Animals and Their Flees!

Updated on July 06, 2012
A.F. asks from Enumclaw, WA
15 answers

My husband and I had a really bad mouse problem a year ago and did EVERYTHING to stop them (25 in our home to be exact!). Finally when I thought the problem was gone another one popped out. So I decided to get a cat and a dog to help. The cat is a really good mouser and I have seen him bring home the dead mice. The problem though is now I am dealing with the flees. We have to bring the animals in because of the cold, but I am getting bit left and right. I even have seen flees on my kids! I bought flee shampoo and the flee drops, but I am afraid to spray the house or use anything else because of my three small children. We live in a house surrounded by fields, so I know that it is inevitable. Any ideas would greatly be appreciated! Thanks.

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So What Happened?

Thank you everyone for your great advice! We are going to try using the safer, cheaper method first. If that doesn't seem to help, then we will attack full force ;P Great mom's, great advice! Thanks much!

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B.S.

answers from Seattle on

Hi A., my name is Rebecca. I too have had flees in the past. My groomer told me she has used BREWERS YEAST (at any pet store)for over 10 years. I tried it, my poor Cocker not only had flees but also dry itchy flakey skin. He no longer has flees and his coat is no longer itchy. It is also less expensive (600 tables for $10.00) and you only use 1 table per 5 lbs. The best thing--they think its a treat. My cat also loves these. No flees, No bombs, No chemical. Hope this helps.

1 mom found this helpful

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E.B.

answers from Seattle on

There is this company called flea busters. When i first had my son home from the hospital and was combing his hair there was a giant flea on his head i freaked out because we had given our cat too a family member. So instead of bombing the house with posionous chemicals we had this company come in and for 175 dollars they did are whole apartment. what they do is come in and lay down this stuff and then comb it into the carpet and then vacuum it up and they do furniture and everything. or if you want to save a bit of money they sell the powder itself for like 39.95. if they do it they have a year policy where if you see a flea they will give you your money back or come out and do it again free. It is 100% safe to do with kids and after about a week or so our fleas were gone. my mom swears by it too. she had fleas in her basement so bad that if you walked on the carpet in white socks they would be black with fleas. after getting here two story five bed room house done the fleas were gone and havent been back..her house cost a little more then four hundred...but they also have payment plans. good luck and i hope you problem goes away!!

1 mom found this helpful
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J.H.

answers from Spokane on

Hi A.! I found a GREAT, chemical-free dog/cat shampoo that
REALLY works....keeps the fleas off the pets AND it's safe
around your kids, too. Also, the same company makes a eco-friendly, safe rug shampoo you should use right away on
your rugs...that is where the fleas lay their eggs and your
rugs become a breeding ground for those little nasty critters.
I had fleas so bad that we were all getting bitten and I had
to even take my son to the doctor his bites were so bad! But,
when the doctor said to shampoo the carpet, I can't do that
because my son has a really bad reaction to the chemical cleaners the carpet cleaning crews used, so I was so happy to
find a shampoo I could use in a Bissell shampooer (they are
at Walmart...about $60) and after washing our three cats and
our dog AND shampooing the carpets MYSELF, we are now flea free!!!
Ask ____@____.com for details. Sarah is
really nice and very knowledgeable about all kinds of
subjects like the flea problem you are describing.
Good luck!!!
:>) J.

1 mom found this helpful
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D.L.

answers from Portland on

We also live in a field and fleas become a yearly problem. At the first sign of them we go to the vet and get advantix for the dog and agvantage for the cat. They are a little different. Frontline is stronger and works a little better, but I am weary with my little one touching the pets. Whatever you choose, don't let anyone touch the pets until the wet spot is dry. Also a cedar bed for the dog helps. Just like cedar repelling other bugs! It will take a month or two for the things to start working. But they do work, don't get discouraged! (Well, they have worked for us.)

Good luck!
~D.

1 mom found this helpful
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D.F.

answers from Gainesville on

Now a day the mouse stick pads are available in the market just place it where mostly the mouse are seen.
http://goo.gl/vzThO

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A.B.

answers from Seattle on

safe for the pets, safe for the kids - press a clove of fresh garlic or sprinkle some garlic powder on your pets food every day- this will keep the fleas away and is very healthy for you pat.

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J.M.

answers from Seattle on

Ah. I remember fleas from living in Southern California. What a pain in the rear end (and everywhere else) they are!

Sprinkle flea powder on the carpet and vacuum it up into the bag. Then you HAVE to vaccum every single day. And you have to vaccum as much of the carpet as humanly possible (move furniture, etc.) Remember that when you use flea shampoo you are deterring the fleas in your house from biting your pets . . . so they end up biting YOU and your children. The flea shampoo should be used throughout the year when your pets are in and out of the house - but not so much at this time of the year because I'm sure you'd rather have the cat getting chomped than you! When you give the animals a flea bath at this time of year, you should use the flea shampoo first and then follow it up with another type of shampoo.

