I used Hartz on my 9 year old cat Mikki and a few days later he was lethargic and made the most horrible meow I have ever heard. I immediatley took him to the vet. I was told that he was poisoned by the flea medicine and was as close to death as he could get and this was not the first case they had. It was at least the 10th case they have had in 3 months. We were lucky, others had died. We were able to bring him home a few days later. Unfortunately, he is now back at the vets again. This time with a complication due to the poisoning. He now has a liver problem and has been at the vets for over a week. They say he should make a full recovery. I feel blessed that I have such a great vet. Others have not been so lucky. It is horrible that these products are still on the market.
Your pets are an extension of your family. They provide unconditional love and friendship. I feel for every single person that has lost a member of their family due to these harmful products.
4 Comments Received
January 16th, 2009 @11:06 am
Hi Shanna,
I am the Hartz in-house veterinarian – I’m so sorry to hear about Mikki’s experience and glad to hear he is feeling better now.
Can you recall the name of the Hartz product referenced in your post, because the reaction you describe is not typical for any of our flea and tick treatments for cats? Usually, if Mikki was to experience any reaction to a Hartz flea & tick product, it would manifest within the first 12 to 24 hours after treatment and not take a few days to show symptoms. This gives us an indication that Mikki’s health issue would not be related to whichever flea & tick product you used but more likely due to a pre-existing condition, and I recommend that your veterinarian conduct diagnostic testing on Mikki to gain further insight.
Also, I must clear up any misunderstanding about the toxicity of Hartz flea and tick products. Unfortunately, there is a lot of incorrect and misleading information about the toxicity of Hartz products on the internet and I understand that it is easy for consumers to be confused. You should know that Hartz UltraGuard flea and tick topical spot treatments for cats are non-systemic. In other words, the treatment does not penetrate the skin, NEVER enters the blood stream and, therefore, could not cause Mikki’s liver problems. Once applied to the skin between the shoulder blades, through the process of translocation, the active ingredient in the product is carried across the skin on the surface of the cat’s body by the natural oils associated with fur follicles. When applied according to labeled instructions, this treatment is entirely safe. The formula contains the active ingredient etofenprox, which has been rated by the EPA in the lowest toxicity category of any pet pesticide active ingredient on the market; with lower toxicity than either of the active ingredients in the two leading vet brands.
I’m very interested in your case and would appreciate the opportunity to speak with your vet and offer any assistance. I would also like to be available to you to offer you any help regarding Mikki and to answer any questions you may have about Hartz products. You can reach me at [email protected].
Dr. Melinda
The Hartz Mountain Corporation
January 17th, 2009 @12:17 pm
Dr. Melinda,
What we used on Mikki was Hartz UltraGuard One Spot Treatment for cats. You state that the treatment never penetrates and is carried across the skin. What happens if he licks himself or licks another cat that has the treatment on their skin? Does it not enter his body at that time?
Mikki has been a VERY healthy cat. When I took him to my vet I told him what I had done in the last week in regards to Mikki. My vet was the one that told me he had been poisoned by the flea treatment. The problem that he had with his liver was because he lost a lot of weight due to the trauma his body went through when he was poisoned.
I find it hard to beleive that so many people have had problems with Hartz products and it is all “misleading information”.
Shanna
January 26th, 2009 @11:19 pm
Are you in California? Looking for flea products victims to do a news story.
Contact [email protected]
Thank you
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