Habits to prevent infestation
- Vacuum every few days.
- Clean lawns regularly.
- Dispose all debris as soon as possible.
- Wash all linens and clothes regularly and at high heat.
- Treat your home, yard, and pet at the same time.
Fleas usually target animals first then:
- yard
- house
- furniture
- humans
Fleas flourish in warm climates. The ideal temperature range is 80 to 90°F (26 to 32 °C) with 70 percent humidity.
In these conditions, fleas have a life cycle of 18 to 21 days. If the weather isn’t ideal and there isn’t a host to feed on, flea larvae may remain dormant for months while waiting for better conditions to develop. On average, adult fleas live from several weeks to several months.
Your pets are carriers of mature fleas but the entire house is the nursery.
Only 5% of the infestation is in your pets.
The remaining 95% are eggs, larvae, and cocoons around the house
To truly eradicate the problem, treat your pet and their living environment at the same time.
- Use a powerful vacuum to clean the house. Dispose the contents without touching them.
- Use a steam cleaner that combines heat with soap to kill fleas in all stages. Clean places where you pets lie down.
- Wash all beddings in hot water. Dry them at the highest setting.
- Use an aerosol spray insecticide with permethrin (for adult fleas) and methoprene or pyriproxyfen (for eggs, larvae, and pupae). Let it dry before reentering.
How to wash beddings
- For stuff that can be washed in the washing machine, take them straight to the washing machine and wash them with soap and warm water.
- For mattress, dust the bedding with botanical and boric acid base dust (kills larvae and eggs)
- Include in the dust a permethrin based pesticide (kills adults)
- Put the bedding in dryer for half an hour to kill cocoons.
- Alternatively: put the bedding in a plastic bag, treat it, wait for a few weeks, move the plastic bag around, then treat it again, then wait for another week.
To dos
- Buy temporary mat to lie down while cushion dries
Reference
Sullivan, D. (2017, January 23). How to Get Rid of Fleas in Your House, in Your Yard, and More. Healthline. https://www.healthline.com/health/healthy-home-guide/how-to-get-rid-of-fleas