Question
Four months ago, I rescued a cat who had been living on the streets. When she was first rescued we noticed she was covered (particularly on her hind end) with little brown ovals adhered to the end of her fur shafts. The ASPCA and then our own private vet confirmed for us that these ovals were the eggs of cat lice.
She has since been treated with selamectin (brand name: Revolution) for the last 4 months. Her fur has gotten much healthier - smoother, thicker, and with a nice sheen - and she no longer scratches.
But she is still covered with these lice eggs. We have tried combing them out with a lice comb, spot bathing her, given her an actual bath, etc. and nothing works to remove them. The only way they are lessening is through the natural shedding of her own fur.
Is this normal? Our vet was surprised that they are not coming off with combing and bathing, but our vet also said that she isn't very experienced with cat lice since it's less common on indoor cats (which our vet primarily treats.) She's recommending we shave her at this point.
Also, as a final note - it seems like these are dead eggs. We have never seen actual lice on her, she does not itch, and she's now gone through multiple treatments of selamectin plus a bath. But the fact that these eggs are so difficult to remove concerns me.
Answer
Answering my own question now that I've resolved the issue in case it's helpful for anyone in the future - we shaved her a little over 3 weeks ago to physically remove the lice. My partner distracted her with a lickable treat while I used a pair of clippers with a long-ish guard (so she wouldn't be totally bald from the process and to help protect against me accidentally clipping her skin.) This was a pretty smooth process, 99% of the eggs are now gone and no more have shown up since. We will still treat her with a monthly flea/tick/lice preventative to be extra safe!
I still can't understand why these eggs lingered and if this is normal in the case of lice, but at least shaving her as resolved it.
Answered By - Lizzie F