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Fleas.
The bane of every pet owner. These horrible little blood sucking creatures spread parasites, and disease, causing our cats and dogs to become itchy and sometimes even bald!
This is a topic that comes up with most conversations I have with pet owners.
How do I manage fleas naturally?
Natural flea control is more about environmental control, than natural versions of insecticides.
Fleas are resilient little insects, and unfortunately, what you see on your cat or your dog is only 5% of the flea population you are actually dealing with.
The cycle starts when fleas hatch, and jump onto their host (your pet). They will begin to feed within 5 mins of jumping on. Once they have fed, they start to breed, and will be laying eggs within 24-48 hours.
The eggs easily fall off your pet, landing in their bed, the carpet, between floorboards and everywhere in between. These eggs can hatch in 2 days as a larva. These larva live off dried blood, flea excrement and other flea eggs. They go through 2 separate moult stages, then start to pupate. The pupal case is extremely sticky, which collects dust and debris, protecting them from outside environmental conditions.
After about 12 days, a new adult flea hatches, and continues the cycle.
This is in ideal conditions, ranging from 20-30°C, and over 70% humidity. The flea eggs, larvae and pupae can all slow development in weather conditions that are unsuitable, waiting for the perfect time to come out to play. This is why we can have a huge flea explosion in the population all of a sudden. They are all just waiting for their chance to come out and play. Fleas can lay up to 200 eggs in one day. So you can imagine just how quickly these numbers can build up.
This is why environmental control of fleas is so important.
You will never get them under control if you only address the adult fleas on your pet.
Cats are fastidious groomers, and can actually eat a huge portion of the fleas from their coat during grooming. This can be why you don’t always see them. If you can’t find fleas on your cat, but suspect they have them, get a damp tissue and press it onto their main sleeping area. If there are any dark specks, that turn red on the tissue, you have fleas.
And I just made you look for flea poo…
Dogs are not so likely to eat the fleas as they are grooming. However they will still have the flea dirts that turn red in their bedding. You can also run a flea comb through their coat, and then wipe onto a wet paper towel. This will turn red if they are flea dirts.
To clear the environment of fleas takes a lot of work. Remember this is where we fight 95% of them.
Vacuuming
Your vacuum is your friend.
Vacuuming is a must on a daily basis. This picks up the flea eggs, and larvae between floorboards, in the carpet, and on the mats. Even giving the couches a good vacuum, or keep a washable cover on them, washing weekly. The vibrations from the vacuum is also effective at getting pupae to hatch, and the adult fleas are easier to manage. Sweeping is not the same. It will flick flea eggs and larvae, but won’t pick them up.
Mopping
Mop all hard areas with hot soapy water every second day. This is flea management and exercise all in one. This can pick up the flea dirts and eggs and the heat can also increase the hatching of the eggs.
Wash bedding
This is where most flea eggs and larvae will be.
This needs washing in hot, soapy water weekly at the very least. Allow to dry in the sun for extra flea killing power. If they sleep on your bed, make sure to change the sheets regularly, and washing them in hot soapy water too.
And who doesn’t love clean sheets day...
Mowing and outdoor areas
the lawn where pets frequent need to be kept mowed short. This allows sunlight into the lawn, and helps to dry it out.
Outdoor areas your pet has access to also need to be tended to. The floor boards on verandas can also house flea eggs and pupae. You can vacuum, or wash with hot soapy water.
Dark, dusty areas like under the house can be a particularly problematic area, and can be a big source of reinfection. Try to keep your dogs and cats out from under the house if possible.
Management of fleas naturally can be tricky, especially on a cat.
Because a cat grooms itself so frequently, anything that is on the coat, or the fur is going to be swallowed. Anything that is going to be strong enough to kill a flea, is going to be dangerous to the cat.
Diatomaceous earth (DE) is one commonly used product as a natural flea powder.
There are dangers involved with inhaling the dust particles, and I have not figured out how to get a cat or a dog to hold its breath while the dust settles.
Fortunately, It is safe if they ingest as they clean themselves.
I find it best used as a flea dust in the environment. It works by scratching the exoskeleton. It’s good for sprinkling around in the garden where your pets like to lay, or possibly in their bedding if you can’t get it washed as frequently as needed. You can also sprinkle on the carpets. But you have to vacuum it out anyway, so it might be less messy to skip the DE, and just vacuum.
Fleas can be very problematic and difficult to manage naturally, but if you are addressing the environment, you are 95% of the way there!
If you have any questions, or have found anything particularly effective at addressing the fleas on your pets, please pop it in the comments below.
Give your dog a pat for me x
Kerrie