My pet has flea allergies. Will they go away after flea removal?

I'm sorry your cats (and you!) are dealing with you. Unfortunately, once a cat has a flea dermatitis, the itching and skin problems can continue even once you get rid of the fleas. The degree of which really depends on the severity of their sensitivity to flea bites. Often, we have to use antihistamines or steroids to resolve the inflammation. Sometimes we also have to incorporate antibiotics if there is an infection. For dogs, there are topical shampoos we can use, but those are often not a good option for cats. So, I would recommend having your veterinarian examine your cats' skin to determine if there is a secondary skin infection or just inflammation in order to help you determine the best treatment. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is likely due to allergies and until these are improved, he will continue to itch. It really comes down to figuring out what is causing his allergies so that they can be treated or the specific allergen avoided. There are many things that can cause allergies though in most cases they can be broken down into 3 big categories: flea, food and environmental allergies. Allergies are usually worked up in a stepwise fashion starting with flea allergies as this is the easiest and cheapest to take care of. If not on a flea preventative, then it would be a good idea to get started on one. If already on one then it would be a good idea to change to something else (there are many new products out in the market). If not improved in 1-3 months then it is time to move on and check for food allergies by switching to a novel diet (new protein and new carbohydrate). If that does not seem to be the issue then you are left out having to check for environmental allergies which require blood and/or skin tests. Allergies can be very frustrating to deal with at first but so rewarding at the end when we are able to treat them effectively!

Advantage treatment is a good start. If your kitty has flea allergies it is necessary to keep fleas from biting her. So: Unfortunately fleas only hop on the body of your pet when they want to feed, then they hop off again and stay in your pet's environment. So you need to treat all pets in the household as well as the environment (which contains the fleas, their eggs and larvae). Flea treatment:  1) Get some flea medication such as a Flea spray or a spot on from a pet shop or your veterinarian (Advantage is fine) and apply monthly 2) get flea powder, put some in your vacuum cleaner bag and vacuum your house and furniture and also non-carpeted areas frequently to remove flea larvae and eggs which live off house dust. Dispose of the bag in the trash outside. Hot-wash all the pet's bedding, If you do this diligently for a few months you will get rid of the fleas.

If he has a flea allergy than it will probably take a little bit of time for the itching to resolve. You could ask your vet for an anti-histamine or a corticosteroid to help relieve the itching. Make sure to use a monthly flea prevention, like NexGard, Frontline, Advantage, etc every month to prevent him from getting fleas again.

The main control point for flea allergy is to prevent any and all flea bites as well as treating any areas of damaged and potentially infected skin created from severe scratching. A product with rapid onset of action or flea repellant is recommended - bravecto tablets, frontline and advantix are all useful, in some cases combinations may also be required. Treatment of the house and bedding areas initially with a household insecticidal spray is also required as only 5-10% of the flea burden is actually present as adult fleas on yur pet at any one time and it is important to treat all aspects of the problem. Regimental use of flea protection products and strict complciance with any application recommendations such as timng in relation to shampooing/swimming etc is required also going forward

Itching and hairloss can most definitely occur as a result of an allergy and withdrawing the suspected cause is the most sensible option. Hair growth will take 6-8weeks but if there is already a reduction in the itching and discomfort then this is a positive sign. Continue to monitor and I Recommend adding an omega fatty acid supplement such as viacutan to her diet also

Yes, Gidget could absolutely be allergic to her flea treatment! Topical products can definitely cause redness, irritation, hair loss or sores at the application site. They can also cause system reactions such as seizures, tremors and trouble walking but these are rare. Oral products can cause vomiting, diarrhea and decreased appetite. Dogs that have epilepsy may be more prone to have increased seizure frequency but this is also not likely. Extremely rare cases can be anaphylactic reactions of collapse and hypotension and this could be to any product. If you are seeing problems, I would recommend to switch products. While some products have the same active ingredient (like Fipronil), many are different. I have had good flea prevention and very low reactions to Comfortis, Simparica and Revolution. Remember that itching all over can be related to fleas not dying from your product, food allergy or environmental allergies. I hope I answered your question!