Fleas. The hippy way just isnt working.

[Adaline'sMama]

So, can you help me figure out what the least toxic of all the flea sprays are?

Here is my situation:

I have a dog and cat who have both been frontlined all summer long. We have never had fleas in our house like this, but there are animals all around (we live in the country) so I guess our dog has picked up more this year. He isnt covered in fleas, but our house is.

We dont have carpet. We only have one couch and one big chair as our furniture that is fabric. Our bed seems totally fine, in fact our whole bedroom is fine. However, our hardwood kitchen/living room area is awful. And it has been for weeks. The couch is outside. There were just too many fleas on it.
I made a spray out of cedar oil, lavendar oil, lemon eucalyptus.
I have peppermint oil all over the house.
I made balls out of lemongrass and stuffed them everywhere.
Ive covered the floor with salt, left it for 10 hours and vacuumed.
Ive vacuumed, vacuumed, vacuumed the floors, furniture, ect.
Ive put all of our clothes, bedding, ect outside for three days. shook them off. sprayed them down.
Washed stuff- constantly.
We stayed at MIL's for two days with salt down and spray everywhere.
Ive combed and washed my dog and cat.


I have to use chemicals. Its the only way. My kid has flea bites all over her legs, and its gross. It seems to get better right after I spray and vacuum, but two hours later, they are back. My whole life cannot be dedicated to dealing with these fleas.


So, what chemicals have you used, and what is the lesser of the evils?

Thanks!

[jadekat]

When I was at the vet this past week I saw a brochure for Comfortis. http://www.discountpetmedicines.com/buy/comfortis-flea-control.htm 

My IL's indoor dog is having an awful time with fleas this year. They have tried everything. I think they're gonna try this stuff next.

[Adaline'sMama]

Im not sure I can mix this with the Frontline he has alread had put on him for the month (its only been on for a week). Im looking for something I can put on my house, not really so much on the dog since he and the cat dont really have fleas- we do.

[kittywitty]

Diatomaceous earth works, but it can cause serious lung problems (if you search back, you'll probably see my post about it), so I would NOT suggest going that way. I just recommend vacuuming at least once a day-everything. Upholstery, floors, nooks & crannies, closets, etc. Treat the basement with a flea bomb or diatomaceous earth. And wash your bedding every other day at least. It sucks, but it will go away eventually.

[Birdie B.]

We had this situation earlier in the summer, and it sucked! Our vet recomended mopping with a mild bleach solution, and I was so desperate that I did it (after I had used natural oils, diatomaceous earth, constant vacuuming, etc).  I think it definitely helped - that and washing the dog's bed and all our bedding in hot hot water several times and giving the dog Capstar and flea baths.  Finally they are gone, and I am not sorry I used evil bleach to get rid of them!

[womenswisdom]

I would suggest you try a different topical flea treatment. Some people have found that certain types of fleas are becoming resistant to Frontline. There are specific types that can be used concurrently - I think Advantage would be fine, but you can call the customer service number to find out for sure.

The only way fleas can reproduce is by getting a blood meal from an animal shortly after they become mature. If all the pets are treated with an effective topical flea treatment, the fleas will be killed before they become capable of laying eggs. However, it can take 3-4 months, because it can take that long for eggs that are in the environment when you start treatment to hatch out and jump onto the pets and be killed by the medication. There is nothing that will kill fleas in the pupal stage, so your best bet is to treat the pets and get them as soon as they are adults. Fleas can bite humans but they cannot live off human blood.

[Adaline'sMama]

Hmmm. Ok, so if I buy Advantage, can I give it onto of the Frontline, or do I have to wait until next month?

[womenswisdom]

Originally Posted by Adaline'sMama 

Hmmm. Ok, so if I buy Advantage, can I give it onto of the Frontline, or do I have to wait until next month?

I believe the last time I called Bayer to ask, they said it was fine to apply it at the same time as Frontline, but if you call their customer service number, I'm sure you can verify that.

[lonegirl]

Originally Posted by Adaline'sMama 

Im not sure I can mix this with the Frontline he has alread had put on him for the month (its only been on for a week). Im looking for something I can put on my house, not really so much on the dog since he and the cat dont really have fleas- we do.

