Both previous answers are true, but if you have a very young kitten under 8 weeks of age, some of the professional flea treatments are too strong to use. Dawn dish washing liquid actually kills the fleas and can be safely used on very young kittens. I have weened many orphaned kittens over the years. People would find them and bring them to me. Often enough they would be covered in fleas and the Dawn worked every time. Make sure to rinse it out very well and keep the kitten warm and covered in a towel held close to you for warmth until the kitten is completely dry. When you first start washing the kitten, make sure to completely go all over the head and around the neck first so the fleas will run down the back instead of running over the kittens face. Do not get any soap in the kittens eyes.
I have a 1 week old kitten and he was COVERED in fleas!! I knew it could make him anemic (spelling) and could kill him, so I googled what would be a safe treatment. I knew medications such a s advantage or front line would be too strong. Everything I have read said to try dawn soap! I had ajax dish soap and looked up the ingredients and they are the same as dawn.....so I tried it tonight and it killed almost all of them right away!!! I had to pick whatever else was on him off with tweezers and squeeze them and rinse them down the sink!!! It works...Trust Me!!!! I am very very pleased with the results and I am sure the kitty feels much better too!! Make sure too vacuum your home really well and wash and of the linens she was laying on to kill the remaining fleas!!!
It isn't the soap that kills the fleas. Any soap will do. First you place a dish of water on the floor near where the cat sleeps or near its food. Put liquid soap in the water. Put a light next to the dish, shining in the dish. This attracts the fleas. What the soap does, is break the surface tension of the water and the fleas sink to the bottom and drown.
I can not think of any harm in trying. I know that fleas do not weigh enough to disturb the surface tension of regular water. This means they float on top, don't drown, and can jump off. If they are put in soapy water then they sink and drown. Bathing your dog in liquid soap will definitely kill (drown) and wash away SOME of the fleas, but there is no guarantee that even if you bathed the dog a hundred times that you would get them all. Even if you killed ALL of the fleas, the moment you put your pet back into your fleas infested house or yard, more could jump on. I read somewhere that only about half the fleas in a house are actually on your pet(s) at any given time. Soap doesn't repel fleas or kill the fleas that bite your pet. I've heard that only Dawn Liquid Soap works. (I've never bothered testing others though.) Either way you should probably bathe the dog in a gentle conditioner after a soap bath. The soap is a harsh irritant that is made only for use on humans' hands and arms. It was never meant to come in contact with more sensitive tissues or with non-human skin. Make sure you rinse thoroughly since pets groom themselves with their mouths and left-over suds could upset their stomach or hurt their skin. A soap bath can help reduce the number of fleas in your house and on your pet and it will lessen the pet's torment but soap baths are not adequate replacements for real, vet-approved flea remedies. Baker or brewer's yeast and garlic are two natural flea repellents for pets. (Garlic is BAD for cats. The yeast is okay.) You can buy tablets or powders at pet stores to slip inside treats or sprinkle on food and water. The garlic is formulated so that it is odorless and won't make your pet smell. There are also odorless garlic tablets for you, so that the fleas will leave you alone. Neither kills fleas, though. From experience, I can tell you that garlic and yeast work better at preventing your pet from becoming infested than at repelling starving flea hordes off of you and your pets. This means get chemicals, natural or otherwise, to kill the fleas, then give your dogs garlic and yeast to keep the fleas from coming back. There is still no guarantee, however.
I don't know if it kills fleas. I was a pet groomer for many years, and it seems we only used Dawn when pets came to us with oil in their hair. One word of caution, though, if you use it --- don't use it full strength. One of the things most people don't know about Dawn Detergent is that it is highly concentrated, and if you use it on a pet's hair, you need to dilute it (about 1/3 cup Dawn to 1 cup water), as it will take a long time to rinse it out if used undiluted. (Did you know that a large bottle of Dawn, used for washing dishes, will last almost a year if you dilute it 3 cups water to one cup detergent?) Give me a Shout please, if you use it and find it IS a flea killer? Thanks! Moe
Yes! It works better than flea shampoo, which usually doesn't work on my cats. I have always used Dawn. Know why it's better? It gets rid of dirt better, and you can use it on newborn or any age kittens b/c it will not hurt them!
I have kittens that are about a week old and I have heard about the soap remedy but I am afraid that the kittens may be too young to get wet. Does anyone have any advice for me??
