house fleas

[Stewart]

Has anyone current information on how to get rid of house fleas? I suspect that they may have come from a cat. The floors are laminated and the only fabric is the mattress in the bedroom. Thank you.

[Howard Neil]

Speak to a local vet. They will sell a suitable insecticide and be able to advise you on its use.

[Andrew Gabriel]

If the cat is still around, spray it with special insecticide available from vets (we used to use Nuvan Top) and let the cat loose around the house. It's harder if the cat isn't around any longer. Fleas will wait for a cat for some weeks, but eventually will try any host, including humans, when no cat shows up. (Dog fleas are less host specific, and will bite on humans even when dogs are available.) It's quite common to find people start getting bitten a couple of weeks after a cat ceases to occupy a house. With no cat, it's mainly down to thorough cleaning to catch all the eggs. Insecticide won't help much, except to kill those currently in the flea stage; it is ineffective against the eggs. I think I read egg hatching is triggered by vibration (assumed host nearby).

[Moon~Shadow]

Hi there, you will need to check if they are cat fleas or bed bugs! Bed bugs have an odour about them and when humans are bitten there is normally marks of blood on the bedding - if this is the case - Environmental Health (local Council) or destroy mattress. If it is cat fleas they are small and jump very quickly - can jump up to 6ft high.

Cat Fleas can lie dormant for up to 2 years - cat or no cat. Central heating encourages the hatching of the eggs which can be deposited along the edges of skirting boards, in fabrics, dusty corners etc. Thorough cleaning will not eradicate the eggs, the house needs to be treated with a household insecticide only available from the vet or online supplier.. There is INDOREX which prevents flea infestation for 12 months and kills adult fleas up to 2 months. If you can get ACCLAIM (which I use) the smell is much more tolerable and just as effective and doesn't damage fabrics. There is also STAYKILL but the smell gets your throat quite badly. If the cat is around it needs to be treated with a suitable flea treatment, there is Advantage which is a small ampoule which you squeeze the contents onto the skin at the back of the cats neck. There is frontline which also comes as a foam and a product called Program which you put into the cats food. Most of these have to be repeated monthly to continue protection. I believe there may also be a

6mth injection available. The secret is to break the flea cycle - kill the fleas on the cat and the eggs they lay, they then can't reproduce so eventually they are eradicated. Cat Collars are no use - they only kill fills around the neck and ears. If you do have a hoover I would suggest putting a cat collar inside it to kills any fleas or eggs in there. Thoroughly hoover the mattress and apply the spray. Also think about settee - hoover, spray fabrics, materials need to be washed on a 60 degree - 40 will not kill eggs. If anyone is getting bitten try Piriton as it is an anti-histamine. If someone has a high histamine count they are more likely to get bitten - that's why some do get bit and some don't.

Here are some links Acclaim

Indorex some very useful info Hope this helps. Good luck.

[stevemathews]

My solution to cat flea infestation was unorthodox but it worked. As a student, 20 odd years ago I lived in a grubby smelly flat infested with fleas. I did not however want to swap flea bites for neurological and immunological damage caused by pesticides. I collected every plate, pan, cup and bowl that I could find in the flat and filled it with water. I placed them on the floor all around the flat, the majority of them around my bed. Then I switched the light off and went to bed. The next morning I counted over 40 fleas drowned or struggling in the water. The second night it was down to about 15. After a week there were none. I am not an expert in flea biology, but I doubt if I killed them all, so I still wonder what happened to the last half dozen or so survivors.

[Martin]

... it's obvious - they hibernated for 20 years, then popped round to see Stewart...

[Stewart]

Thanks to all for the advice, I shall start the disinfestations (hopefully) to-night.

[RaT]

We had a problem and got some sprays etc from the pet department at Tesco. It seemed to do the trick, combined with thorough vacuuming