Chances are if the house has fleas so do the dog and cat. 

Get some Revolution from your vet for both.  https://www.revolution4dogs.com/default.aspx it is not a pesticide.  Or get some Frontline for your cat.  Frontline can be given at the same time as Revolution.  Siphotrol is a good premise spray.

BTW fleas don't live on humans. 

Vacuum well....put a flea collar in the bag and dispose of after thoroughly vacuuming.

Good luck!

[merryns.mom]

we were in this same situation 2 months ago, finally had to break down and do the flea bomb. then vacuumed and steam cleaned everything. our whole house (we have carpet and hardwood) was covered, but i haven't seen any fleas since, not even tiny baby ones.

good luck, evidently i'm the only one they bite at my house, and my ankles still look horrible

[Adaline'sMama]

Well, they have decreased greatly in the past week, just with the constant vacuuming. I think Ive realized why just frontlining the dog and cat isnt working. We have mice. Everyone does, as I live out in BFE and right next to two huge pastures. There is no way to get rid of them, there for meaning that there is no way to get rid of the fleas.

[Koalamom]

This is our first full summer in the country here and the fleas are bad. We have carpets all over and no money for an alternative.
I tried:
DE- did not work, The fleas were just as bad.
Lavender oil sprays- didn't work.
soap sprays- nope.
carpet chemical toxic powder, you sprinkle and then vacuum up later. Didn't work.

...borax all over and then spray with clove essential oil everywhere and regular vacuuming (and throwing away the bag every time). I saw a huge reduction. I was vacuming everyday but don't as much since they are under control now, kind of. I just keep clove oil spray around and they stay away. And my house smells really nice now. I am going to pick some orange essential oil up tomorrow when I make the trek to the local HFS. I hear that works really well.

I will add that my pets aren't allowed in the house right now until I figure out what to do about the fleas on them.

[lonegirl]

Originally Posted by Koalamom 

This is our first full summer in the country here and the fleas are bad. We have carpets all over and no money for an alternative.
I tried:
DE- did not work, The fleas were just as bad.
Lavender oil sprays- didn't work.
soap sprays- nope.
carpet chemical toxic powder, you sprinkle and then vacuum up later. Didn't work.

...borax all over and then spray with clove essential oil everywhere and regular vacuuming (and throwing away the bag every time). I saw a huge reduction. I was vacuming everyday but don't as much since they are under control now, kind of. I just keep clove oil spray around and they stay away. And my house smells really nice now. I am going to pick some orange essential oil up tomorrow when I make the trek to the local HFS. I hear that works really well.

I will add that my pets aren't allowed in the house right now until I figure out what to do about the fleas on them.

OMG just go get a good product from your vet.  Revolution is very safe....so is Advantage.  Everytime....EVERYTIME your pet goes outside there is potential to bring fleas back in.  Use a once a month treatment. 

 

[McGucks]

Oh Holly!  What the heck can you do?  The mice thing is a nightmare.  I think I would DRINK bleach if I were you if someone said it would help!  How are you finding the time to do all this crazy cleaning?  And all the treatments you've used can't be cheap.  I have no advice, just a big fat I AM SORRY!!!

[hildare]

Originally Posted by Adaline'sMama 

Well, they have decreased greatly in the past week, just with the constant vacuuming. I think Ive realized why just frontlining the dog and cat isnt working. We have mice. Everyone does, as I live out in BFE and right next to two huge pastures. There is no way to get rid of them, there for meaning that there is no way to get rid of the fleas.

it sounds like what's not working is your kitteh.  can you get a another one who's a mouser?  and use the treatments. 

personally, i'd pull money out of somewhere to get the exterminator to come.  they guarantee the treatments too, so there's always that.

we have ticks but not fleas-- could it be the chickens?  we got guineas for the ticks, too.  i don't know if they eat fleas.  would that be an option for y'all?

[insidevoice]

We had mice in our place too- they are harder (ime) to get rid of than the fleas. I did finally break down and bring in an exterminator to get rid of them  and to make sure they couldn't come back.  There was a 24 month guarantee attached to that work. It wasn't a huge expense, and was the only solution that actually worked.  I also got a new cat as my older cat has long since retired from her mousing days. :)