rid of fleas?

Question

Hi, I was just wondering how u would get fleas out of the home completely? they are on my 2 cats on my couches, carpet, etc. which products can u buy in stores that would be best for me to use to get rid of this problem. Thanks

Answer 1

For the cats I would recommend Frontline. It's brilliant - very easy to apply and you'll notice the difference immediately.You can't buy it in the shops so you'll need to go to your vet or otherwise buy it from a reputable site on the internet. The products for cats that are on sale in shops don't work and some are actually harmful.

For the furniture, couches, carpet, you can again buy excellent products from your vet but can also buy products from the pet shop. I would avoid Hartz products though as they have been known to cause serious and harmful side effects to cats. (See www.hartzvictims.org)

Best of luck.

Answer 2

You need Advantage or Frontline, a medication you apply to the skin of the animal once a month. This kills the fleas when they bite the animals, but does not harm you or your pet. Since you specified a product to be bought in stores, you can get it in some of the better pet stores and animal supply stores. It's easier to get it from your vet though.
Don't waste your money on collars or sprays. They don't work.
Also, don't use any of the cheaper topical flea applications, like Bio spot, Hartz, or any of the ones you will find in places like Wall Mart, grocery stores, and Pet Co. These have been linked to a multitude of toxic affects on cats. I speak from experience. It's much cheaper to pay extra for the Advantage/Frontline, than to end up in the emergency room with a cat with liver failure.
Bombing your house is toxic to you, your pets, and the environment. It also costs a lot, and doesn't always work.
If your cats are inside/outside, you will need to apply Advantage/Frontline every month, unless you live in an area that has cold winters, in which case, once you've gotten rid of the initial fleas, you shouldn't have to apply in the winter.
Keep in mind that flea eggs can lie dormant for a very long time, so you really need to continue Advantage/Frontline for at least 3 months to get rid of the infestation. You will notice a drastic change right away, and after a week or so, you probably won't notice any fleas at all.
That being said, the most effective way to keep fleas out of the house is to keep your pets inside.

Answer 3

i would recommend buying frontline or advantage for the cats (get that from a vet as i have heard some of the ones carried in pet stores are fakes unless they order directly from the company)also i would get a flea spray for the carpets Adams works well.Also vacuum the carpets throughout the house after that use the flea spray.If you still have a problem you could have your house bombed and while that is taking place take them to a local groomer for a flea bath.

Answer 4

There aren't any products available in stores that are going to be useful. Stores aren't licensed to sell the proper chemicals for flea treatment - anything you find in store is just going to be a basic pesticide that you can't expect to work, so don't waste your money. Goes for animal and house treatment.

So, you need to go to your vets for proper treatment - both for your animal and for the house. Get some Frontline, Advantage or Revolution for your cats, and some proper veterinary spray for your house.

Chalice

Answer 5

DON'T BUY STORE FLEA MEDICATION!!! IT CAN KILL YOUR PETS!

You can buy borax from the store and spread it around. Then wait a while and vacuum it back up. This kills the fleas. There is also a spreay that you can get from the vet that works really well. Put the cats on revolution or frontline(i like revolution).

Answer 6

You can use Advantage on all animals in the house, for 3-4 months in a row, and it will take care of the fleas in the house as well. No spraying or bombing necessary.

Answer 7

i would take the cats to the vet to get advantage to treat them with. bathing them in dawn also helps kill fleas. we have the same problem right now and the vet said to absolutely not use store products for fleas on them because they contain very harmful insecticides and can make the cats very sick.

Answer 8

you may get a flea spray which you spray interior the carpet, and around the baseboards of each and every room, and around the door sills. inspite of the undeniable fact that, your suitable guess is to get the flea drugs which you place on the canines's lower back between their shoulders (like Frontline's real Spot). it somewhat is going to at last kill off each and all of the fleas interior the canines's ordinary territory (the two interior and out), yet you're able to shop treating each and each month.

Answer 9

Here is my de-flea program

What to do for Itchy and Scratchy !

My very long and thorough blurb about fleas. This can work for both cats and dogs.

