Hung up the mower deck, got fleas

[BairleaFarm 344]

Ive got fleas. Infact everyone in our family has them. Bits here bits there bites everywhere. How do you get rid of them? Ive treated my dog several times and finally took her to the vet. He said with the garden and sunflower forest (dont ask) i wont be able to get rid of them. Anywho i need to. I know the easiest thing would be to get the dog outside for good. which i wont do and treat everything. Here is my plan of attack:

1. Move down sunflower forest and garden (see below for story)

2. Treat the dog

3. Spray the yard

4. over fog the house

wait 2 weeks and do it all again.

Now the story - the rabbits got my garden this year and left me with little of nothing. They left a few things and didn't touch the sunflowers. tonight i wanted to get a good mowing in to get the big stuff chopped down. I go out and put my junk deck on and start mowing. Low and behold th deck caught the root balls and derooted them. Tires started spinning big mess.

back on topic. any more ideas for flea removal??

[Nick 13]

Sounds like you have a plan. I keep my cats in the house but still have to keep them treated with frontline. Been a while but Ive had a bad spell also and it took a while to fix the problem. Nothing much worse than fleas when they get started.

Maybe this site will help

http://www.beyondfleas.com/home-flea-control/

I forgot to mention I think walmart sells some products in the pet isle. COuldnt hurt t try a larger discount pet product store also as they might have a better product selection.

[Teddy da Bear 11]

This happened to our house when I was little.

We went on vacation for two weeks. Came back and were attacked when we went in the door.

You have to treat the dog and leave him/her with a friend or family member for a couple of days.

Bomb the house (no not high explosives). Flea bomb.

Make sure it works. You can go back in......then bomb again in a week if necessary.

Rabbits are the formost host for fleas. They go into the holes with them for winter time.

[Brrly1 1,146]

Hello, Just an idea but you just might try your vet. I get my Frontline a whole lot cheaper from him than I would Petco or any place like that. Just a suggestion as you have too know this guy gets his fair share. Especially if he stays outside with me. Burly

[hodge 6]

Another thought- because we have 5 cats and 2 dogs, our vet sells us Frontline for large dogs, and tells us how much each animal should get. We are buying in bulk, saving money, and when we buy so much, they give us an extra large dog dose. Easier on the wallet, and we stay flea free. Our pets are inside and outside, and we live in the mountains, but we aren't having flea problems. That Frontline works wonders.

[Nick 13]

I didnt think to mention that the vet can be cheaper on Frontline. I think the other day it was around $30 for 3 doses from our Vet but must be $40 or $50 at the pet store. 3 cats in the house is plenty for me but do have 6 more that stay around the yard. The oldest house cat is around 18 now but she is starting to slow down. Cats

[WheelHorse_of_course 100]

When you spray the house you need to buy a product with an insect growth regulator (IGR). This prevents the flea larva from becoming adult so it breaks the reproductive cycle.

I used to be an organic farmer. So I would buy the IGR and mix it with Pyrethrum (or rotenone) and spray it with a pump sprayer. Make sure to get under the beds and in all the cracks. If the dog(s) have favorite sleeping areas hit those really well.

Rotenone and Pyrethrum are organic and are short acrting, but that is OK because the IGR lasts for months - one caution - you may find some dead "worms" around which is the larval fleas that have grown and died of old age. Kinda gross, but at least you know it is working.

http://www.gardensalive.com/product.asp?pn=3140

http://www.gardensalive.com/product.asp?pn=8659

If you don't want to mix your own go to a GOOD pet supplies place and you can get premixed non-organic sprays with IGR.

Diatomaceous earth is also good to have around. This is a mechanical pesticide. Put it in cracks and crevices and in the dog beds.

Also, I would recommend Frontline every month on the dog(s) for a few months and then every 3 months from thereafter.

If you visit tick-country dose the dogs right before you go with Frontline. It is amazingly effective - you will find dead ticks on the floor!

The above will work effectively!

[WheelHorse_of_course 100]

I didnt think to mention that the vet can be cheaper on Frontline. I think the other day it was around $30 for 3 doses from our Vet but must be $40 or $50 at the pet store. 3 cats in the house is plenty for me but do have 6 more that stay around the yard. The oldest house cat is around 18 now but she is starting to slow down. Cats

By the way

Frontline will only sell through Vets. If you see it at other sources it is either gray market (e.g came from a Vet who re-sold it) or is counterfeit (there are very minor differences in the packaging that can be identified).

[kpinnc 16,032]

We use Frontline as well, and it does work.

When the weather gets either too hot, or too cold, our (damn) dogs get to sleep in the basement. On occasion, the basement has been known to get a flea or two (million) in just a short period of time.

Also, to use as a short order "fix", we've given the dogs a Capstar. It kills EVERYTHING on them in a matter of about 30 minutes. Of course, the Frontline does the long term work. Capstars have been particularly effective on the couple of occasions that fleas got into the basement. Give the dogs a Capstar, send them outside. Then spray down the basement with a good pesticide, and bring the dogs back in after it's safe to do so. Then go with the Frontline... By the way, your vet can give you Capstars, but I think they can be kinda pricey...

Also, the Capstars make the dog's skin crawl like crazy, so don't be alarmed if the dog scratches like crazy for a few minutes. Of course, if he is dragging his rear in the gravel driveway, you may want to be concerned...

The hard part is getting rid of them once they've dug in (same for both the fleas and the damn dogs...). Once you get on top of the infestation, it's easier to control.

Disclaimer: I don't hate my dogs. But they have been known to tick me off on RARE occasion....

Good luck!

Kevin

[linen beige 16]

any more ideas for flea removal??

Move to Hartz Mountain?

Seriously though, the most important thing to keep in mind is the newborn in the house. Talk to her pediatrician.

When our twins were born we switched to Sentinel for Heartworm and flea control. That eliminated chemicals from her fur that could get on the kids. We get it from our vet. It is a once a month tablet fed to our semi-sweet chocolate Lab. She loves them and thinks they are treats.

Our house backs up to a city park where dozens of folks walk their dogs, fleas and all. We never see fleas or ticks on her.

[Nick 13]

Thats some good info on the organic flea fix. My brother would rather throw there cat out but I'll mention this stuff to him. They have a continuing flea problem with a cat that goes outdoors.

I am about sure frontline comes in a 3 pack at the pet store. I assume it is the same product as the vet sells me just more expensive. His comes in a syringe type applicator and the pet store has a box with 3 packs of snap open thingys. They have it behind the counter at the local Pets Plus Store.

[CasualObserver 3,411]

I get my Frontline

[BairleaFarm 344]

The fleas have won.

Terminator will be here tomorrow with his 90 day guarantee bugless spray.

[TT-(Moderator) 1,169]

Terminator will be here tomorrow

Seriously?????

:banghead:

[BairleaFarm 344]

O yeah. this is way beyond the reach of any exterminator.