How to Fight a Flea Infestation

Fleas proliferate when the temperature and humidity rises in summer, so be on the lookout as the weather warms up. To eliminate this problem, you must disrupt the life cycle of the flea and kill the eggs as well as the adult fleas.

Things You'll Need

• Lawn treatment
• Flea shampoo
• Flea collar
• Insect Growth Regulator spray

Instructions

1. Apply a residual product to your lawn and garden to kill fleas in the grass where they live and multiply. This is where dogs and cats roll around, allowing the pests to jump on.

2. Treat your pet at the first sign of a flea. Follow package directions and use a "quick-kill" pet flea control and repellant like a flea collar or drops, widely available at grocery stores.

3. Comb your pet every day, picking off and killing any fleas you find.

4. Use an Insect Growth Regulator (IGR) to spray all indoor surfaces like rugs, bedding, fabric, furniture and anywhere pets lay around. This product will render female fleas unable to produce eggs and so disrupt the life cycle of the flea. These sprays are only available from do-it-yourself pest control stores or websites.

5. Bathe your pet weekly with flea shampoo and be sure to treat every pet in the house at the same time. If your pet is infested, you can re-bathe in a few days. Launder and re-treat all cloth indoor surfaces to reduce fleas as you disrupt their life cycle.

6. Keep your pet healthy by feeding him a balanced diet with lots of fresh water every day. Keep his bedding clean and be sure he gets lots of exercise and love from you, because healthier pets repel pests.

Tips & Warnings

• Don't give up, because diligence is key when fighting fleas. It just takes a few (2-3) weeks to disrupt the life cycle and kill all existing fleas. At that point, keep your lawn and garden treated and there should not be a repeat performance.

• Do all these things on the same day to really wage a winning battle against fleas.

• Remember that all these products contain toxic chemicals that can be dangerous to pets if overused. Follow all package directions.

• Do not spray chemicals when babies or children are present, and turn off air conditioning units until spray settles on surfaces.

• Never spray Insect Growth Regulator sprays directly on pets. They are only meant for surfaces.

• Don't let babies in grass that has been treated. They can get the poison on their hands and put it in their mouths. Wait at least until it has rained hard once and the poison has dissolved.