If you have errands that will take you out of the house for the day, I'd suggest setting off a couple of flea bombs throughout the house first thing in the morning. You can close the door to the children's bedrooms to keep the residue from going in there.

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K.E.

answers from Spokane on

A.-I know your frustration! I recently took our newly adopted cat to the vet, and he gave us this medication called Revolution and it is awesome!!! It's all organic, so it doesn't matter if you touch the animal after treatment. It takes care of fleas, ticks, worms, you name it-it kills it, even ear mites. You just apply it to the back of your pet between the shoulder blades, once a month, and it's fairly cheap too. About $15.00 for a dose. Please stop wasting your time on other products! This one really works! Good luck.

K.

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E.M.

answers from Seattle on

I have had that problem in the past. Go to a vet and get flee drops. Not the cheap stuff from the store, (I hate that stuff). Ask about "Revolution", "Advantage", etc. Tell your vet what you are needing. It is really spendy, but with kids and your health, it is well worth it. I actually have a cat and two dogs that haven't had any problems for about 7 years because I put them on these drops. Very easy to apply. Good luck! Hope this helps. I know it helped me and my sanity!! :)

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D.D.

answers from Seattle on

Hello A. -

You have gotten some great advice here, so I won't say much, but wanted to add that the products like Advanatge, etc., that you apply to your pets shoulder blades once a month are toxic. The way they work is they go into your pets body and make him so toxic that no self-preserving flea would even think about biting him - he is poisonous! Every one of these products that I have looked at contain petro chemicals and are carcinogenic. The guidelines for approval on pet products are much less stringent than for human-consumed medications. If you are okay with giving your pet a carcinogen, go for it. If you would rather keep them tumor-free and avoid the medical expenses of caring for a pet with cancer then I would go with Fleabusters, salt, borax, or any of the myriad of non-toxic alternative products that are out there.

Be well-
D.

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E.L.

answers from Seattle on

Hello ok this may sound crazy but I have been there fleas every where and we did'nt even have pets but when we bought our house i think the previous owner did so hey guess what this is SO CHEAP and you dont even have to go anywhere and buy it SALT regular table salt sprinkle salt all over the house I know they say spilling salt is bad luck but hey if is going to help I say go for it I DID and they were gone.
GOOD luck.
E.

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H.F.

answers from Seattle on

Hi! My name is H.. I just found this site today and yours popped up so I thought I would respond to it. I am a marketing executive for a ink 500 company. We have a product that is all natural and it kills flees. You can spray it right on your animals and it wont hurt them. Its non toxic and chemical free and it totally works! I have 2 dogs and 5 cats and not one flea in my house. If your interested we can exchange numbers and I can bounce the high lights of the products off you. We could meet your in Orting right? Or we can always do it over the phone. Either way hope this is a help to you What could it hurt?. Sounds like its getting bad though!

H. F.

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S.L.

answers from Seattle on

We used some natural plants to help repel the fleas once we got them gone from indoors. Pennyroyal works great, and we have it in pots right by the back and front doors. Great ground cover, pretty leaves and grows easily. I would Internet search for some "natural" alternatives instead of bombing- with a baby there is no telling where the insecticide can land and get into her system.

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N.M.

answers from Seattle on

We had the same problem a couple of years ago. It was AWFUL! We used a company called Fleabusters, their product is basically borax that has like a static charge, so it really stays on wherever they apply it. It's non-toxic, more expensive of course, but it was worth it to us. A couple of months after the first application we still saw some fleas (it was a really, really bad infestation) and they came back an did a second application at no charge. After that, they guarantee that you will remain flea-free for one year. It's been 3 years now I think, and there has been no return of fleas, and a friend who used the same company said the same thing.

Also, frequent, thorough vacuuming has been proven to eliminate at least 90-95% of fleas (that's probably where I slacked a little bit... :) ...)

It's also important to see if you can find the source of the fleas. For us, it was the "beauty bark" so popular in flower beds here. I found out from the nursery where I shop that beauty bark evidently harbors fleas and their eggs, and that's where our pets were getting them. We have since gotten rid of the beauty bark, and have not had any more problems (knock on wood) since. Good luck!

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K.L.

answers from Yakima on

Hi A.,

Two great -better for you- (because nothing is non-toxic if you use a lot of it) alternatives: I use either diatomatious earth which you can find at a good gardening store. It is the skeletons of millions of little ocean going silicon based critters. What it does is act like glass in the intestines of insects, shredding it so they can't live. It does not affect larger animals. You can also get Boric acid from a pet store. I got mine at Pet Smart. Mud bay granery also should have it. One brand is FleaGo. It does have some percautions but not many. So there you go, good luck!

K.

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