The warm weather is here and so are the flea calls! There’s nothing more frustrating than having fleas and not being able to get rid of them! The cat flea is the most common flea you will encounter. Adults are 1-3 mm in length, reddish brown to black and their bodies flat vertically so they can easily glide through the hairs of cats or dogs. Have you ever picked a flea off you or your pet and tried to kill it between your fingers by squeezing? Good luck! They usually spring right off back into the depths of your carpet. If you have finger nails, put him in between them and slice. That usually does the trick. Fleas are capable of jumping 8 to 13 inches horizontally. That’s a gold medal jump of 450 feet for you or me! Their life cycle from the time they lay their eggs to a newly hatched adult can be as little as 3 weeks. Depending on when the eggs were laid, you can have a hatch out every day so it looks like a treatment that was preformed is not working when really it is. They just have to come into contact with the product. The life cycle consists of egg, larva, pupa and adult. The pupa stage is the stage where they can lay dormant for months until they feel vibrations alerting them that a host is nearby and they hatch out right away to get a blood meal. I have had realtors call me in the past stating that they showed a house that had been vacant for months and before they left they were covered with fleas. A trick I had often suggested was to lay a boom box (if there is still such a thing) face down on the floor and turn the volume up so the vibration will signal there is a host and cause them to hatch out when no one is around. They come in contact with the treatment that was rendered and better control was obtained. You can also place a pan of water with dish detergent in it on the floor just below a night light and see if you have a infestation. If you have pets, you use vinegar instead of dish detergent.
Things to do before treatment:
Vacuum the entire house and put the bag or contents in a plastic bag and throw it away. Vacuuming will remove some adults and eggs and stimulate new adults to hatch out from the pupa state as we mentioned above forcing them in contact with the insecticide residual on the floor. Pick up all items off the floor so a good coverage can be obtained.
Finally call a professional to do the treatment as they have products and the knowledge to apply them in a safe and effective manner.
As always if you need us, give us a call. 904-743-8272
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