I have a flea problem please help?

Question

My cat has a collar on and the Fleas are off of him but they are in my house... i've tried the spray, the powder for the carpets and today i fogged my house and that still did work please help

type error the fogger didn't work

Answer 1

Hi Randy...first, please reconsider using a spot-on flea treatment such as Revolution, Frontline, Advantage rather than a flea collar. The reason is that many over the counter flea-products including collars contain toxins which are severe enough to cause death, seizures, etc in pet animals. Please see the following website about Hartz products which have taken many lives or injured pet cats: http://www.hartzvictims.org/

Revolution, Advantage, Frontline are a better alternative for flea infestation treatment: http://www.1800petmeds.com/cat.asp?LV=10

For the home consider using a product called Borax which contains a natural occuring mineral boric acid and dehydrates fleas after they ingest the powder. http://www.seedsofknowledge.com/fleas.html Be sure to keep all pets and children out of the rooms treated and then vacuum up and throw out the vacuum bag/empty cannister to get rid of the fleas and eggs. Repeat daily for a couple weeks to get all the fleas and eggs which will hatch again in 2 weeks.

Answer 2

I've had cats for over 30 years. I tried everything you said you did and did not have much luck either. In the 1st place you are wasting your money on those collars and flea spray. Start using Revolution. Once a month you put a little on the cat's neck and no more problems. About the fleas in the house, they can live for months and they hide well. I got a spray from the vet and carefully treated the house. You have to be very thorough. Room by room, I moved and vacuumed everything and sprayed and vacuumed again. Eggs hatch after about 3 weeks, so 3 weeks later I did it again. The spray also leaves a residue that gets any random fleas for months. They told me I might have to do again the next year but I didn't have to. It totally got rid of the fleas in the house and the Revolution kept them off the cats. Now I have 4 cats and they spend as much time outside as in, so I know they get exposed to new fleas but I never find them on the cats or in the house anymore. Hope that helps. There is very little that can be more irritating than having a flea jump on your arm or worse yet bite you at night. Good luck!

Answer 3

I would recommend vacuuming your house THOROUGHLY, as in under couch cushions, use the crevice tool and go all around the walls, move your couch and go under it. ANYWHERE the cat goes vacuum. Wash anything the cat plays with or sleeps on, including your bed sheets, whatever can't be washed throw away. When you vacuum, immediatly throw the bag outside.

My cat had a few fleas, so I researched about fleas, they can live 4 months without food. When they are in their 3rd stage of life, they're virtually indestructible. After each bite, a flea can lay up to 20 eggs and those eggs usually fall off in the carpet, covers, couch cracks and around the house.

I also recommend this stuff called IGR (insect growth regulator) its a powder you spread on the carpet and in the couch corners and what not. It's guaranteed to kill fleas in the first 2 stages of their life. One year guarantee!!! Fleas have 4 stages and only about 15% of them are in the adult stage. The vast majority are in the first 2. Anyways, the IGR kills them before they reach the 3rd stage. The advantage will kill them when they're adults. So that should do it, it will take a few months, because like I said, if they're in your carpet or couch they can live 4 months without food.

If you have a room that your cat doesn't go in often, take a little bowl and stick a gooseneck light over it, shining over the bowl. Fill the bowl with water and put a little dish soap in the water. Fleas are attraced to light and will jump towards it, the soap breaks the waters surface tension and the fleas will drown. Also, walk around the house in long white socks and the fleas will jump on the socks. Those are ways to determine if your flea problem has spread. It's scary but also possible.

Answer 4

There are two parts to combating fleas. 1) Treat the fleas on your pet. 2) Treat the fleas in your house.

First let me start by saying DO NOT under any circumstances use over-the-counter (store bought) flea products on your pet – this includes dips, baths, collars and spot-on treatments. They do not work well and they cause a high incidence of adverse reactions in pets. How they are still legal is beyond me. I work in a clinic and see WAY too many pets come in with skin reactions or in respiratory or cardiac distress from the store bought flea products.

The safe products that actually work are available by prescription only. Yes, this means they cost a little more, but it is worth it. Some examples are Revolution, Advantage and Frontline, topical applications available at most clinics. If your cat has a bad infestion, ask your vet about Capstar. Capstar is a tablet that starts killing adult fleas almost instantly. Follow up with monthly application of one of the topical products listed above.

Once kitty is being treated, start treating your house. Vacuum everywhere, being sure not to miss those dark areas where fleas like to hide like under your sofa and between seat cushions. Anything that can be washed in the machine, wash - your bedding, your cats bed, rugs, blankets, etc. Then either get a professional exterminator in your house, or save some money and purchase a safe spray like Knockout ES Area Treatment (which our clinic uses and recommends). Stay away from bombs as they only settle on TOP of things. They cannot get between cushions and under your chairs.

Once you control this current infestation, it doesn't hurt to keep your kitty on one of the topical flea products listed above all year round. This is true even for kitties who live indoors exclusively. It is much easier to prevent fleas than to get rid of an existing infestation.

Good luck!

Answer 5

TAKE THE COLLAR OFF!!! OTC flea products including collars & shampoos are not effective and they are VERY dangerous to your cat.They can cause severe skin burns, neurological problems, seizures and death. They are made up of some very toxic pesticides.
Get a safe flea product from your vet.They also sell safe household sprays as well. Foggers/bombs do NOT work..they simply go up in the air and back down on surfaces where fleas aren't. The best thing is vacumning paying particular attention to under furniture, around baseboards, couch & chair cushions, etc

Answer 6

You need to treat your cat with a reliable flea medication such as Advantage, the flea collar is going to do nothing in preventing eggs from hatching, that is how you got the flea problem in the house in the first place. Flea collars have been known to be harmful to cats by poisoning them rather than the fleas. You may have to fog the house one more time. You may have killed the eggs but a few fleas could still be alive...once they die and their eggs don't hatch you should not have a problem.

Answer 7

Try the sticky traps too. Use that in conjunction with the powders & sprays. You are going to have to do this more than once, because you will not get the larvae the first time.
(I had to do the whole routine 2-3 times because I once bought a house where someone had let a dog in after promising they hadn't....)

Answer 8

Try frontline for cats. You just rub it on the back of their neck and fleas avoid them. It works on all 3 of my cats.

Answer 9

Teatree oil. Can be found in esoteric and health food stores. Baby and animal safe. We washed the dog, hamsters, babies and our own hair in teatree oil and all were fine except for the fleas. It smothers them. Smells a bit odd, but not necessarily unpleasant. Or, if you want to take a more traditional route, you could go to the vet and get a prescription flea treatment.

Answer 10

try bombing again using product yor vet recommends, and remember in large rooms you need 2 bombs.