Why are there red dots on my cat's bedding? Is it flea dirt?

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It sounds like Sonny does have fleas. The tiny red dots are flea poops (dried blood) that are now wet/rehydrated. I recommend contacting your vet for flea prevention medication to use every 30 days. Over the counter products don’t work and can be dangerous for cats. If you use a veterinary products you won’t need flea collars or flea baths (which also don’t work). You need to treat all pets in the home every 30 days. You should also get a home treatment, follow the directions and vacuum all flooring and surfaces well then throw out the bag. If you do this every 30 days as directed you should be flea free in 3-4 months. Good luck and kisses to Sonny!

This could be due to different causes such as fleas, an allergy, an infection or mites. First of all, in order to rule out skin parasites, you will need to treat with a high quality flea treatment, then ask the vet to perform a skin scrape - this might reveal an infection or a mite infestation. If all of those came back negative, the next step is to treat the allergy symptomatically and try to discover the cause of the allergy. Three main type of allergies are usually affecting pets: food allergies, flea and parasite related ones and environmental type (allergens coming from trees, pollens, dust etc etc). Some medications can be given by the vet in order to repair any possible skin lesions (like steroids and antibiotics). Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.

This could indeed be from fleas or bed bugs. Check your mattress well for bed bugs. As for fleas, do the following: 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 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. Flea products: Spot-ons and/or chews Advantage, Advantix Advantage Multi (Advocate in the UK) Frontline (ticks as well) Bravecto spot on (ticks as well) - for cats, in tablet form for dogs Simparica, Nexgard Revolution (stronghold in the UK) Tablets: comfortis (will only kill fleas once) Collar: Seresto (ticks as well) House spray: Indorex

The reddish color in the water comes from the flea poop (or "flea dirt", as it's often called). This looks like little black specks in the fur. The black specks are actually digested blood from the fleas, and will turn red in water. So this is nothing to worry about, just a normal part of having fleas. Once you get rid of the fleas, you should stop seeing the reddish color in the water :) I would suggest using a good quality monthly flea medication such as Stronghold or Advocate - you can get these from your vet. They're generally safer and much more effective than over-the-counter flea meds for cats.

Hello, I am sorry to hear about Luna. It is possible that the debris you are seeing on her fur could be flea dirt, a byproduct that is present when animals have fleas. If Luna is not currently on a flea product I would recommend applying a topical product designed specifically for cats. If the debris does not resolve or gets worse having Luna seen by your veterinarian to make sure there are no other abnormalities on her skin is reasonable. Hope this helps, good luck!

Ticks will feed until engorged then drop off and lay eggs. Fleas will also hop off and lay eggs in the environment. You can check for flea dirt with a wet cotton ball. Rub some of the "dirt" on the wet cotton ball. If rust colored streaks appear, this is flea dirt. If not, it is likely ordinary dirt, grime, dead skin cells, etc. Fleas be treated using a topical or oral preventative. Discuss options with your veterinarian. You will need to treat for at least three consecutive months, preferably year round. Treat the environment as well. Vacuum everywhere Gab has been and discard the bag outdoors. Wash all bedding in hot water and use an area treatment, such as Knockout ES, prevent reinfestation.

Hello, thank you for using PetCoach. This looks like flea dirt. If you put "cat flea dirt" into a Google search you will see many photos that resemble this. I suggest you get her a GOOD flea prevention and treat your house and/or yard for fleas. You can bathe her if she will let you with Dawn dish soap. Use the dish soap sparingly as it is very concentrated. Be sure to rinse it off thoroughly. You should only need to bathe her once. Bathe her either 24 hour before OR after applying the topical flea medication. If you can't bathe her, don't worry too much about it. Once the medication kicks in and you treat the environment her clinical signs will resolve. I have linked some products for you below: ( https://worldtails.securevetsource.com/itemView/view/223965_HomeDelivery.pml?productId=120766 ) ( https://www.amazon.com/Virbac-Knockout-Treatment-Spray-16-Ounce/dp/B00AT6FY6A/ ) ( https://www.amazon.com/Black-Flag-Killer-Concentrate-Treatment/dp/B071XPK8M8/ ) Be sure to continue to use a topical flea prevention on her EVERY MONTH. Watch her poop closely in the coming months as often cats will get tapeworms from ingesting fleas. If you see any worms (look like grains of rice) on her poop or around her anus you should take her to your vet to get a dewormer. Hope this helps. Best wishes.