Fleas Fleas Go Away

[timborow]

OK guys, I have been infested by fleas. I don't have carpet or pets. Last Saturday, I set off a Hot Shot Bomb. It helped some, but still had to have an exterminator come in on Monday. He said that the fleas had come in from outside. You see, I put out 50 bales of pine straw in my flower beds. He said that fleas loved it. Ok now I know. He also said the fleas would be gone in 7-10 days. I am so ready for them to LEAVE! I have vacuumed my throw rugs and upholstery every day. I have used every vacuum I own and changed the bag each time. Has this happened to anyone else? Does anyone have any suggestions? I know with the wealth of knowledge in this place, someone must have a hint or two.
Have a great day,
Tim

 

[mixfinder]

What a Deal

There is Goodwill Outlet that sells everything by the pound. I bought a chair and ottoman for $9.69.

It took a few weeks and and then trips to the doctor to look at the terrible itching bumps on my legs.

It all started in December and the puzzle just solved a week ago.

I had the carpets steam cleaned, set off a flea bomb in every room and two in the larger ones. Sprayed all the furniture and put flea powder around the baseboards.

Threw the chair and ottoman away.

Now, the cycle of hatch and spray before new eggs are laid, begins.

Yuck.

Kelly

 

[irishwashguy]

I went to my vet and-----------

It seems that my little house always falls victom of fleas when the season arrives. This year was no exception. I went to my vet and was given some great advice for getting rid of fleas. I will give you the info that she gave me.
#1-----Vacuum--all rugs and carpets,furnature, especiallybetween and under cushions couches.Remove and dispose of vacuum bag,(it sounds like you are)

#2------Mop all concrete and vinyl floors.
#3------Floors, including closet floors, must be cleared of all objects to give you access to all floor surfaces.
#4------spray a light mist of Siphotrol Plus II Premise spray thoughout your house. repeat in 10-14 days if needed/---It says that adult fleas are only 5 percent of the flea problem
I had to do this at my house, and biy!!! Was it fun. I even bombed a while back, and it seemed that they did not want to go.I hope that this is helpful Ritchie

 

[irishwashguy]

and also------

I wiped down all of the baseboards with soap and water.They hate soap and water. 20 Mule Team borax is great for getting rid of Fleas.Borax naturally kills Fleas, and a few other critters.----I hope that this helps, Ritchie

 

[aamassther]

Frontline is very effective, just place a drop between your shoulder blades.....

Just kidding, fleas are a very serious problem and difficult to get rid of once they take hold. As an owner of 2 dogs and 2 cats I know! Please be careful with using the pesticides, they are usually organophosphates or nerve gas types of chemicals. I stopped using them many years ago. If I need to, I use either a natural pyrethrin based product or diatomateous earth. Diatomateous earth, like borax, is a silica type of powder that essentially mascerates the little buggers insides. You can find it at pool supply stores or pet stores that are more naturally focused. It's safer than borax, I've put it on the dogs before, wouldn't dare do it with the borax which has been purported to contain traces of arsenic. Pyrethrins are natural insecticide derived from chrysanthemums(sp?), you can either get it in spray or powder form(I like the powder). You can also use a product with l-limolene as well, I don't have alot of experience with it, but it's supposed to be an effective spray. I sprinkle the diatomateuos earth on the carpet and my furniture and around the pet areas, like the borax. Hope this helps, just wanted to give you an alternative to the chemical route of this nasty problem. Good Luck, Todd

 

