Cat-safe mosquito repellent?
I am, ahem, itching to camp on the Bruce Trail (Ontario, Canada) in July. I have two kittens at home.
What should I use as mosquito repellent? I am afraid to use the ubiquitous DEET-based spray as it poisonous to cats (and my kittens are fairly small, so it doesn't take much).
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I also ty to avoid chemical mosquito repellents, but I am quite successful with appropriate clothing to repel mosquitos. It really helps a lot and you do not have to apply it again and again throughout the day. Mosquito nets for the head for example may look a bit silly and impair vision a little bit. But they are very effective to keep insects away from your head. Similar things are true for trousers, shirts etc. If you keep this in mind when selecting clothes you can reduce chemical repellants a lot (I hardly use them at all).
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As one of the minority of the population that cannot use DEET (it makes my skin burn!) I use plant-based solutions. There are several options on the market that use either citronella or geraniol or a combination of both, and I find they work well enough for my needs. Plus, in addition to being safe for dogs and cats, some people are using them intentionally on their pets as flea repellents. See here and here.
Further, although irrelevant to the question, is the increasing concern that just as we humans created staph that resists our antibiotics, we are also creating mosquitoes that resist DEET. So switching to a different repellent could help in more ways than one.
Enjoy your hike, and the safe return to your kittehs.
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Conside using Picaridin which has similar effectiveness as DEET, but with fewer risks. I would of course try to avoid overexposing your cat to it due to thier grooming behaviors, i don’t think incidental contact with you after outdoor activities will pose a strong risk.
I found some references here that it should be safer for cats:https://novacatclinic.com/how-can-i-protect-my-cat-from-mosquitos/
I’ve also heard that there are no published scientific studies to back this up with more concrete evidence based proof. This is likely because Picaridin is a much newer product on the market, only approved for use in the U.S. in 2005 and europe in 1998.
I would definitely continue to avoid DEET and Permethrin due to known toxicity in cats.
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One strategy is to use whatever repellent you want, but, if it harmful to cats, thoroughly shower and wash your hair and change into uncontaminated clothes after your trip and before you get home. Wash the contaminated clothes at a friend's house or at a Laundromat, put them in an uncontaminated bag and throw the contaminated bag away. That is, take no contaminated clothing, skin, hair or other objects home.
This is a lot of trouble -- true, but these are kittens and worth a lot of trouble. My only reservation -- will you do this as fanatically as necessary for the kittens? ab2, aka cat lover
Edit in Response to Comment from @Wigwam: OOPS! You need to check out how easily the skeeter repellent washes out. "This is good advice, but know that you can't easily wash permethrin out of clothes. When professionally treating clothes, permethrin can survive dozens of washings. But if you DIY from a bottle you buy at Wal-Mart, that can survive 5 or 6 washings."
Addendum: See the answer of @Alexander, which, IMO is the simplest and most elegant and most foolproof way to safeguard the kittens.
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