Help!!! I think we have fleas in the house!

AbbysMom

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Originally Posted by crittermom

Quote:
Originally Posted by mybabyphx
Obviously, she's never had them in her house before... so how would she know how to get rid of them?
Can you please tell me where it says that she's NEVER had them in her house? I must have overlooked that.And no need to be rude.
How is mybabyphx is being rude?
 

mermaid

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What flea preventative do you use on your cats now? If you have fleas in the house, it's not working. You can bring a few home and if they jump on your cat, they should die if the stuff you give them is working. If you are bringing THAT many fleas home, you should change your clothes before you come into the house. I don't think that many are hitching a ride. I'd be willing to bet the rent that the fleas in your house are coming from the cats.

Before you do all the bombing and all that, I recommend that assess what you are giving your cats now.
 
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starryeyedtiger

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Originally Posted by Crazyforinfo

You don't know how to get rid of fleas? Don't you work at a shelter? I'm confused.

Good Luck getting rid of them.
Yes, I do work at a shelter- so i know how to get rid of fleas on animals/prevent them. I am responsible and put flea prevenative on my personal animals at home (and they are indoors only)- so i've never had a problem with fleas before. I think i may have carried them the potential fleas home on my work clothes possibly. I am still not 100% sure it's fleas and not mosquitos- i haven't seen any mosquitoes in our house, but i have the same aweful reaction to both bugs so i'm not sure which it is. BUT if it is fleas- i want to be cautious as i do not want an infestation in my house (that would be a nightmare! so we're being proactive and trying to nip it in the bud before it becomes an issue. we're going to have someone come out to the house and check for fleas....if that's ruled out then it could have just been a mosquitoe.)(which is odd because i change immediately when i get home every day and wash my clothes so my animals don't come in contact with it.) So in my defense- we do everything we can to prevent stuff like this....i've never had an issue with it before- so that's why i'm asking for help now as i've never had fleas in my house. Having a potential infestation in a home's furniture/ carpet is different from knowing how to treat one on animals.

Originally Posted by littleraven7726

I'm also going to add, that when I worked at a shelter I was religious about treating my cats for fleas. I was soooo paranoid I was going to bring them home.

I think flea bombs or a pro are about you're only options. I've never had to deal with it, but my MIL said she did once. She said they were awful to get rid of.
We're the same way with our animals. All of them are indoors only and get their flea/tick prevenative every month. I talked to Colin and we are going to have someone come out to the house and spray if i notice anymore bites on me. (i'd do it myself- but the smell of most pesticides make me sick. so i'm going to take my furbabies & fish to my sisters house for a day while they spray if need be.)

Originally Posted by mybabyphx

Obviously, she's never had them in her house before... so how would she know how to get rid of them?
exactly
.....i've always been really responsible about keeping our animals on the proper flea/tick prevenative and changing my clothes immediately after comming home from the shelter- we've never had issues. so now that they might be in the carpet/furniture- i had no idea how to treat it in a way that won't make me sick - looks like the only good options are sprays/bombs- so we'll have to hire someone to do that if need be.

Originally Posted by catmomof2

I hope its not fleas.Like you I swell up after being bit by mosquitoes / fleas / biting flies you name it I swell and itch like mad.Maybe a mosquito or two got in the house??Good luck
Could be- i'm still not 100% sure if it's fleas or not because i have the same reaction to fleas as i do to mosquitoes. I think we're going to have a professional come out soon and see what they think so we can rule out flea issue or treat it if we have them. If not it could have been a mosquitoe. Eithor way- i still have bites all over me that itch horribly


Originally Posted by Mom of 4

We've done the spray/bomb before for fleas. It really needs to be done again in 3 weeks to be sure you get them all.
I would also get Capstar for all of your furries and give 30 minutes before you plan to start the spray/bombs. That way any fleas on the furries will die off before you get to the car and you won't bring them back inside.

