Any vets on here? Need advice about little red bugs.

[GothChick]

Hi,

So I recently adopted a farm kitten and I noticed she has little reddish/orange bugs crawling around on her. Does anyone know what they are or if they can spread to other animals or people? They aren't fleas. Also how would I get rid of them? Thanks so much for your help. I'm really hoping to find some information before going to the vet because I have ALOT of animals and I can't afford to bring them all to the vet at the same time if it spreads.

 

[CarrieW]

I don't have any idea what those bugs could be, but I noticed you had a Ragdoll, I have 7, arn't they the best???

 

[GothChick]

Yea they are AMAZING! I actually breed them but my female passed away. I hope to get another ragdoll queen soon. I plan to start breeding some Angoradoll hybrids soon. They are a huge thing around here.

 

[b.hromada]

Sounds like mites to me.

 

[easttxchick]

Not a vet, but it could be this:

http://www.livingwithbugs.com/mange.html

 

[GothChick]

Thanks for the help. I guess I should have added that it's not mange or mites. My sister has worked at the humane society for many years and she looked at the kitten and can't figure it out. She already ruled out mange and mites. The bugs are the wrong color and size. Also the kitten isn't itching and has no scabs. We are thinking it might be some kind of feline lice.

 

[Jenski]

Could it be chiggers? . . . they are common in TN, but this is the wrong time of year for them . . .

?

 

[GothChick]

Possibly.... but these are more line shaped. Also they don't seem to affect people. We have been handling the cat for a few days now and don't have any on us. Also they are mainly near her lower half of her body. She doesn't have any on her face that's why we didn't notice them right away. My sister finally noticed when she was clipping her back nails. I'm keeping her away from the other animals until I figure it out.

 

[chickendude]

Are you 100% sure they are not fleas. I have seen fleas that were a redish color.

 

[GothChick]

Yep. We used a flea comb and then she sprayed some kind on solution on the kitten and said if they were fleas it would change color. Nothing happened.