They keep coming back

Discussion in 'Help with Life' started by Ghost, May 14, 2014.

  1. Ghost King's Apprentice

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    So I'm not entirely sure if this goes here but I feel like it does. So, my dog has been getting fleas and passes it to the cat. We washed them and put flea killing powder on the carpets and washed everything but they keep coming back. But the really problem is that the fleas always find a way to get to me ans bite me up and it's becoming a real problem. I asked the rest of the people in my house and they don't get bit so I'ts only my and I seem to get three to four new ones each morning. I have over 40 now. The animal don't even go in my room.

    I've tried everything. Has anyone been in the same or similar situation so I know what to do? My parent don't think it's serious so they don't do anything and the internet doesn't help.
     
    Last edited: May 14, 2014
  2. Misty gimme kiss

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    This might be a tmi question but how are your bathing/hygiene habits compared to those of your family? It seems odd that you're the only one being bitten.
     
  3. Plums Wakanda Forever

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    To add onto this, how messy (if at all) is your room? Have you washed your bedding recently? It could be that they migrated from your pets into your bed or somewhere in your room.
     
  4. Sara Tea Drinker

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    You REALLY have to fix this problem...

    I had a flea problem this winter to the point where my cat chewed his fur off near his rear and could barely sleep due to the fleas driving him nuts. That and ticks usually come with fleas, and worms... Both which are a severe problem for any animal.

    There's no "miracle cure-all" but here's what you can do to help:

    Vacuum every day, I mean it, every day, every inch of your house. Keep the vacuum or at least the bag outside, flea eggs/fleas CAN AND WILL live in the vacuum even after you clean it out. Do this every day, even if your parents don't think it's a "big deal". Under the furniture, especially, they thrive under there, and the furniture also. Even where an animal never goes, anywhere you step your body picks up the fleas/flea eggs and carries them around.

    Wash everything. Yes, everything. Rugs, clothes, sheets, bathmats, sweaters, you name it, wash it... I think at the peak we were spending 30 dollars at the laundromat washing clothes and sheets. Do this constantly, and keep it at the hottest setting possible, this will kill fleas, but you have to do it consisitently.

    Flea medication. Flea powder isn't enough, the animals have to have flea medication. Vectra for cats have worked fantastic for my cat, once a month and he's bounced back 100%, Frontline I heard is great for dogs, but I don't know if that works great. Call a vet and ask, make sure you pick it up at the vet and are VERY SPECIFIC on your cat/dogs weight. MAKE SURE YOU also put the right brand on the right animal. This is a MUST, if you're off by a few pounds, it could kill your animal or make them very sick. And only the vet office, there's a lot of places trying to pull "fast ones" on consumers.

    Fleas can hibernate. Turning your house into a freezer WILL NOT kill them, they can live two years in hibernation.

    Some people get fleas more attracted to them. My mom has a huge problem with fleas biting her, when I can be fine for weeks. It's odd, but I'm not surprised that she's being more affected than others.
     
  5. Lauriam I hope I didn't keep you waiting...

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    A lot of good stuff has been said here, and Frontline has worked great on our dogs, so I can recommend that. One more thing I can add, though, is watch where you take your dogs for walks. We almost never had flea problems with our pets before a new family moved into a house down the street, with their four dogs. And they're not exactly the most caring of pet owners, if you know what I mean. Not that they abuse or anything, but we know their dogs get fleas a LOT. And when they moved in, we started having flea problems with our dogs. Now, we don't let them stop anywhere near that yard, whenever we walk them past, we usually have them running (they love to run) and we don't let them stop and sniff, and now they don't get fleas nearly as much as they did when the other dogs moved in. I know this is only a very small part of the problem, but I felt it warranted mentioning, and it might help as a very small part of the solution. If the dogs are less likely to get fleas, those fleas are less likely to end up in your room. :)
     
  6. Amaury Legendary Hero

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    I'm not sure if this will help, but when we first got our dog, she had a small flea problem. Giving her a hot bath using some flea shampoo stopped the problem immediately.
     
  7. Ghost King's Apprentice

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    I bathe everyday, recently clean my room and got a new mattress so it isn't any of that. And my pets don't go in my room because I always close my door when I go in or out.
    We washed both my animals twice a week and give them flea medication then wash out their kennels.

    This makes sense kinda. Our neighbors had us cut a hole in our fence so our dogs could play together but their dog lives outside mostly so I think that's where she's getting them from.

    I don't know why it's only me but I'm going to try rewashing everything in the house again along with the animals. My mom said when she was little her dogs fleas got into the carpet and they bit her so they had to tear the carpet up since the fleas wouldn't die.

    I'm also going to try keeping the animals separate so they won't pass fleas.

    You guys are really awesome by the way.
     
  8. Rena88 Twilight Town Denizen

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    Growing up, I always knew when a family pet had fleas because they would always seek me out, too. Went through different flea deterrent/killers. Flea collars and flea shampoo helped the dogs temporarily, but not enough to keep fleas from being a constant problem in warmer months. Eventually, the dogs would just be treated with Frontline/PetArmor and that has always kept them from getting flea infested (and passing it on to me) in the first place. Topical treatments can be pricey and you have to pay attention to animal weight when getting what you need, but it holds for a month and it has really worked for my family pets (but they were all mostly indoor pets, not sure if it is just as effective for outdoor pets). Of course, you'll still have to deal with the fleas you've already been exposed to. As was said, after treating the animals, make sure to clean house as well as you can.