The last time we had to use the bomb/spray, we just had to remove food to cabinets/refrigerator and put dishes/toothbrushes in a cabinet. We didn't have to wash down all of the surfaces in the house like we did before - just kitchen counter and dining tables. It was much different than before.
Thankyou for the suggestions
My animals are already on flea prevenatives -so no need for the capstar. (if you use that in combination with the other prevenatives it can make them really sick.) If we need the house sprayed -the furbabies are doing to go to my sisters house for an afternoon so they won't be around

Originally Posted by Roxie225

We had fleas last Summer and they were soooooo awful!! It took about 2 months to finally be flea free again. I vacuumed the house 2-4 times daily the entire time. BF thought I was crazy when I first started noticing the bites around my ankles but when we flea combed Roxie sure enough the little buggers had invaded. We also had to bug bomb twice. I found that that Raid for flea worked better than the Hartz stuff we had gotten in PetCo. It is apparently harder to get rid of them in the warm weather too because thats when they thrive.

Have you seen any fleas? To get an idea you can fill a dish with soapy water and leave a night-light on right next to it. The fleas are attracted to the heat of the light and when they jump they will get stuck in the soapy water. They actually sell something along the line of it, but you can just as easily make it at home.

This link has some good info:
http://www.ca.uky.edu/entomology/entfacts/ef602.asp

I hope you don't have fleas. Good luck hun!!
Thanks!!! That's a good idea! I will do that tonight and see if i can visibly see any. The only reason that i think it might not be fleas is that i do not have any bites by my ankles....which is normal with fleas i believe. All my bites are on my calves, chest, back, and shoulders but since i have the same reaction to fleas and mosquitoes...i am not sure which it is. I haven't seen eithor- but obsviously something is dining on me
Thankyou again for all your help!

Originally Posted by crittermom

Can you please tell me where it says that she's NEVER had them in her house? I must have overlooked that.And no need to be rude.
Nikki, get some Borax and sprinkle it on the carpets/furniture and all.Leave it there over night and then vaccum it up.
I don't think she was being rude. She was correct- i've never had any fleas on our house before.
Thanks for the Borax suggestion Tammy.

Originally Posted by mybabyphx

I didn't think I was rude? I never meant it that way....
i don't think you were

Originally Posted by AbbysMom

How is mybabyphx is being rude?
she wasn't


Originally Posted by crittermom

I thought you were being rude
aww no worries love
it's hard to read facial expressions online and things get interperated the wrong way


Originally Posted by mybabyphx

That's the problem with the internet. Text is taken wrong... I wasn't TRYING to be rude!
i think so as well
 

mybabyphx

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Originally Posted by StarryEyedTiGeR

Yes, I do work at a shelter- so i know how to get rid of fleas on animals/prevent them. I am responsible and put flea prevenative on my personal animals at home (and they are indoors only)- so i've never had a problem with fleas before. I think i may have carried them the potential fleas home on my work clothes possibly. I am still not 100% sure it's fleas and not mosquitos- i haven't seen any mosquitoes in our house, but i have the same aweful reaction to both bugs so i'm not sure which it is. BUT if it is fleas- i want to be cautious as i do not want an infestation in my house (that would be a nightmare! so we're being proactive and trying to nip it in the bud before it becomes an issue. we're going to have someone come out to the house and check for fleas....if that's ruled out then it could have just been a mosquitoe.)(which is odd because i change immediately when i get home every day and wash my clothes so my animals don't come in contact with it.) So in my defense- we do everything we can to prevent stuff like this....i've never had an issue with it before- so that's why i'm asking for help now as i've never had fleas in my house. Having a potential infestation in a home's furniture/ carpet is different from knowing how to treat one on animals.



We're the same way with our animals. All of them are indoors only and get their flea/tick prevenative every month. I talked to Colin and we are going to have someone come out to the house and spray if i notice anymore bites on me. (i'd do it myself- but the smell of most pesticides make me sick. so i'm going to take my furbabies & fish to my sisters house for a day while they spray if need be.)



exactly
.....i've always been really responsible about keeping our animals on the proper flea/tick prevenative and changing my clothes immediately after comming home from the shelter- we've never had issues. so now that they might be in the carpet/furniture- i had no idea how to treat it in a way that won't make me sick - looks like the only good options are sprays/bombs- so we'll have to hire someone to do that if need be.



