Fleas in Rug??

skoonix

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Apr 8, 2007
Messages
10
Purraise
0
Location
L.A.
Hi - any advice? - cat's Advantage treatment didint work for the first time ever - she seemed to have quite a few and was miserable - gave her Capstar - she is 100% better 24 hrs. later but here's the problem - there still are some fleas in a rug in my living room - when I sit there - every now and then one or two have jumped on my ankles and Ive been able to grab them and kill them - obviously there are now some in this rug - so here's my question - it's a rug that I can roll up and remove from the house - but it's a nice rug - could I "bag" it - enclose it in a bag and then take it somewhere where they can professionally wash it or dry clean it or something to get rid of them?? I understand when people have wall to wall carpet and a flea problem - its another issue but the fleas seem to be only in this rug now.
 

nekochan

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Aug 5, 2006
Messages
2,760
Purraise
22
Location
Chicago, IL
You may have trouble getting it professionally cleaned as the cleaners probably won't want to take it if there are fleas.
I have heard of bagging things that cannot be washed in an airtight bag when doing a whole-house flea treatment, but I don't know how long they have to stay bagged...

Another option that might work is a spray that kills fleas, or using diatomous earth. I have heard of people using flea spray made for animals on rugs/carpeting but it could possibly discolor the rug. The diatomous earth IIRC kills fleas by drying them out and can be used on a rug, I think you sprinkle it on, rub it in and then vacuum but I've never tried it myself.

Another thing I would suggest trying is this spray: Natural Chemistry(that's the brand I think) "DeFlea Pet and Area Spray". It is harmless to pets, it kills fleas by softening the exoskeleton/shell. I have not used it on a rug but I've used it on a couple cats/kittens and my dog and it did kill the fleas so I'd say give it a try, it's not horribly expensive either... I've seen it at several of the big chain pet stores. I think I sprayed it on the furniture and carpet when my dog brought home fleas from a friend's house, but I don't know if it really worked or not because I think my dog just brought home a few fleas and they had not had time to spread to the house/carpet yet (thankfully!)
 

momofmany

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Jul 15, 2003
Messages
16,249
Purraise
70
Location
There's no place like home
I had a bad flea infestation in my carpet one year and put a single dose of diatomaceous earth (DE) on it. I've not had the problem since. I tried just about every spray that was supposedly pet safe and nothing else works. One of the sprays that I purchased from the vet actually poisoned my dog and we had an emergency vet visit from it.

I hate the sprays as it has poison. Food grade DE works wonders and is so safe that you can eat it.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #4

skoonix

TCS Member
Thread starter
Kitten
Joined
Apr 8, 2007
Messages
10
Purraise
0
Location
L.A.
Hi - thanks for the advice. See, my problem doesnt seem too bad - Ive only seen a couple fleas so I dont know if it is an infestation but the DE sounds interesting - do you have to go to a garden center? And you said one dose - what did that entail? I appreciate the info.
 

callista

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Apr 6, 2006
Messages
3,152
Purraise
86
I bet you could put the rug in a really big bag, fill the bag with flea poison, wait for the fleas to die, and then have the rug cleaned to get the poison off it.
 
Top