Not sure about the dawn part but I have had many animals for all my lift 50 yrs now and use ADAMS flea and tick and to kill the flea and there eggs in the house use Borax as in borax laundry soap
I can not think of any harm in trying. I know that fleas do not weigh enough to disturb the surface tension of regular water. This means they float on top, don't drown, and can jump off. If they are put in soapy water then they sink and drown. Bathing your dog in liquid soap will definitely kill (drown) and wash away SOME of the fleas, but there is no guarantee that even if you bathed the dog a hundred times that you would get them all. Even if you killed ALL of the fleas, the moment you put your pet back into your fleas infested house or yard, more could jump on. I read somewhere that only about half the fleas in a house are actually on your pet(s) at any given time. Soap doesn't repel fleas or kill the fleas that bite your pet. I've heard that only Dawn Liquid Soap works. (I've never bothered testing others though.) Either way you should probably bathe the dog in a gentle conditioner after a soap bath. The soap is a harsh irritant that is made only for use on humans' hands and arms. It was never meant to come in contact with more sensitive tissues or with non-human skin. Make sure you rinse thoroughly since pets groom themselves with their mouths and left-over suds could upset their stomach or hurt their skin. A soap bath can help reduce the number of fleas in your house and on your pet and it will lessen the pet's torment but soap baths are not adequate replacements for real, vet-approved flea remedies. Baker or brewer's yeast and garlic are two natural flea repellents for dogs. (Garlic is BAD for cats.) You can buy tablets or powders at pet stores to slip inside treats or sprinkle on food and water. The garlic is formulated so that it is odorless and won't make your pet smell. There are also odorless garlic tablets for you, so that the fleas will leave you alone. Neither kills fleas, though. From experience, I can tell you that garlic and yeast work better at preventing your pet from becoming infested than at repelling starving flea hordes off of you and your pets. This means get chemicals, natural or otherwise, to kill the fleas, then give your dogs garlic and yeast to keep the fleas from coming back. There is still no guarantee, however.
You can use baby shampoo instead, Dawn soap is too harsh. Also you should use straight mineral oil to lube the eyes before shampooing cat in case soap got into the eyes you can rinse out without damaging the eyes. Be careful some cats detest being bathed, and you could get scratched in the process, Good luck.
Save money and time, and buy Adams flea products. I don't care how bad you, your house, your pets have fleas, just spray your animals, and they will be gone!
Okay so my cat is 9 weeks old and we have this special soap, and its only for kittens 12 weeks and older. So I can't use that so I'm going to try this! Thanks for asking this question. Because I NEEDED to know the answer! :) lol
No, please don't use it... Instead go to the store and get a bottle of white distilled vinegar particularly if you plan to bathe an animal. Give the animal a vinegar water bath one to two cups vinegar to the tub of water. To get rid of fleas in the home you have to treat their breeding grounds with poison which is along baseboards, up the vacuum, under furniture, and under couch cushions. I like to use the 7-dust powder in the house and the granules in the yard. You can find 7-dust in the lawn and garden section in most stores, and a little goes a long way.
YES!! It really works. I used to work at a vets office and I've seen it used there. It's a good quick remedy for fast removal. But using something like frontline or advantage is a better long term solution.
Yes I found dawn soap kills fleas without any side effects to the pet, so it is most helpful especially when using it on baby pets. The way I do it is I fill a bucket with war water mix it with dawn and dip the animal inside till shoulders and apply carefully a little water and soap from the bucket with your hand on its head and around ears, pull the animal out wrap in towels, make sure the house is well heated when you do this and make sure they're warm till completely dry
I used it on four kittens that I found under my deck about 8 weeks old and of course they were covered in fleas from being outside and it killed them right away there were a few more so I just bathed them again, it does work.
Yes it does kill fleas instantly and follow up with tree tea oil to soften the skin of the animal. It works great on your pet and with the tea tree oil it won't dry out their skin to much.
None of you are right. The best method to kill fleas on a cat (which I will say requires protection) drown the fleas. Put the cats underwater (not the head) for a good 2 or 3 mins and then bring the cat up and put a flea collar on it. Use a thick old coat to protect you arms and rubber gloves to protect your hands
If you wish to use shampoo make sure it is designed for cats as the shampoo you use could burn them. Nonetheless you cat will hate you for using shampoo on them.