Could be- i'm still not 100% sure if it's fleas or not because i have the same reaction to fleas as i do to mosquitoes. I think we're going to have a professional come out soon and see what they think so we can rule out flea issue or treat it if we have them. If not it could have been a mosquitoe. Eithor way- i still have bites all over me that itch horribly




Thankyou for the suggestions
My animals are already on flea prevenatives -so no need for the capstar. (if you use that in combination with the other prevenatives it can make them really sick.) If we need the house sprayed -the furbabies are doing to go to my sisters house for an afternoon so they won't be around



Thanks!!! That's a good idea! I will do that tonight and see if i can visibly see any. The only reason that i think it might not be fleas is that i do not have any bites by my ankles....which is normal with fleas i believe. All my bites are on my calves, chest, back, and shoulders but since i have the same reaction to fleas and mosquitoes...i am not sure which it is. I haven't seen eithor- but obsviously something is dining on me
Thankyou again for all your help!



I don't think she was being rude. She was correct- i've never had any fleas on our house before.
Thanks for the Borax suggestion Tammy.



i don't think you were



she wasn't




aww no worries love
it's hard to read facial expressions online and things get interperated the wrong way




i think so as well
All I have to say is WOW!
 

littleraven7726

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I thought of something else today...One of my friends had indoor cats and got a flea infestation...She had dogs, and she figured they were brought in that way. So it may be just one of those things.
I do hope you are able to get rid of them. Like I said, my MIL said they were awful the last time she had them. Coincidentally, she had dogs at the time.

What do you use on your critters? It might be time to switch. I admit I've been using Frontline for years, but no problems. *knocks on wood* I probably should try something else next time. We have a neighbor in the basement of our building with a new and very young cat, and carpet in the halls outside the apartments.
I'm so paranoid about fleas...
 

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I am dealing with fleas right now. My cats have nevr had it until we moved here. I notcied them a little while ago. I have fela collars on the boys and bathed them and well as bought spray.

Im hoping to resolve the problem soon, but next week i may be buying some bombs.
 

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If you have one flea bite, you have tons of fleas. Do not overtreat the animals, the over-the-counter products can be toxic very quickly.

First, go to vet and get Capstar for cats. You can give it to them everyday to kill the fleas on them until you get this under control.

Next, get flea spray from vet, put cats in an untreated room, and treat rest of house with spray. Do all furniture, carpet, rugs, anything that could hide fleas.

Leave house (keep cats secluded in untreated room) and run some errands. In a few hours, come back, vacuum the room that you treated, then release the cats into treated area. Now keep them out of the room they were initially in and repeat the spray-close door-wait a few hours-vacuum process.

The cats will most likely get tapeworm due to the fleas, so you will need to give them Droncit (Rx) to eliminate the tapeworm. This usually requires two treatments two weeks apart.

IT is creepy, I know, thinking of these little bloodsuckers being everywhere, but you CAN beat this. Just be consistent.

Good Luck!
 

white cat lover

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I think I've still got fleas, too Nikki. Not one single human is being bitten, but I am pretty sure I've seen 1 flea on Punky & 2 on PJ.
They were just treated like a week ago, all my cats were treated. I can't treat the cats again, Molly/Ophelia/Twitch/Lily all have hairloss from the Revolution(same happened when I frontlined before). Can't/won't use bombs because of Damita's sensitive nature, either.

Still trying to find DE someplace....perhaps I can order some online?
I don't have suggestions, I just understand where you are coming from!
 

callista

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You need to buddy up with a friend who will take you and your animals for... eh, maybe 24 hours. Flea bombs are toxic, they stink, and I really don't like going in after only the recommended 4-hour wait time... Make sure you air out the house as soon as the foggers are done (see the package for when).
 
