Help With Fleas Please! :)

tackyjan · 09-22-2012, 04:32 AM

Hi All!

I have a small (600 sq. ft.) condo that has all tile except in my bedroom which has carpet. My cat has fleas and so I was wondering... do those do-it-yourself flea bombs work or would I be better off hiring a professional company?

Also, do you think the fleas are only in my bedroom since this is the only place with carpet? If so, that's an area of like 150 sq. ft. that needs to be de-flea'd so I wonder if hiring a professional would be cost effective. If not, I guess that leaves me no choice but to use the bombs. :D

Thanks!!!

**oh'mike** · 09-22-2012, 06:22 AM

Spend the money on 'Front Line' for the cat--It works when all other flea control fails.

Vacuum well----then get the vacuum emptied--- I have used Sevin dust with good results--but I don't know about using it in a bedroom---we have some more knowledgeable folks here---so I'll duck out on the flea killing part---Mike----

creeper · 09-22-2012, 06:32 AM

Your entire place has them. The cat is the host that they jump on for a meal, they are not neccessarily living on him exclusively. The fleas are laying eggs all over the place so be diligent in constant vacuuming..baseboards, cracks in between hardwood, corragated cardboard. Especially where the cat lays around.

If you can see a few everyday, then I'm sorry to say you probably have a bad infestation at this point. Save yourself the expense and hassle of spraying can after can...hire the pro.

Even then you may find some that went dormant only to hatch in 10 months. I don't think the sprays and bombs affect the eggs. They must hatch or be vacuumed

Like Mike said get the cat on a preventative. The fleas will still bite, but will be unable to reproduce. After that its just a matter of letting the cycle run it course.

Good luck

sdsester · 09-23-2012, 08:26 AM

I had a girlfriend that knew when it was time for the vet to treat the dogs again because she got nibbled. The stuff really helped the dogs stay comfy and the house never had a problem for long. Your cat will be so much happier with flea treatment too. You can of course by the stuff online yourself. Just do not over apply it or your bet bill could end up 4-5 times what it would have been when your kitty picks up a skin infection or gets sick.

The home had hardwood floors but we were still diligent about vacuuming and not providing nests of clothes on the floor, etc. If you have carpeting? Spend what you did not on flea treatment for the cat on getting the carpet steam or extraction cleaned.

All that said, I would hire a pest control specialist before ever wasting money on consumer pesticide products like those bombs. I think they are packaged for their high drama value and not their effectiveness. I have never hired a national pesticide company. I ask my fave restaurants and other businesses who they use and it is usually a local independent. Do make sure you get a pest control person properly licensed though.

Blondesense · 09-24-2012, 10:12 AM

In your shoes, I think I would try to get rid of them myself. Keep in mind you have to treat the cat and the environment repeatedly. Treat the environment every week to two weeks to kill hatching eggs.
Rather than the grocery store stuff, I would recommend talking to your vet about the safest and most effective products.

Does the cat go outside the condo at all? If so, this will most likely be a recurring problem as it picks up more fleas in it's travels.

pvryderz · 09-24-2012, 07:08 PM

I've been fighting fleas the past few weeks and have learned the following.

The most important thing that helps me is to wear long white socks. This makes it easy to detect if fleas are present as they will jump on you. White pants, shirts, etc. are also great. Once they jump on me, I pluck them off and add them to one of my various flea treatment jars to watch them wilt away.

I haven't tried the bomb, but have experience with the following products:

Spectracide: Didn't work
Ortho: Didn't work
Raid: Didn't work
Diatomaceous Earth: Works pretty good. Kills a flea in 2-12 hours depending on the amount present. Doesn't work well when the DE powder is wet.
Suspend SC: Works well. Kills a flea in a matter of seconds.
Dishwashing Liquid (Dawn): Works well. Kills a flea in a matter of second.

My recommendation is if you use any chemical or bomb solution, make sure it has some pyrethroid active ingredient as they seem to work well on fleas.

Jim F · 09-24-2012, 09:20 PM

I'll share my recent experiences here. We have three cats and a dog. The pet treatments did not work this year as well as previous years. The vet told us that is a common problem this year. Rug treatments have been helpful but dilligent floor vacuuming has been the most help- twice daily if necessary and them once a day once they stop clinging to your legs. Some people vacuum daily anyway and probably aren't bothered by fleas as a result. I have a Kirby bagged vaccuum that I kept out in the garage during the worst of it rather than changing the bag daily which could get expensive. Most people these days it seems have bagless vacuum cleaners which you would want to take directly out of the house and empty into a plastic garbage bag and tie it.

BuggyD · 09-25-2012, 10:14 AM

I HIGHLY recommend trying the "ultimate flea trap". No poison, not toxic for your or your pet etc. It has a night light that shines on a very sticky white pad. The fleas are attracted to the light and the white, they jump on and can't get back off. Works GREAT.

timmay5309 · 10-01-2012, 10:29 PM

X 2 on spending the money on Frontline. I tried pretty much every other available "cheaper" alternative, and the Frontline took care of it. In my house, I used the Raid purple can Flea bug bombs, and when I bathed my cats, I put cotton balls in there ears. The fleas jump and hide in there ears while bathing them. I have been flea free for years now, and hope to never go back to that. Made me feel like such a bad housekeeper, but the vet said it was quite the out break that year, and they suggested the Front Line and cotton ball trick. I noticed a few other people mentioning leaving the vacuum outside. I did that as well....