[panthera]

cats from pound

When I got my first set of cats from the pound they brought home fleas, worms, fungal infections...you name it, the poor kids had it.
And then some.
The worms were easy to get rid of. The fungal infections took forever but finally gave way.
The fleas...well, I am enough cooler than the human standard so they weren't interested in me. But my poor room-mate.
We got flea collars for the cats - and kept them in fresh collars for the entire 6 months the vet recommended. All our friends said we were mad, it was dangerous, etc.
Vacuumed/steam cleaned everything.
Did the 95° wash with everything and high-temp dryer cycle followed by hanging in the direct sun.
Planted marigolds all over the apartment, on every shelf, in front of every window.
After one week no more active problem - but it really did take the entire 6 months of flea collars and pyrethrins from the marigolds to kill off all of them.
The main thing is not to believe it is over just because the first battle has been won. And do be careful with the pesticides - talk to your vet first; if you have babies or kids (or someone with a compromised immune system) you may have to give up the place completely.
Since then, the cats and dogs I have got from the pound go in a rented car directly to my vet who gives them a very thorough check-up and flea-bath while I change my clothes completely. Shoes, shower - everything. Then home in another car. In the last 17 years have never had that problem again.
Oh - the marigold family is poisonous, so watch out for the kids.

 

[tomturbomatic]

One of the simplest and most pleasant ways to get them to leave is to buy some dried eucalyptus leaves like they sell in little bundles of maybe 3 stems at world bazarre and most flower places and place the stems with leaves attached along the baseboards. Mom has lots of allergies and one summer fleas got into the house with the dog. The eucalyptus worked wonders without giving her a reaction.

 

[peterh770]

I have hardwood floors throughout, and when I had a very bad flea infestation, nothing worked. I bombed 3-4 times, cleaned like a wildman, bathed and Frontlined the cats. They kept coming and coming. Here is how I got rid of them:

Go to Home Depot and buy this expensive, little brown bottle of "Precor". It is an insect growth inhibiting hormone. You dilute it in 1 gallon of water, add 1/4 cup of Murphy's Oil Soap, and thoroughly mop the floors, letting the solution get down in all the cracks and crevases.

Remarkably, there was a huge difference in 24 hours, and in about 72 hours, the house was flea free.

 

[sudsmaster]

Precor is great stuff, but it won't kill the adult fleas, just the larvae (they just keep growing until they burst, they never turn into adult fleas).

Frontline Plus has chemicals that kill both the adult fleas and Precor to kill the larvae. It works great; I've used it with great success on my two cats. I analyzed the ingredients, and now use a Hartz product that is available at the supermarket - same stuff - and it's a lot cheaper. I also use the biggest dog formulation. Again, I was careful to make sure it was exactly the same active ingredients as the cat formulation) and this saves even more money. It has much more liquid in each does than the cat version; I just use a few drops each time on each cat and save the rest for the next month.

I used to put "Advantage" on my cats, until one started having a nervous reaction to it. She would twitch and jump after getting dosed. She also really hated the stuff, and would run if she got a whiff of it. Now she doesn't seem to mind the Frontline Plus formulation near as much, although I still have to sneak it on her. The other cat could care less - he's that way.

 

[sudsmaster]

You can also buy the Precor stuff in a spray bottle to treat large areas of the home. But since I started using Frontline Plus and its clones, haven't needed to use it. Any fleas that jump on the cats get dosed and soon go to the great flea place in hell where they belong. Which is probably full of ants that eat little fleas.

I have heard of fleas invading lawns; but I don't know what pine straw is (is it pine shavings?) and I'm surprised fleas like it as well. I'd think the piney scent would repel them.

 

[pushtorelease]

AND..... if you have a hot air heating system, make sure you get the vents and ducts. My house was infested a number of years ago and it wasn't until I vacuumed out the ducts that I acutally FINALLY got rid of them.

 

[mr_sparkle]

Same Fleas?

Just wondering is you are talking about the same thing when we mention fleas - fleas to me are the animal type your cat or dog brings in, and i never seen that as a problem. fleas need a host, and thats why you get them with anumals, i never heard of fleas living in wood shavings? Thats why i was wondering if they were fleas or some other pest.

Oh and we have a great fflea killer in the UK, I bet you can get it in the US too., Its natural, and a contraption about the size of a dinner plate. It has a light in the top and a sticky pad in the bottom. Basically the light goes on and off at intervals and it catches the fleas on the sticky pad.

