Avoiding Flea Infestations

Flea infestations are very unpleasant to say the least, both for you and your pets. Preventing fleas starts with understanding how fleas are introduced into your home in the first place.

Most of the time, fleas enter the home when a pet brings them in from the yard. Fleas use animals as hosts, and they can jump large distances, which allows them to jump on passing animals. This allows them to travel great distances, right into your yard and then into your home.

Fleas can also travel on old furniture, infested clothing, linens or even the clothing of a human guest whose home is infected. Because of their small size, they can directly enter your home through cracks in the floor, window seals or screens.

Only a few fleas are needed to start an infestation because they can can lay hundreds of eggs before they die. After a few days the eggs hatch and the larvae spin cocoons and emerge after several weeks.

To get rid of fleas, you should begin by washing or trashing and bedding or blankets where the fleas’ ‘hosts’ spend their time. The cocoons are resistant to insecticide, but after using a flea treatment, frequent vacuuming will encourage the fleas to exit the cocoons, where they will be vulnerable to the insecticide.

If your flea infestation doesn’t get better after about a month, it may be time to re-treat or call a professional.