3 Best Cat Flea Collars to Destroy Fleas
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What is the best cat flea collar to help keep your cat happy and healthy?
Cats fleas are an annoying problem that can present a health hazard for cats and humans alike.
A flea collar is a helpful strategy to help control the flea population, along with regular cleaning.
In this article, I’ll help you find the best flea collar for fast and effective relief.
My name is Derrick, and I write for Simply Cat Care.
My goal with this website is to help cat owners learn more about taking care of their cats. I am not a veterinarian and I recommend seeking the advice of a vet for any further questions.
In this article, I’ll help you with cat flea collar product suggestions, a buying guide, and answer some frequently asked questions.
Let’s get into the article.
Product Review: Best Cat Flea Collars
Best Cat Flea Collar Overall
Seresto Flea and Tick Collar for Cats
Why Do I Recommend This Product?
The Seresto Flea and Tick Collar for Cats is a clinically proven treatment to control fleas fast and effectively.
This product’s active ingredient is imidacloprid with a combination of flumethrin. These ingredients target the nervous system of invertebrates (fleas and ticks) and paralyze them.
The main benefit of this collar is it provides up to eight months of relief from fleas.
The downsides of this collar are the risk of skin irritation along your cat’s neck and cost.
Product Details
- Age range: All ages
- Product weight: 0.22 pounds
- Active ingredients: Imidacloprid and flumethrin
- Usage length: 8 months
Best Cat Flea Collar Natural
SOBAKEN Flea Collar for Cat, Natural Flea Collar
Why Do I Recommend This Product?
The SOBAKEN Flea Collar for Cats is a natural alternative that kills fleas, ticks, and lice.
The main benefits of this collar are the affordable price and reduced risk of skin irritation. The product contains citronella oil, a well-known insect repellent.
The downside of this product is there aren’t any clinical trials on the use of this ingredient in cat flea collars. Also, the amount of citronella oil used isn’t stated on the product.
Product Details
- Age range: All cats aged 3 months up
- Product weight: 2.08 ounches
- Active ingredient/s: Citronella oil
- Usage length: 8 months
Best Cat Flea Collar Alternative
Cheristin for Cats Topical Flea Treatment
Why Do I Recommend This Product?
Cheristin for Cats Topical Flea Treatment is a dropper alternative to flea collars. It uses a powerful treatment to kill fleas, ticks, and lice.
The main benefits of this product are its fast and effective destruction of fleas.
This product uses spinetoram, an effective flea treatment. The result of using an 11.2% concentration of spinertoram was at least a 95% or greater reduction in the adult flea population over a period of 60 days.
The main downside of this product is occasional mild hair loss. It also creates more owner involvement using the dropper.
Product Details
- Age range: All cats 8 weeks or older weighing 1.8 lbs or more
- Product weight: 1.13 ounces
- Active ingredient: Spinetoram
- Usage length: 6 weeks
Guide to Choosing a Cat Flea Collar
Let’s cover some key things to know about before looking into buying a cat flea collar. We should always educate ourselves on why a flea collar would be a good option versus another option.
Flea collars represent a simple solution for many cat owners, but there may be some risks associated with their use.
Let’s go into more detail about fleas and cat flea collars.
What Ingredients Should I Look For?
Cat flea collars and other treatments use ingredients designed to, well, kill fleas.
It goes without saying that chemicals designed to kill fleas are potentially dangerous if used in the wrong way.
Let’s look at some common ingredients and whether to avoid them.
Tetrachlorvinphos
This is an organophosphorus insecticide used for decades.
The chemical metabolites to trichlorophenylethanol and trichloromandelic acid for excretion. The drug inhibits the nervous system of fleas at high enough doses.
In dogs, the chemical metabolizes effectively at doses found in over-the-counter collars.
Safety is unknown in cats.
I recommend avoiding this chemical.
Propoxur
Long-term symptoms of toxicity include:
- Neurological damage
- Paralysis
- Death
I recommend avoiding this chemical.
Flumethrin & Imidacloprid
Flumerethrin affects the voltage-gated sodium channel of invertebrates.
Imidacloprid works synergistically with flumerthrin to keep the sodium channels open and kill the insect.
These chemicals have low toxicity and high efficacy in controlling flea and tick populations in cats.
Essential Oils
Over 200 essential oils are available on the market.
People commonly use them with diffusers for health.
Many essential oils are toxic to cats. I wrote an article about essential oil safety for cats over here.
A few common essential oils that are safe to use around your cat include:
- Lavender
- Copaiba
- Helichrysum
- Frankincense
It is unknown whether these oils are effective at treating fleas.
Read more about home remedies over here.
Bottom Line: Many treatments aren’t proven as safe and effective. Always use caution.
What Should I Look For When Buying A Cat Flea Collar?
Here are some criteria for choosing a flea collar for cats.
- Does not contain tetrachlorvinphos and propoxur
- Elastic collar design
- Lab-tested for safety (preferably from an independent source)
- Water-resistant
- Safe for human contact
- Adjustable sizing options
- All ingredients are clearly listed on the product for review
- Ingredients have shown efficacy in reducing flea and tick infestation
I recommend researching each ingredient thoroughly before purchasing a cat flea collar.
Bottom Line: Use this checklist when buying a cat flea collar and research all ingredients.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Are Fleas?
Fleas are external parasites.
Many different types of flea are unique to different types of animals.
The fleas will feed on your pet’s blood, consuming 15x its body weight in blood per day.
Female adults will lay 40-50 eggs per day on your cat. The eggs will hatch into small worms and then enter a cocoon state for 1-4 weeks before hatching.
