Tag: Flea

This was way back in 1989 but the emotional trauma of what I suffered watching my 3 kittens die is still very much with me. I had a female cat that I rescued from outside my home one winter, she gave birth to three kittens, adorable little tabbies. We fell in-love instantly and named them. There was Cricket, Buddy & Peanut. When they turned 16 weeks old I felt they were old enough to bathe in a flea shampoo to rid them of the fleas momma cat has passed on to them at birth. And according to HARTZ’S FLEA SHAMPOO instructions they only had to be at least 12 weeks old for their product to be safely used. So being that these kittens were 16 weeks old I felt safe in using it. BIG MISTAKE! I applied the shampoo as instructed and within MINUTES, ALL THREE STARTED RUNNING IN CIRCLES AND MEWING URGENTLY WITH A FRIGHTENED LOOK ON THEIR FACES. Soon after Cricket started foaming at her little mouth and gasping for air, Buddy started having foam come out his NOSE and MOUTH, Peanut grew very weak and listless and flopped over like a dead fish and lay gasping for air mewing in silent cries. I rushed them to the sink and re-rinsed them over and over as they grew weaker in my hands. I would rinse one and pass it to my (then 9 years old) daughter to dry off and try to rub them back to life, while I rinsed the other and so on. Finally 10 minutes into the horrific ordeal I panicked and called the emergency number of a local vet who said that it sounded like they had been poisoned and were too far gone to do anything for them because by the time “they start foaming the poison has entered their blood stream and it’s too late to save them” quote, un-quote. The vet also suggested I keep rinsing them with clear water and maybe they might pull out of it but to prepare for the worst. I crying started begging him to come help me, I would pay him holiday pay and after hours pay to just come so these babies wouldn’t suffer as they were literally suffocating in this thick foam oozing from their noses and mouths. He apologized and said there was nothing he could do for them, to call animal control and maybe they could help me. I called animal control and the lady who said there was nothing they could do either still came over quickly because I told her that I wanted a witness to what we were seeing and what the kittens were suffering. She sat with me and we ALL cried as we held these tiny babies in our hands watching them grow more and more listless and cold, all the while making gasping mewing movements with their tiny mouths like fish out of water,silent screams for help and gasping to try to get air in their lungs to breathe. They lived for another 30 minutes. Suffering ungodly pain and torture as they suffocated to death in this poisonous foam. My daughter had nightmares for months afterwards and she and I both still cry at the memories of how these kittens suffered. I called Hartz the very next day-a Monday-and was told that they had never had any complaints before and that they would gladly send me a box to return the actual bottle of shampoo to them for inspection. I stated that without the bottle I would have no proof of what I had used and what if it disappeared or was mysteriously lost in the mail? They assured me this would not happen and they would insure that I was advised of every step that bottle made from arrival to the results of their testing. So I agreed and sent them the bottle. And waited for their call. It never came. I ended up (almost to the point of harassment) calling and calling them for days on end for three months and nothing. Finally almost 4 months later I was able to reach an actual Hartz person because I threatened to sue them, and was firmly told they had NO RECORD of my name, my calling, or ANY complaints from anyone and did I have the bottle to prove it was their product I had used. I hung up in frustration and have vowed to insure no other cats are EVER killed by Hartz products again and voice it to anyone willing to listen. HARTZ PRODUCTS KILL CATS! PERIOD. And Hartz is insensitive and could care less because they are protected by bylaws and wordy powerful attorneys who know how to manipulate the system to insure they are not held accountable. So the next best thing is to boycott their products until they’re removed from consumer markets. DON’T BUY HARTZ PRODUCTS. Please! Save yourselves the heartache my daughter and I still keenly feel to this day….and If you value your sanity and the lives of your cats DO NOT USE HARTZ PRODUCTS ON THEM EVER!!!