents heartworm,
ear mites, roundworms, hookworms, fleas as well as controlling and treating
fleas. It is easy to use, safe for your cat and very effective.
You might say it’s the “Cat’s Meow.”
Dr. Schellenberger
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