A female adult lays over 2,000 eggs in her lifetime.
Eggs transfer to surfaces your cat will come into contact with.
Bottom Line: Fleas are parasites that feed on the blood of cats and other animals.
Why Are Fleas A Problem?
Fleas can serve as hosts for many serious diseases such as:
- Tapeworms
- Cat scratch fever
Cats may also suffer wounds from scratching.
Some cats may also groom to try to remove the fleas, and develop allergies and mouth sores.
Kittens are susceptible to anemia from blood loss. A symptom of this is pale gums.
If you notice any changes in your cat’s health, contact a vet for help.
Bottom Line: Fleas transmit diseases such as worms and cause skin irritation.
How Do Cat Flea Collars Work?
A cat flea collar has ingredients to kill fleas.
There are three types of methods that are on the market:
- Absorption
- Gas
- Ultrasound
The main treatment is absorption, with a pesticide. The pesticide absorbs into your cat’s skin and poisons the flea when they feast on blood.
Bottom Line: Cat flea collars usually apply a pesticide absorbed into your cat’s skin that kills fleas.
Do Cat Flea Collars Really Work?
Yes.
However:
There are many cat flea collars on the market using unproven ingredients.
Some products promote themselves as being natural.
Even natural ingredients can be toxic to cats and humans alike.
A collar containing imidacloprid and flumethrin is effective at controlling flea and ticks.
Bottom Line: Cat flea collars work, but many products use unproven ingredients.
Are Cat Flea Collars Toxic?
Flea and tick collars contain a variety of powerful pesticides.
Some of these chemicals may pose a risk to your or your cat’s health.
Some collars contain tetrachlorvinphos and propoxur which are potential carcinogens at high doses.
The pesticide residues from collars remain on the fur even after removing the collar.
A non-profit research organization, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) found that a collar worn for 3 days will leave enough residue to last two weeks.
Importantly, the residue is transferrable to humans via touch. Cats can also ingest chemicals via grooming.
There have been wide reports of flea collars leading to health complications or even death in cats and dogs. Many of these reports are anecdotal and are not supported with veterinarian medical and toxicology reports. That said, some flea collars may contain ingredients that are harmful to the animal.
Also, keep in mind that a collar might be safe for a dog but not for a cat. This is due to differences in cat metabolism. Never use a dog collar on a cat.
Bottom Line: Cat flea collars use ingredients that vary in safety. Check the ingredients before use.
Are Natural Cat Flea Collars Safe?
Not necessarily.
Just because something is natural, does not mean it is always safe. This is an ‘Appeal to Nature’ fallacy.
Many essential oils are toxic to cats at a high enough concentration. I wrote more about that in this helpful article over here.
Check each ingredient and ensure that it is safe – whether it is natural or not.
Bottom Line: Natural does not mean safe. Research ingredients before use.
What Cat Flea Collars Do Vets Recommend?
This will vary from vet to vet.
Some vets do not recommend cat flea collars.
It will depend on your individual situation. Cat flea collars are a controversial choice for many due to the potential risks.
The best thing you can do is educate yourself on the benefits and risks of each product you intend to use.
Bottom Line: Check with your vet for flea treatment recommendations.
What Other Treatments Kill Cat Fleas?
There are oral and topical treatments that kill cat fleas.
These treatments have their own benefits that might be more desirable to owners but don’t have the convenience of a cat flea collar.
I have recommended one topical product as an alternative in this article.
Bottom Line: There are oral and topical treatments that kill cat fleas.
Do Cat Flea Collars Kill Ticks and Lice?
Imidacloprid and flumethrin based collars are shown to reduce the risk of the tick, but not lice infestation over an 8 month period.
These chemicals directly inhibit the cell nervous system function of invertebrates.
A cat flea collar with the active ingredients imidacloprid and flumethrin kills fleas and ticks.
Bottom Line: A cat flea collar with imidacloprid and flumethrin kills ticks and fleas.
Are Cat Flea Collars Needed?
I recommend cat flea collars as a secondary flea and tick treatment strategy.
As a primary strategy, you should be doing the following things to combat fleas (read more about that in this helpful article):
- Regular vacuuming of all surfaces (replacing the vacuum bag after each use)
- Steam carpet cleaning
- Regular washing of pet bedding, covers, sheets, and pillowcases
- Using an insect growth regulator (IGR) spray to prevent the growth of adult fleas on pet bedding, carpets, and other areas
- Keeping grass cut short for outdoor cats (or limited outdoor range)
- Regular flea combing
If all those are not enough to completely tackle a flea and tick problem, then look into a cat flea collar as an extra preventative measure.
Carefully examine each ingredient and ensure you are comfortable with what you fit on your cat.
Check the individual product with your veterinarian before purchase to see if the product is right for your cat.
Check out my guide to effective flea prevention strategies to learn how to destroy fleas without a collar.
Bottom Line: The best way to control fleas is to regularly clean your house with vacuuming, dusting, and disinfecting.
Conclusion: The Best Cat Flea Collar
In this article, I’ve talked about the best cat flea collars.
Cat fleas and ticks are problematic to the health of your cat. They result in skin irritation and parasites such as worms.
The best way to control fleas is to maintain a rigorous cleaning schedule and use a flea comb to remove eggs from the skin. Flea collars help with fast relief from fleas to support your cat.
Always check the ingredients of the product carefully before use. Some cat flea collars use unproven treatments that may not be safe or effective.
Verdict: The Best Cat Flea Collar Overall
Seresto Flea and Tick Collar for Cats
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