I have been battling the almighty flea for months now, even though all my cats stay indoors and we have not had a flea in here in 15 years. A foster cat I had brought in last winter had fleas and they must have hidden out then bred like crazy because 3 or 4 months after the cat left, I had an infestation.
Here in CT, it has been very humid and wet, so fleas have been thriving.
In any event, it wasn't until one of my cats started losing his fur and I brought him to the vet that the fleas were discovered, and then they exploded. Argh!
That was 5 months ago!
The first thing I had tried, a treatment I used years ago with complete success, was Frontline Plus. It didn't even put a dent in the flea population. After a couple of failed months of this, I added flea collars (believe it or not, I found the Bio Spot Flea Collar to be the best) along with the Frontline. No success. Then I tried Program and Capstar. The Capstar was perfect at killing the fleas that were on the cats but after a couple days they were back, despite the Frontline and flea collars. I was scared of poisoning my cats with all these treatments.
And, yes, through all of this, I worked at treating the house too.
In any event, I decided that once the weather got cold enough (it snowed today), I would thoroughly vacuum, toss the vacuum cleaner outside (ok, on the porch), then spray the house with a good flea killer (basement first, keeping the cats upstairs, then vice versa) and at the same time treat the cats with Capstar and one last dose of a spot on treatment. After spending hundreds on Frontline, Program, and other expensive treatments, I thought I would cut corners a bit and get Bio Spot On for Cats along with the Capstar.
Good thing I am the queen of research! I cannot find one good review or comment about Bio Spot On for Cats. As a matter of fact, just to let people know, I have read that it can cause major illnesses and even death! This is all from the research I have done online, just so no one thinks this is coming from me, but I love my "fur kids" like crazy and want to be sure they are safe. And I didn't read this from just one place. I really looked around.
Veterinarians are warning about it, yet it stays on the market. It's manufactured by Farnam, so I am suprised. I have used Farnam horse products for many years and they are a good name.
Just a note: The Bio Spot On for Dogs has also caused problems, yet seems to be worse in cats.
As a matter of fact, Bio Spot On has been blamed for seizures, hair loss, vomiting, general illness, muscle spasms and more. In all the years I used Frontline, the worst symptom I encountered was an allergy that caused hair loss. From what I have read, it is also a mess and keeps a greasy area on the cat for up to a week that can get all over the furniture.
Since I myself have not used Bio Spot On, I decided to use reviews and articles I found online. Below are a few reviews of Bio Spot On from Amazon.com:
Review One
This needs to be taken off the market. I bought this from Drs. Foster and Smith because of the price. It's such a mess and takes up to a week to dissipate on the cat. A couple of my cats acted as if it was stinging them and the others acted ill. I had returned the product and explained why and was refunded. I told my vet about the problem and he said to NEVER use this stuff. It's very toxic. He had experienced sick cats and lost 3 because of it. Why this is still marketed is beyond me. I suppose if one doesn't really care about the animal it's a good deal.
Review Two
I am very thankful for the honest people who left comments about this product. You have saved the life of a very, dear loved cat. I have used this product on my dogs with no problem. I used it on 2 cats. One cat is doing well, but my other cat got ill within 24 hrs of using this product. She initially seemed disorientated and walking funny, then vomitting, eventually leading to mild then severe seizures, wherein she couldn't stand up anymore. I am sorry to hear that other people have lost their cats to this product, but after watching one of my cats suffer through hours of seizures..I don't feel too comfortable recommending this product. I am happy to say that my cat is fine, so far...thanks to the advice of everyone that said to give her a bath in warm water. It was really heartbreaking for me to have to see her go through these seizures for what seemed endless hours and all I could do is hold her and give her what little comfort I could until the morning when I could get her to the vet. After a bath she gradually began doing much better within the hour, however the seizures continued but got milder and she began getting her appetite back and ability to stand. Yes, the product has been washed off of my other loved ones even though they showed no signs of illness. This was the first time I have ever had a problem with the product and have used it before in the past, but will not take the chance and ever use again.
Review Three (Petco)
I purchased this product for my 2 tabbys, 17 and 7 years old. First thing I noticed there was an awful lot of liquid to put on their necks! It dripped down around to the front and made them extremely uncomfortable. 2 days after applying the product their fur was so matted and oily we couldnt pet them! They were visibly miserable and then the fur around their necks started falling out! Will never use this product again!
NOTE: Not ALL reviews were bad. Some recommended the product because they had a good experience (I noticed most of these were people who only used the product once). This article is meant to warn you against some bad effects and allow you to make up your own mind.
This product seems to be worse for cats than dogs, although I did read cases of dogs who have had grand mal seizures after having this product used on them. Some animals are fine, others are not. Some are good on the first treatment then get sick on later treatments.
The way this product works is by sending a flea killer insecticide along with another poison that prevents flea eggs and larvae from developing into your pet's blood stream. The poison gets into the nervous system. Just like us, each animal's biological make-up is different, which is why this product is ok on some and not others. Also, subsequent treatments causing issues when the first doses did not may be because the drug may cause a slight bit of damage the first time and only "makes matters worse" so to speak as it is applied more than once.
As for Frontline, in my research, though I read no health issues, I did read many complaints about it not working. This is what happened to me. My cats were even "double dosed" (meaning I used 2 doses in a month, which is not recommended but the cats were carefully watched and I am "an expert" with a 24/7 vet on hand and that I consult with on everything. After a week, the cats had fleas again.
So, I am still working on ridding the house of fleas once and for all (and the next time a foster cat comes in, I will guarantee it is flea-free first), but I will NOT be buying Bio Spot On for Cats.
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