Major Flea Problem

[sap483]

Ladies, I need your help. DH and I were away for about 3 weeks. About a week an a half ago we came home to find our indoor cats infested with fleas. We have done the following and have not been able to get rid of the fleas on both the two cats and now all over our home (we have all hardwoods and tile besides the basement which is partially carpeted). Do you have any ideas on what else I can try? I''m so grossed out, and sick of getting bit. I''m starting to think I may have to call in the professionals.

I have tried:
-Immediately gave both cats Frontline
-Flea Powder
-Flea Baths
-Flea Collars
-Vacumed, dusted and mopped every surface repeatedly
-Washed all bedding, and washable curtains
-Fogged the house (used 9 foggers, the kind that is supposed to kill adult fleas, eggs, and larvae for my 1500 square feet house)
-Sprayed the cats with Flea and Tick Spray
-Sprayed the furniture, carpeted floor in the basement and curtains that cannot be washed with Indoor Insect Spray
-Sprinkled a solution composed of Borax, Baking Soda, and Salt all over the carpets, beds, furniture
-Washed all the floors with a solution of detergent and vinegar
-Set up night lights with pans under them containing dish soap and water (apparently the fleas are attracted, jump in and die)
-Sprayed the cats with apple cider vinegar and have been drinking it ourselves to try to prevent bites

Please help! TIA.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Sap-wow, sounds like you have your hands full! Are you living in a new place or do you have any new furniture? Were the cats in the kennel while you were gone? Usually frontline etc, work best for regular use, not during an infestation. It will take several life cycles for the fleas to die out. You might need to wait a month or two to really get rid of them all. I would just bypass the home remedies at this point and call an exterminator (like the Big Blue Bug!).

 

[VRBeauty]

Call in the professionals.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Yep, call exterminators.

Hope all works out!

(Using 9 foggers over a 1.5 week period sounds kind of dangerous!)

 

[sap483]

Ok, so I''ve left several messages for various pest control services. If there are still fleas on my cats even though we''ve given them multiple baths, frontline, and have used other flea control sprays and powders, is there a chance that they will reinfest the house? Is there anything else I can try on the cats themselves? I''ve called the vet to ask about flea dips and apparently they don''t offer those anymore. TIA.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Call Petco or PetSmart. I believe they offer services for flea problems.

 

[iheartscience]

Yikes, that sounds terrible. I never had a flea infestation as bad as yours, but when my cats got fleas once I did flea baths and then put Frontline Plus on them. I also did the flea bombs, and that was enough for me. But my apartment at the time was small. I also had no carpet at all-just wood and tile, except for one throw rug.

I would definitely call in the professionals. Maybe right before the exterminators are coming, you can give the cats a thorough flea bath, comb through their fur to get rid of any more fleas that didn''t die in the flea bath, and then of course keep up with the Frontline Plus. Good luck!

 

[jcarlylew]

i would try taking the cats to the vet at this point. you''ve definately done a lot of the hard work, and hopefully they can do the rest. or, you can shave your cats down. yes, it''ll suck for the cats, but getting rid of the hair might help (for now).

i would also suggest keeping your cats at a "pet hotel" of some sort until you can make sure your house is flea free. i had to do this once too

it was NOT fun.

 

[waterlilly]

wow. that's a whole lot of flea treatment you've tried!

i'm really surprised it has not worked. is there some sort of flea source outside your home that is keeping them populated inside your home?

are you sure they are fleas and not bedbugs?

i believe mice can carry fleas, do you happen to have a mouse issue?

eta: with frontline it may take a week or two to see them all gone...i believe the eggs will all be dead, but getting all the adult individuals may take longer?

 

[Amandine]

Date: 7/29/2009 11:50:40 AM
Author: waterlilly
wow. that''s a whole lot of flea treatment you''ve tried!


i''m really surprised it has not worked. is there some sort of flea source outside your home that is keeping them populated inside your home?


are you sure they are fleas and not bedbugs?


i believe mice can carry fleas, do you happen to have a mouse issue?


eta: with frontline it may take a week or two to see them all gone...i believe the eggs will all be dead, but getting all the adult individuals may take longer?

The flea source outside your home may be the problem. I was taught that you needed to treat pet, home, and yard. I see from your list that you have done pets and home, but not yard.

 

[TravelingGal]

Yup, they are probably around your house.

I deal with a flea infestation every year, and I don''t even have a pet. I''m starting to have severe dislike for cat owners who let their cats outside in my apartment complex - because the lease says all cats must be indoors. But that''s beside the point.

I''ve done all those things and at the end of the day, you have to bring in a pro. Now I don''t even mess with those things...I just call the pros.

Vacuum a couple of times a day before the pros come in and vacuum every day for about 2 weeks after they come in.

The landlord actually pays for the pro for us so I don''t contact them directly. But call around and ask about follow ups, etc.

 

[House Cat]

You should probably call an exterminator.

We have an exterminator come out every two months and I don''t even have to treat my dogs for fleas. I do though, because the treatment I give them also repels other things, like ticks and we''re outdoorsy.

The exterminator will guarantee their services. Fleas hatch every two weeks. So have them in for a spray and make them come back in two weeks.


I''m beginning to think that continuously treating your cats is becoming dangerous to their health and yours. Hopefully you didn''t wash the frontline off. I''ve found that the drop treatments work best if the animal is a bit more oily and hasn''t been bathed in a few days. I actually favor biospot and you find that at petsmart or petco. If you compare the ingredients, they''re the same ingredients used by the products you get at the vet. The price is just better.

If you just don''t want to go the exterminator route, then use diatomaceous earth. You can buy a giant bag of it at any big box hardware store (home depot, lowes.) If you google "diatomaceous earth for flea control" you will get advice on how to use it in the home and yard. It takes a lot of effort though and the exterminator might be a better bet.

 

[doodle]

We had the EXACT same problem just a few months ago! My father-in-law is an exterminator, so he gave us spray for the house and yard, but yes, you do also have to get them off the cat or they''ll just come back. He told us to pick a day, spray the entire house, furniture and all, spray the yard, and bathe the cat. On our cat, we used the Adams flea shampoo in the blue bottle (it''s usually on the aisle with the dog stuff at PetSmart, but it''s designed for both cats and dogs). The spray he gave us worked immediately, but the shampoo took two or three baths before all the fleas on Bentley were gone. He also told us to vacuum often and to take the vacuum bag out of the house immediately after vacuuming because the fleas can get back out of the bag, the crafty nasty things! Unfortunately, fleas breed so quickly and are so easily hidden that it can take a couple of cycles of treatment to fully rid your home of them. Best of luck to you guys--I know you''re miserable right now having to deal with them!

 

[sap483]

Thanks for all of the advice ladies. I hired an exterminator. He''s coming tomorrow. The ironic part is that we''ve already spent more trying other things than the exterminator costs. AND he has a guarantee on his work or he will come back for free. I''m considering signing up for his semi annual plan. He will come out and spray our home and yard twice a year for fleas and carpenter ants (we have had that problem too) for only $95 a visit.

HH- thanks for the info on Petsmart and Petco. I''m off to call them to schedule an appointment for flea services tomorrow.

Thanks again!