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My tiny kitten has bad fleas & red streaks in her poop. What to do?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Mixed Breed | Female | unspayed | 1 month and 2 days old

I took in this kitten because she was in a terrible home. She has fleas bad, but she isn’t old enough for the treatment. I tried washing her in dawn dish soap, but it did not do much at all. They are so bad that when we washed her, she started bleeding from the bites. It was so sad to see. She is so tiny, I don’t know what to do to cure her flea problem. Also, her stool is solid but with what seems to be strips of red looking things in it. What could that be?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Destini R. Holloway, DVM

Answered By Destini R. Holloway, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on December 3rd, 2019

Poor kitty. In order to know what the stuff in in her poop, we would need to see it. It could possibly be blood, so its best to get this checked out by your vet if you suspect its blood or if it continues to show up in the stools. You can also take a picture of it if it happens again and share it here on the forum so that we can give our best opinion on what it is and if it warrants a vet visit or not.

Often-times it takes several baths with dish dawn detergent to get rid of all the fleas. Subsequently you should also treat the house with a flea fogger (purchased from your local Lowes or Home Depot) or a spray such as Frontline that can be used on surfaces. The bleeding you saw when you washed her was likely mostly the fleas and bloody poop (flea dirt) insteda of Snowball actually bleeding. Check her skin for any signs of a serious infection and have this treated by your vet if needed.

Also, if Snowball is more than 2 lbs, then at this age she can have a flea product called Capstar (Nitenpyram). This will kill all remaining fleas within 1 hr, but is not a preventative, so the fleas can get back on her if she is exposed to them again, which is why it is so important to treat your home and not allow her outside until she can get on a regular flea preventative (Revolution). Revolution can be given to kittens as young as 8 weeks of age. : ) The capstar instant flea killer can be repeated daily if needed and again is safe for any kitten over the age of 4 weeks or more than 2 lbs.

In order to know what the stuff in in her poop, we would need to see it. It could possibly be blood, so its best to get this checked out by your vet if you suspect its blood or if it continues to show up in the stools.

I hope that this helps and best of luck moving forward with your kitty Snowball. Take care! : )
Vote Icon1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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