Oh boy now we’ve done it. The three cats are inside only but the dog is outside for walkies a few times a day. And he obviously brought in fleas.
I have very little tolerance for chemicals, and my cat is also very sensitive to flea control.
I will get some diatomaceous earth for the carpets and cat tower, what else can I get to prevent a massive hatching?
borax on the carpets help. if you can get some help, I would have someone do siphotrol spray in the house. Revolution for the cats
Diametrious Earth. Completely non toxic. You can get it at feed stores, affordable and it has worked for me.
I feel your pain. We’ve been dealing with this for over a year. Sorresto collars plus [whatever it is that’s not Frontline - sorry!] is our latest attempt at breaking the cycle. Sorresto collars have been awesome for the dogs and I’m sorry now we didn’t get them for the cats as well; it’s one of the cats who still has them and I think he gets them from going out on the screened porch – do squirrels give fleas to house animals? Such a PITA. I’ve never done so much laundry in my life.
Diatomaceous earth for the house for sure. Works and literally so safe you can eat it.
Treat the animals with a spot on (vet kind, not the OTC junk, which is toxic to pets and doesn’t work on fleas), and the yard if you haven’t had a hard freeze yet. Takes three months straight of treatment to break the cycle typically.
Putting a bowl of water with dish detergent in it, in a dark room under a light at night time will help get some fleas. Fleas are attracted to the heat of the light and will jump in the sudsy water and drown.
Make sure you sprinkle some of the diatomaceous dirt under couches, chairs and beds where the fleas will lay their eggs.
Vacuum everyday and put some of the diatomaceous earth in your vacuum.
Those cheap crappy store flea collars are actually useful if you put one in a vacuum bag or canister. Keeps anything you picked up from hatching in there.
I’ve known people to have issues with fleas, because a previous resident had animals with fleas, the eggs go dormant, and then hatch out when a host moves in. You will have to retreat a few times, or the eggs just keep hatching, and repeating the process.
What worked for me was food-grade diatomaceous earth spread on the carpet, furniture and bedding, along with daily vacuuming of the house and flea-combing the pets several times a day.
Diatomaceous earth causes the flea larvae to desiccate, but you have to leave it for a day or two. I read a study where vacuuming alone, with no other chemicals, killed 95% of the fleas that were sucked up into the canister. They’re just too fragile to survive it. Cold is also not conducive to flea survival, so the colder you can keep the house (carpet), the sooner they will be gone. Anything I couldn’t run through the hot wash or vacuum, I left out in the freezing air for a couple of days. I emptied the vacuum canister daily into the outdoor trash bin. Unless you’re in Florida, probably, any surviving fleas will die from the cold. There are benefits to winter!
Yup. Just sprinkled the Diotomacious earth all over the carpets—I’m loving the footprints, lol.
Just incentive to vacuum eventually…
Why don’t you use flea pills? When I first started using them, I went from bathing, spraying and vacuuming every day to one pill per month per dog. Fleas disappeared after a couple of days.
Have a professional bomb the house and have a vet treat for and remove the fleas.
