I have a 1 wk old son and when my mom came to visit for his birth she brought her dog… who in turn brought us fleas! Our house is now infested and it’s driving me crazy. All of the foggers that I’ve seen would be way too dangerous to use in his area. We really can’t afford to hire a professional. Any ideas?
I have a step process that never fails and it is safe for use around small children.
1) Sprinkle Borax laundry detergent on the carpet and rub it in with a broom. Leave it for 24 hours and vaccume up.
2) Bathe the dog with a mild oatmeal shampoo and then use natures guardian flea drops or spray.
3) Spray the furniture with a light flea spray such as Harts furniture spray. (Make sure the baby isn’t around until the spray settles and dries. It should take about five minutes.
4)You will also want to treat your yard if the dog has been playing outside. This can be done with an outdoor flogger or spray. Even some sprinkle methods work well.
Do you have pets of your own? If so, treat them with Advantage, Frontline or Advantix. All 3 are safe and effective, anything you buy in stores (Hartz, Seargents etc) don’t work and are toxic. You are right, foggers and “bombs” are not safe for you, your baby or pets. They leave residue on everything also. If you don’t have pets, vacuum like crazy, wash all bedding in hot soapy water frequently and you can try Borax (powered detergent). it’s a “old school” remedy, but it works (you can also use this in conjunction with the topical flea treatments if you have pets) sprinkle the Borax along the baseboards, on the carpets etc. Let it sit a while and then vacuum up. Be sure to empty your vacuum bag/canister often. Also, flea collars can be toxic to pets and only kill the fleas around the pets neck when they are wearing them, but they do a good job when placed in your vacuum bag/canister will help catch anything “left behind”. Good luck and tell your Mom to treat the dog with one of the topicals I mentioned above.
This may sound strange, but it really works.
Get some small walnut tree branches and scatter them around the house. They can be under or behind furniture so they aren’t visible.
The fleas will be gone within a few days without using any sprays or toxic chemicals.
Leave the branches in place a little more than thirty days so when the that eggs left behind hatch you have them covered too.
I’ve used this method 3 or 4 times and it always works.
Your vacuum cleaner is your new best friend. Vacuum all the carpets and furniture daily and empty it outside after each vacuuming. Flea eggs are easily swept up. Flea larvae is sticky so vacuuming will not get rid of them. Some adult fleas can get sucked up. But sucking up the eggs daily will break the cycle and break the population down, hopefully, to zero.
If you have pets, treat them with a vet-recommended flea treatment. Do not get flea stuff from a regular store. They do not kill fleas and are often toxic for the animal.
If you have or can rent a carpet cleaner, use it. Open the doors and start cleaning from the far side of the rooms from the doors. This will help chase the little buggers outside. When you’re done, use a hose to spray the patio or door step down. They hate getting wet. This will also help keep them from coming back inside while you’re airing the place to dry.
And then vacuum and vacuum again.
An infested house with fleas need to be exterminated..period, the end. With a newborn I wouldn’t want to attempt the quick fixes that are costly and usually ineffective. Congratulations on your newest addition to the family. P.S. You’ve already spent money on the foggers…I understand the affordablity of an exterminator…but keep in mind, some of these chemicals that you use will kill the fleas not the eggs. Then the eggs hatch and here we go again. At least the exterminator comes with a six month (I think) warranty to come and spray again. P.S.S. I just read one of your readers suggested to spray your yard..True, because you will again bring the fleas from outside back in to your home…again…this charge will be covered by your exterminators visit
There is a powder you can buy that you sprinkle on the carpets. You will want to use the Vacuum before you let your child on the carpet again.
Borax in the laundry department cheap and safe sprinkle on carpet let sit a few hours and then vaccum up I LOVE THE STUFF it has soooo many uses
i guess dont hv a pet in the room where ur son is ever
get bug spray
im trying to think of some but i cant find any ideas!
well i hope youre son and youre family household will be ok.
i tryed my best!