The Flea Situation Update

One of Petey's faithful fans suggested that we try flea treatments for cats because they could be milder than the dog treatments. I thought it was a fine suggestion and mentioned it to John in front of Petey. I wish I had a video of the moment. It was as if Petey understood exactly what we were saying. He laid his ears all back and looked sad & pitiful, as if to say "Please don't put cat stuff on me." While we aren't sure that Petey knows he is a dog, he does know he is not a cat.

So far, Petey has been spared the cat treatment. There are two reasons for this. First neither one of us has been to the store to get one. And second, we haven't seen any more fleas. He was still gnawing at his backside so we decided it was residual itchiness left over from the bites, sort of like a mosquito bite. AHA!! Why not put some Benadryl lotion on his bites like we do ours. What a fine idea!!!

So I did. I rubbed Petey down good with it, and he really didn't resist very much because I think the rubbing felt good on the itchies. Suddenly, it occurred to me that it wouldn't be a very good idea to ingest that stuff. I knew Petey would immediately try to lick it off, and the bottle said contact poison control if ingested. I had killed Petey!!!

For the next hour, I diligently watched him and would not let him do anything close to licking the area where I'd slathered on the death potion. I slept fitfully that night, not knowing if I'd find Petey alive. I was so thankful to hear the little tinkle of his dog tags as he came in to greet me the next morning.

That afternoon, after returning from work, John & I both noticed that Petey was much calmer and not gnawing at himself at all. So...it didn't kill him the night before, why not try again. This time I was a little more sparing with the lotion and he didn't balk at all. I think it must be soothing to him almost immediately. Generally, Petey does not like to be bothered - about anything!! I put a little more on tonight, and he's left himself alone. We may be on to something here - as long as the fleas stay away.