Content

• Steps
• Part 1 of 3: Clean out the house
• Part 2 of 3: Wash your pet
• Part 3 of 3: Destroy fleas in the yard
• Tips
• Warnings

Fleas are very annoying and can lead to health problems in both humans and pets. If you find fleas in your home and you fear that standard insecticides may be harmful to your health, try using natural remedies. You will have to act on several fronts: clean the house, get rid of the pet's fleas, and destroy the fleas in the backyard. Although this may take 3 or 4 months, if you are persistent and patient, you can get rid of fleas without the use of toxic substances.

Steps

Part 1 of 3: Clean out the house

1. 1 Vacuum floors, upholstered furniture, and bedding daily. Pay special attention to the places your pets love to visit, as well as dimly lit nooks and areas where you have recently seen fleas, their droppings, or dried blood. At the same time, remove pillows from upholstered furniture to clean all folds and secluded areas.
   • Remember to vacuum under furniture, behind doors, along baseboards, and in other hard-to-reach places.
   • If you have fleas in your home, vacuum every day. If you haven't found fleas, vacuum it regularly at least once a week.
   • Tie the filled dust bag into a plastic trash bag and throw it in a street bin.
2. 2 Wash rugs, bedding, and pet bedding in hot water. If fleas appear in your home, machine wash and dry sheets, blankets, pillowcases, pet bedding, and small rugs once a week. Use as hot water and drying temperature as possible for each material.
   • If the bedding can't be washed, it's best to play it safe and throw it away.
3. 3 Steam clean carpets and upholstered furniture. If you don't have a steam cleaner, try renting one or use the services of a professional. Remember to test the cleaning solution on small areas of carpets and upholstered furniture first.
   • Although steam cleaners kill adult fleas and larvae, some eggs survive. The incubation period can take up to 3-4 months, so keep vacuuming every day. Consider using a steam cleaner every 1–2 months until the infection is completely free.
4. 4 Try to control humidity levels with dehumidifiers. Flea eggs require a moisture content of at least 50%. You can lower the humidity in your home to create a less favorable environment for the eggs to develop. However, continue to vacuum regularly, wash your bed, and take other measures to get rid of fleas.
   • The number of dehumidifiers depends on the size and layout of the house. An average dehumidifier removes 20 liters of water from the air in 24 hours, that is, it is designed for an area of ​​about 150 square meters.
5. 5 To track your progress, use flea traps. Flea traps consist of strips of duct tape or cups of water under the lamp. The heat from the lamp attracts insects and they stick to the tape or fall into the water. Over time, fleas should come across less and less.
   • If after 1–2 months there are about the same number of fleas in the traps as at the very beginning, then it’s time to turn to specialists.
   • Flea traps can help assess the extent of infestation, but only adult insects are caught. Traps do not completely get rid of the infection.
6. 6 Treat your house, pets, and backyard at the same time. The only way to deal with fleas is to fight on multiple “fronts”. If you clean your house and keep the fleas on your pets, you won't be able to get rid of them.
   • Be patient: it can take 3-4 months to get rid of a flea infestation.