PART ONE - Treat your pets:
Advantage and Frontline spot treatments both work well, but each works only on a certain type of flea. All the other flea collars out there are useless or dangerous. Call your vet to find out which of these two works best in your area.

You need to bathe your pet first. Shampoo her (him) with Dawn dishwashing liquid and leave the soapy lather on for 5-7 minutes. Be careful not to get any of it in your pets' eyes. Rinse them thoroughly. Only when they are completely dry can you apply the drops. Never use flea sprays or powders or any other insecticidal products on your animals.

Even after you have treated your home (PART TWO below), you'll have to comb your pets out every day with a flea comb (these are cheap), as new fleas will continue to hatch out for a month from your carpet. Your set-up will be: the flea comb, a zip lock baggie, a lint roller. As you comb out each dog or cat, stick the hair, dirt and fleas to sheets of the lint roller. When you catch a flea, quickly behead him with the flea comb, so he cannot wiggle free. Dispose of the lint sheets in the ziplock bag, and to be safe put it into a second ziplock baggie. Go on to the next animal. You'll know it when your pets are becoming cleaner. At the worst phase you'll need to do this every day or twice a day for each pet. After the fleas are gone, you should still groom your pet on a regular basis, so take out that flea comb twice a month and see if fleas are returning.

PART TWO - Treat your home: Do not call a pest control service. They put down some dangerous chemicals, and spray some, mostly without any consideration for the safety of you and your pets (birds are especially vulnerable to all kinds of chemicals). You do not want any chemical residue left in your home, do you?
Go to Home Depot, Lowes or your neighborhood hardware store and get "foggers" or "fog bombs" of the strongest type you can. (This absolutely needs to be done by a responsible adult who can read English the instructions well). You're going to have to fog your home at least twice. But one fogger for each 1000 square feet of your home - for each session. So if you have 3000 square feet, buy 6 foggers. Be prepared to evacuate all animals and people from the house for the duration of the fogger plus 2 hours. Prepare carefully, according to instructions (cover food prep areas, put food away, turn off electricity and pilot lights, etc.) Everyone and al animals (including fish) must leave. Then set up your foggers and set them off according to a plan, which will leave the door you exit from last. When the time is up, you'll need to come back in the house to open all the windows, and put on the fan, to let the air out of the house. Ventillate for 1-2 hours this way. Don't let anyone in before this has finished. Fog again in 2 weeks. (You are lucky if you can do this during the summer months!)



PART THREE - more house preparation: If you have a fair amount of carpet, this is not going to be enough to get rid of your fleas if they have started to occupy your home. All carpet must be washed thoroughly and vacuumed. If you have orientals, send them out for cleaning. (Don't forget the cat tree and doggie beds!)

This is the worst part: Even after the carpets have been washed thoroughly and professionally, fleas may still hatch out. You'll need to vacuum the entire carpeted area of the house every day. Each day, immediately after the vacuuming is finished - remove your vacuum bag, seal it in double layer of plastic ziplock bags, and put in a new bag.

If you can buy (either on the Internet or at your vet) some spray Frontline or Advantage, put a tiny bit on a sponge and lightly rub it into some problem carpet areas. Also, you can treat a room that is isolated with carpet, by rubbing a mixture of table salt and Borax (1:1) into it, waiting 7-10 days, then vacuuming it up thoroughly.

I'm sorry to tell you all this, but you'll probably have excellent controll of all fleas within a month. You're going to think "My life is fleas!" But, this will pass and your pets will be flea-free and healthy.

PART FOUR - avoiding reinfestation: Make sure your animals get their treatment every month. We use Frontline and it is very expensive, but if we had 5 cats or dogs I would definitely use the spray which can be ordered over the Internet (one squirt to the back of the neck skin) to save money. Comb them at least once a week after the fleas have passed, and keep a close eye on the situation. For long haired cats and dogs, you can get them trimmed to a shorted more maneagable hair length while you are going through this.

Answer 10

Usually, which too long for me. I think it depends on the guy as well as his face though. Certain guys can pull off long hair and others can't.