It's confirmed! Thanks to our mild winter, this is one of the worst summers for insects in Kentucky, and that includes fleas. I don't know if you've ever had a flea infestation, but we know just how bad this can be.
Before my husband and I ever had a dog, we lived in an apartment with two cats who
never went outside. We somehow became overrun with fleas! We spent hundreds trying to fix this problem, but it wasn't until we did some thorough research that we were able to resolve it. Now, our dogs will never go without some kind of flea prevention, and there's many to chose from.
If you're trying to chose a medication like Frontline Plus (our choice), click this handy
link that will help you to decide. If we didn't have a cat, we would go with K-9 Advantix, since it has the added mosquito repellant. But there are other options for that.
I know many people do not want to use insecticides, but be aware that natural alternatives only repel and do not kill. So, if you have an infestation, see the steps at the bottom of this post.
Natural Repellants
If you suspect your pet has fleas, place them on a white surface and brush them to see if any fall off of them. Inspect their armpits, between toes and face. If you see any fleas or flea stools, bathe them using a flea comb to remove as many fleas as possible. A shampoo with citrus oil is helpful. Many fleas come off in the rinse. Apply apple cider vinegar to your pet's coat during the rinse. Fleas will also migrate to their tails and face when bathing, so be ready to pick them off. Drown the fleas in a glass of alcohol or a glass or water with a TBSP of cooking oil added to it. Keep in mind that over washing your pet can be harmful to it's skin, causing dryness, irritation or rashes.
After bathing, combing and removal, there are some natural products you can use to help keep fleas off of your pet, but again, this will not kill the fleas or prevent a home infestation.
Many have found brewer's yeast and apple cider vinegar to be effective as a repellant, adding 1/2 tsp of brewer's yeast to pet's food daily and a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar into the water bowl.
Other helpful repellants to apply to the fur include lemon, lemongrass, peppermint, lavender and citronella. There are many natural spray repellants with these ingredients, but do not spray your pet's face. Always apply some to your hands and pet onto the face to avoid the eyes. It's also helpful to do a quick application of citronella, watered down apple cider vinegar or water from boiled lemons to your pet's legs and stomach before going outside. Remember, heart worms come from a bite by an infected mosquito, so you want to keep them off of your pet.
Medicated Flea Repellant
Since our experience with flea infestation, I will not go without Frontline Plus. I was so excited when a generic came out for the basic Frontline, but I ran into a couple of issues with these generics. First of all, Maeby was very allergic to the generic form. I had to bathe her in an oatmeal bath and keep Benadryl in her system for days to get her rash to go away. I felt so guilty. But I did notice that it wasn't as effective as Frontline Plus on Kingsley, who has a double coat and is difficult to comb.
In case of flea infestation, follow these steps:
1) Gather this grocery list:
Flea bath with flea comb
Bug bombs - must have permethrin* as active ingredient
Borax or carpet sprinkle containing permethrin
A preventative treatment AKA Frontline, K-9 Advantix or Advantage (doesn't kill ticks)
Capstar tablet from your vet, but not necessary
*Permethrin is an insecticide that efficiently kills the lifecycle of fleas*
2) Pack up your pets and an overnight bag along with the grocery list above, minus the bombs.
3) Follow the instructions on your bug bomb and leave your home for the directed amount of time.
4) Give your pet a Capstar tablet, so it can start killing fleas immediately.
5) Take your animals to a friend/family member's home if they'll let you. If not, there are many dog bathing stations that you can utilize. You may also check with your groomer to see if they will work with you on this. If not, bathe them in the flea bath combing thoroughly to remove as many fleas as possible. You may need an assistant. Your dog/cat will not be patient.
6) After drying, apply the preventative treatment. Advantage begins killing fleas in 24 hours, Frontline in 18 hours and Advantix in 12 hours. BEWARE Advantix cannot be used on cats or on dogs in a household with cats, as it is poisonous to them.
7) After the allotted time has lapsed for you to re-enter your home post bug bomb, follow the instructions on the bug bomb container for cleaning up. FYI A bug bomb can only kill the living fleas. There are, however, flea eggs that may be in your carpet or on your furniture. Wash all bedding and stuffed animals in hot water and vacuum your bed and furniture. The heat from vacuuming can cause the eggs to hatch, making them vulnerable to the carpet powder you will now apply. Follow instructions on your carpet powder container. You will need to place your pets in a closed off area while the permethrin powder is setting. If you use Borax instead, it will need to sit on carpet overnight. Vacuum thoroughly. You may need to repeat this step in a week or so, but your preventative treatment on your pet will be doing it's job by then. I have also heard many people say that sprinkling salt into the carpet and furniture will kill the fleas, but this takes 2 days before you can vacuum it.
I hope these steps help you or a friend to prevent wasting your time and money, like we did.
