I had fleas get in my house from an ex-roomates dogs about 1.5 months ago. I’ve since used every method, spray, powder, and foggers, but they keep coming back. I’ve even sprayed my back yard with flea killer every couple of weeks. There are a couple stray cats that come around my neighborhood. Could it be that they have fleas and are depositing them in my yard and having me track them in? I am really lost here.
Been there, done that (so you have my sympathy):
Flea control can be very frustrating and at times somewhat discouraging. In order to effectively eliminate a flea problem, a step-wise program needs to be implemented. The three steps to effective flea management are treatment of infested pets, vacuuming and cleaning of infested premises and spraying or dusting infested premises.
Since most flea problems originate from an infested cat or dog, elimination of fleas from the pets is the first and most important step. Insecticides approved for direct application to pets as spot treatments, dips, dusts, sprays, or shampoos are available at most discount stores. In addition, most veterinarians will also provide flea control services for your pet.
Once the pet has been treated, efforts should then focus on the indoor premises. Particular attention should be paid to areas of the home where the pet sleeps or spends the majority of its time. Blankets or rugs that may be used as pet bedding should be discarded or laundered in hot, soapy water. All carpeted areas and upholstered furniture should be thoroughly vacuumed and the sweeper bag contents discarded.
If the flea infestation is light, frequent and thorough vacuuming may eventually eliminate the problem. Moderate to heavy infestations, however, will usually necessitate the application of a residual insecticide to carpets, baseboards, cracks and crevices, and other areas where fleas may be present. Good results have been achieved using products that contain a contact insecticide along with an insect growth regulator.
Added personal experience: I bought a couch at a yard sale – it was infested with fleas. After the above thorough vacuuming, I finally had to put the entire couch inside two plastic mattress shipping bags: I then threw in 2 flea collars and 5 pounds of dry ice (frozen carbon dioxide). I had twice tried room foggers (insecticide) w/o killing all the fleas. This improvised “smothering” with CO2 combined with putting the flea collars under the cushions completely eliminated all fleas, even those in the rest of the apartment.
So I recommend my method be applied to all upholstered furniture. The couch was the only upholstered furniture and seemed to harbor the fleas “beyond reaching” with foggers. Just be careful handling the dry ice: it can literally “burn” skin badly enough to leave a scar. Keeping pieces of dry ice in paper bags and wearing sleeved shirts and gloves is the common safety measure.
If the above measures do not work: it’s time to call a reputable pest control company. Be sure to check terms of contract before signing up and / or paying.
Its hard to get rid of fleas when they have started. The most effective way is to groom them with an electric pulsing brush (which sends an electrical charge down into the hair killing the fleas) and getting a flea collar. Also, wash their beds every week and spray and wash them every week. Unfortunately there is not really a way of keeping them gone for good, but the more frequently you clean, the better
Hope this helps!
There is no such thing as to have a dog to never have fleas unless you have your dog protected in a sterilized room for life. Fleas are and will always be a neverending battle but there are ways to nutrealize then for short periouds like flea collors and liquids you can put on the back of their neck and all along their back for a few months but then wears off. If you dog is infested with fleas, you can bath your dog using dawn dish soap and will kill fleas, eggs, and larvae on contact but the down side to this is that after all the soap is washed off, they will get fleas again and is good to use before flea treatment.
To really get rid of fleas, you have to disrupt their life cycle. Fleas thrive in moist, humid environments–that’s why they’re a much bigger problem in the summer than in winter.
Here’s how you can make the fleas flee, http://dogtime.com/flea-control-tips-aah…
The dog doesn’t live there anymore. She just has the left overs, as in fleas,. She needs to know how to get rid of the fleas from the dog that doesn’t live there anymore.
I am in search of this as well.
http://www.ehow.com/how_5255612_rid-flea…
Here’s an article that may help you: http://www.ehow.com/how_5258434_control-…