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starryeyedtiger

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Thankyou everyone for all of your help/suggestions!!! We had someone come out for a bit today (well Colin did- i was at work
). It's not fleas
And he checked for other bugs- we are clear!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He said that i probably just got bit at the shelter by something. So i am VERY happy to say we don't have fleas! I was starting to worry too because all of our furbabies are on flea prevenative (the cats get frontline plus and the dogs get revolution.) So thank goodness it wasn't fleas!!!! I haven't recieved any bites since my last post that i've noticed. But i did get 3 suspecious ones at the shelter today on my arm. So i'm thinking it is most likely the bites are a result of that and not anything in our home. I'm going to start spraying myself with bug spray before going into work at the shelter now so hopefully that will help.I still don't know if what bit me was a flea or a mosquitoe (as i said earlier- i have the same reaction to both) but since the bites are for the most part on my upper torso - it could be mosquitoes maybe
We spray at the shelter regurally for mosquitoes....but even that doesn't get rid of them all as we have big buckets of water in every kennel for the dogs (it gets dummped out and cleaned 2x a day but even then- standing water attracts them) and then too- we always have a flea issue because dogs/cats come in covered in them. When they walk through our doors- we put prevenative on them and vaccinate/etc them so that helps a bit...but doesn't keep them all off ya know.

I'm sooooooooooo thrilled we don't have a flea infestation in our home though- that's the best news i've got all day!!!!!
 

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Glad to hear you don't have them, Nikki! I know how relieved you must be, having experienced a flea problem at my mom's last year.
 

yosemite

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Originally Posted by molly_66

I am dealing with fleas right now. My cats have nevr had it until we moved here. I notcied them a little while ago. I have fela collars on the boys and bathed them and well as bought spray.

Im hoping to resolve the problem soon, but next week i may be buying some bombs.
Please take the flea collars off the kitties - they are toxic and very dangerous.

What did you use to bathe them? Dawn dish soap is one of the safest to use.

What is the spray you mentioned?

Over-the-counter products rarely work and some are downright dangerous. The very best way to deal with fleas is through your vet for your animals and using Diatomaceous Earth (or Borax) in carpets and upholstery. If your infestation is particularly bad then a professional exterminator should be called in IMO. (I'm not experienced in the bombs that some folks mention so can't speak for those.)

Fleas are difficult to get rid of so I wouldn't fool around with them.
 
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starryeyedtiger

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Originally Posted by jcat

Glad to hear you don't have them, Nikki! I know how relieved you must be, having experienced a flea problem at my mom's last year.
Thanks hon!
I'm definitely happy it turned out to be just a scare and not an infestation. That does mean i got bit at the shelter though
why does that not suprise me
So i'm starting to wear repellant before i go into work now and that seems to help a little.

Originally Posted by Yosemite

Please take the flea collars off the kitties - they are toxic and very dangerous.

What did you use to bathe them? Dawn dish soap is one of the safest to use.

What is the spray you mentioned?

Over-the-counter products rarely work and some are downright dangerous. The very best way to deal with fleas is through your vet for your animals and using Diatomaceous Earth (or Borax) in carpets and upholstery. If your infestation is particularly bad then a professional exterminator should be called in IMO. (I'm not experienced in the bombs that some folks mention so can't speak for those.)

Fleas are difficult to get rid of so I wouldn't fool around with them.
I second that
Flea collars are an accident waiting to happen and can do more harm to an animals health than good. A better idea would be to put them on something such as Feline Frontline that protects against fleas and ticks.
It's also proven safe and effective. Don't toss out those old flea collars though- put them in your vaccume bag and it will kill the fleas when you vaccume them up.


Dawn is the best stuff you can bathe your animals in (unless they have a skin issue and need a different shampoo). We use dawn at the animal shelter where i work on the animals and wildlife there because it is safe to use on them and non-toxic
 
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