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Cats itching after Advantage Multi, suspecting chewing lice. What now?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Domestic Shorthair | Male | neutered | 13.2 lbs

I treated my cats with advantage multi and they are itching all the time. I believe it is chewing lice. I applied advantage on 8/26/17. Do the have to suffer for 30 days?

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Vanessa Yeager DVM MPH

Veterinarian

Published on September 5th, 2017

Hi and thank you for your question on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Unfortunately Advantage Multi is not labeled for use in cases of chewing lice. It is indicated for fleas, ear mites, heart worm prevention, hookworms and roundworms in cats which may explain why they are still itching. Frontline Plus is a good topical treatment that covers fleas, ticks, and chewing lice. In order not to overload their systems, I would wait until 9/26/2017 to apply the Frontline Plus if you believe it is chewing lice, although I would have a veterinarian diagnosis this first. They may be itching because they have a flea allergy and sometimes when the fleas die off after product administration this can cause itching. I would wait and see if the itching decreases in a few days with the advantage multi and if not, have them seen by a veterinarian. Best wishes to you and Neko!

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Other Answers

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    Answered By Laura Johnson VMD

    Veterinarian

    Published on

    Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor guys! Maybe you can bring one of the bugs in to your Vet to have them look at it to confirm it is lice. You can use Frontline spray every 2 weeks or Revolution every 2 weeks. You can also bathe them in lime sulfur dip. The life cycle is 3-4 weeks so it will take 3-6 weeks to get rid of the infestation. You may just need to give the Advantage multi more time. Please contact your Veterinarian to have the infestation confirm and to discuss the off label use of the above drugs. They can tell you if they are comfortable with you using a different product sooner than 30 days since they are familiar with their overall health. I hope this helps! Good luck!

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