Part 2 of 3: Wash your pet

1. 1 Bathe your pet at least once a week. Use a dedicated cat or dog shampoo, not your regular human shampoo. Begin washing at the head and neck to prevent fleas from jumping into your eyes, mouth, and ears.
   • Bathing more than once a week can irritate your skin. Use a moisturizing shampoo that contains oats to help prevent dry skin.
2. 2 Brush your pet's coat daily with a special flea comb. Brush dry skin with a fine-toothed comb at least once a day. At the same time, periodically dip the comb in a cup of hot water and alcohol in a 1: 1 ratio to kill the combed out insects.
   • Watch out for fleas that pop out of the animal's fur.Dry hair is best combed out by placing the animal in a bath - you can easily spot fleas on its smooth white surface.
3. 3 Try spraying your pet with citrus solution. Pour 500 ml of water into a saucepan and add thinly sliced ​​lemon to it. Bring the water to a boil, then remove the pan from the stove, cover and leave overnight. Then strain the water, pour it into a spray bottle, spray the animal and rub the solution over its fur.
   • Pet citrus spray can also be purchased at your pet store.
   • Citrus juice acts on fleas for 24 hours, but daily application of the solution can irritate the animal's skin. Try spraying the coat every 3 or 4 days to get started, then spray more often if you don't notice any signs of irritation.
   • Do not apply citrus solution to the muzzle area. Stop using the solution if you notice redness or dryness of the skin, or if the animal begins to itch frequently.
   • It is best to check with your veterinarian before using any home remedy.
4. 4 Try not to let your pet out of the house for as long as possible. It is better not to let the cat out at all. If you have a dog, take it for short walks. When doing this, avoid shady and humid areas with dense vegetation.
   • Limit your pet's outdoor activities to prevent them from catching new fleas.

Part 3 of 3: Destroy fleas in the yard

1. 1 Cut the lawn short and scoop up fallen leaves. Keep the areas where your pets may appear clean and tidy. Trim grass and bushes to avoid shady spots. Shovel up clipped grass, fallen leaves, and other debris.
   • Fleas prefer shady, moist areas. To make the area around the house less attractive to them, cut the grass shortly, shovel leaves and debris.
2. 2 In early spring, spread beneficial worms (nematodes) in your area. These tiny roundworms feed on flea larvae. These can be purchased at your garden supply store. Look for worms that are specifically targeted against fleas and spread them around your lawn and garden beds as recommended.
   • Pay special attention to the places where your pets love to appear. It is best to spread the worms early in the flea season, which is early spring.
   • Usually a substrate with millions of microscopic worms is diluted with water and the resulting mass is poured through a garden hose or watering can. After that, in the spring and summer, you should periodically water the soil when it dries up.
   • Don't think that worms will harm you! Nematodes are harmless to humans and pets.
3. 3 Sprinkle diatomaceous earth on the ground every 7-10 days. Kieselguhr can be purchased at a garden supply store. Sprinkle them on the area around the house and pay special attention to shaded areas and places where your pets love to be.
   • It is best to apply diatomaceous earth in the morning. Do not sprinkle it on the ground in windy or rainy weather, and also be careful not to get it on pets. If it enters the respiratory system, diatomaceous earth can irritate them.
   • Kieselguhr is a mineral powder that scrapes and dehydrates fleas. Over time, it loses its effectiveness, so it should be applied to the soil once a week, and also after windy or rainy weather and watering the area.
4. 4 Try growing bog mint outdoors or in pots. This mint variety has been used to repel insects for centuries. Plant mint mint in your area or keep it in pots at home. Keep in mind that it is toxic to cats and dogs, so make sure your pets do not eat it.
   • Marshmint essential oil is sometimes used as a flea control, but it is not safe for pets.Do not apply oil to pet hair, food, or bedding.
   • If you choose to grow Marshmint in your garden, pick it off regularly to keep it from spreading throughout the area. Like other mint varieties, it grows quickly. To prevent overgrowth of the Marshmint root system, plant it in pots.

Tips

• To check if fleas have entered any part of the house or garden plot, put on white socks, pull them up higher and walk around the territory. If fleas are present, they will jump on toes and you can easily see them against the white cloth.
• If natural remedies haven't worked, consider using a flea repellent. Comparatively non-toxic products are commercially available: consult your veterinarian and select products that contain safer ingredients.
• More expensive oral flea medications that contain lufenuron, nitenpyram and spinosad are safer for pets than topical products.
• If you have to use topical products, choose drugs with S-methoprene or pyriproxyfen. Avoid products containing imidacloprid, dinotefuran, tetrachlorvinphos, sevin (carbaryl), and propoxur.

Warnings

• Do not apply essential oils to pets, their bedding, or food. Check with your veterinarian before using any home remedies.