Aparantly fleas will wait in te carpet for a host to pass, like a cat of dog, they sense the host via a change in light, e,g when a shadow is cast they all jump thinking a host is near or passing. The lightbulb simulates this shadow / light and gets the fleas jumping to there death on the sticky trap, clean, effective and chemical free!!

if that dosnt work..... BREAK OUT THE DDT!!!!

he he he

 

[kevinpreston8]

Interesting thread, my experience

The last few months have been an itching nightmare here. Amazing others are having problems.

It started with me. Itchy fleabites all over my ankles. Upon examining Puffigus Fluffi I found fleas all over him. He has never had fleas until this moment in this house. I know where they are coming from too.

At any rate, we took him to the vet for a flea dip. I washed all bedding and super vac-ed everything with the new Hoover. Within a few hours Puffigus had fleas all over him.

So I got the sprays. Did not work. Sprayed the yard to eliminate fleas brought in. Did not work.

Finally, we boarded the dog at the kennel and the weekend before last I flea bombed. We decided to keep him boarded that week and see what happened. I was not only still getting bit, now my youngest son was bit all over his body. I found some fleas in the laundry, AFTER I washed every piece of bedding even the stuff in the closets (over two bottles of detergent). I was exhausted.

So last weekend we had a professional exterminator. He told me some important things. For one, the foggers will work but some will leave some residue, and they usually won't get all the fleas (I used them twice with my old dog in my old condo when I was single, and it did work, this must have been a much worse infestation).

So, he used an industrial strength spray all over the lawn. On the inside, he used a non-residual spray/fog all over the house. He said he found a bunch of dead fleas from my fogging, but three areas of heavy infestations, IN MY OFFICE, IN THE DEN WHERE I RELAX, and the dining room. So that is why I was so bit up. Yech.

That did it. I am not getting big, my young son is not getting bit. I should have gone professional to begin with.

Now I get my dog back from being borded, and he was so stressed he picked up an infection. Another $150 for antibiotics, and he is just feeling better today. I feel terrible, the dog was bit up for two months, and now tortured with boarding and illness for two weeks.

All of this because of selfish people letting their cats roam in my hard. Between clawprints on my cars, chewed up birds that my son sees, and cat crap in any loose dirt, now they introduce fleas. I can't get mad at the cats, but I can at their careless owners. A guy two doors down has 7 cats and they just roam all over my yard like they own it.

Disgusting. I should send him my vet bill.

 

[tomturbomatic]

You should send out your dog to chase them away!

 

[sudsmaster]

Kevin,

Have you tried Frontline Plus or the Hartz product on your dog? It works great with my cats - if I keep up the monthly applications they never have fleas on them. And if they get them, a single application gets rid of the fleas in a couple of days.

Fumigating the home, flea dips, etc, won't work because it only kills the adult fleas on the dog and in the house. There may be thousands of flea eggs waiting to hatch in the carpeting etc. The only product that really works on them is Precor. Frontline Plus kills both the adult fleas and immature ones.

I don't think it's entirely fair to blame the cats for the fleas, although I do think their owners should be using a good flea product like Frontline Plus on them. I get a lot of stray cats in my back yard, and my cats roam as well, but I repeat that with regular applications of the flea product they don't bring them back into the house. It is natural for cats to roam, and in general they don't kill healthy birds, and some of them do us a good service by getting rid of mice and rats. I agree though, that seven cats is about five too many for one household.

Anyway, I encourage you to try Frontline Plus - or the similar product from Hartz. That product is called "Hartz Advanced Care Flea and Tick Drops Plus+". Its key active ingredients are:

Phenothrin (kills adult fleas)
(S)-Methoprene (kills juvenile fleas)

Both are safe for both cats and dogs. If you can apprehend some fo the cats in your back yard (if they are tame enough), you could even dose them as well.

Good luck!