Excerpts from mail: 11-Mar-93 Ferret List Issue 434 by Ferret Mailing
List@ferr
> I did not
> see any flea shampo that said safe for kittens.  Is flea
> shampo safe for ferrets, or should I just get a flea spray
> that's safe for kittens?
 
I've been told to only use flea shampoo rated safe for cats, preferably
kittens. It's out there ...
 
> Also I read in a FLEA FAQ that said
> Borax may not be safe for ferrets.
 
I am not sure I agree with this, as I've seen some question of whether
it's safe for cats, too. In the past I've had a *horrible* flea problem
(apparently my back yard was infested big time) and the only thing that
finally stopped the flea bites on the ankles was sprinkling Borax in the
couch and on the carpet and working it in. I've been told since then
that if you work it in really well, you can even vacuum and enough stays
in the carpet to do the trick. I left it under the couch and under the
cushions and vacuumed the center of the room.
 
When it was lying around thick, I didn't let the ferrets out and
wouldn't let them under the couch or inside it while it was thick there,
either. (I exercised them in a different room of the house) But after a
couple weeks I was able to vacuum up the leftover Borax (and all the
little flea bodies) and I let the ferrets go then.
 
The Borax didn't seem to have any effect at all on any of the 3 cats or
(at that time) 3 ferrets. I am VERY sensitive to chemicals, etc.
(allergies and sinus problems) and it didn't bother me at all, either,
whereas the flea spray, bombs, etc. would send me into migraines. My
opinion is that Borax is better than the other flea chemicals I've tried
for safety and effectiveness.
 
On an amusing note, I got one of those "Happy Jack" flea traps with the
little light and sticky yellow pads. They work pretty well at catching
roving fleas, as well as mosquitos, gnats, moths, and FERRETS! :) The
kids let the ferrets out one evening without picking up the trap and in
short order we had a very angry ferret chittering, trying desperately to
get away from the horrible sticky-monster. :) Poor thing lost some fur
as I pulled it off, but seemed more than willing to trade some fur for
getting *away* from that thing! <wide grin> Of course, as soon as I got
it off her back (don't ask me now she managed to get it on her back
rather than her feet), she turned around and tried to *bite* it and got
it stuck on her face! Heh, heh. Silly ferret ... (all in a split second,
of course) Vegetable oil seems to remove the sticky pretty well, in case
someone else runs into this.
 
--Barb--
 
 
[Posted in FML issue 0436]