"Fleas are the absolute worst! After the health of our pets, of course, fleas are the biggest worry that most of us pet owners have. They are gross, can spread disease and they can do a lot of harm to your beloved pet. That is why today we are looking at how to get rid of fleas in a natural way.
By a natural way, we are talking about not using chemicals that you buy in the pet store or the supermarket. Sure, these flea treatments promise to get rid of fleas, but unless you dig really deep and find out exactly what is in them, you never really know what you are exposing your dog and your family to.
How Do I Know If I Have A Flea Infestation?
The obvious way to know for sure is how often your pet is scratching themselves. All pets like to have a good scratch (as do us humans) however, you know your pet better than anyone so you will know when they are scratching more than usual.
Also if you or someone else in the house is scratching a lot… yeah, you know! It is not nice to think about, but fleas are not shy about taking up residence on a person. You can also see fleas when you look closely at your dog, get a proper flea comb so you can see for sure. A few fleas can turn into an infestation very quickly.
There are actually different stages of fleas. They start off as eggs, then larvae, pupae and then finally the actual flea we all love to hate. You have to stop each aspect of a flea’s life cycle from the egg all the way to the flea to really get rid of the infestation.
Natural Ways To Free Your Pet From Fleas
Here are the best natural ways for you to rid your pet and your home from a flea infestation.
Bath Time!
While bathing a dog is a million times easier than a cat, a nice warm bath is the first step to defeating the flea menace! You want to use an all organic shampoo that has no nasty ingredients in it at all, this, in the long run, is way better for your pet than the chemically enhanced flea shampoo!
Apple Cider Vinegar Rinse
Next up you want to make an apple cider vinegar rinse. Fleas hate this stuff! The mixture that you want is to use four ounces of mildly warm water along with six ounces of apple cider vinegar. Mix it all together and give your dog a good spraying. Be sure to not get any in their eyes and also make sure you get the belly and the neck.
Look For Survivors!
Once your pet is all dry, now you want to use your flea comb. Hopefully, most of them will have been killed off with the bath and the apple cider vinegar rinse. This way you can get any stubborn stragglers and take care of them yourself. Also, you can get rid of all those nasty dead fleas that the bath took care of.
You really want to do this process once a week for at least a few weeks to make sure that all the eggs and those early stages of the flea’s life are taken care of. Just doing this once could leave some eggs behind.
Natural Ways To Get Rid Of Fleas In Your Home
Those fleas can happily live in your carpet, furniture and other warm places! That means you also need to take care of your home. There is no point getting rid of fleas from your pet if you are just ignoring your house. As well as taking care of your pet, do these steps also to make sure that these annoying fleas have not set up any bases around your home.
Grab the Vacuum
Vacuum your floors daily! Some might say do it a couple of times per week (and for general cleanliness that is fine) however, we are dealing with a flea infestation here! Vacuuming is going to suck up any eggs or larvae that are in your carpet. Once you have vacuumed the carpets in a room, empty the canister outside in the bin as fleas will crawl out if given the chance.
Vacuum with Baking Soda
Use all-natural baking soda to really finish them off. This is an extra step that is worth doing in the day you are taking on the flea invasion. Give your carpets a standard vacuuming, but then go back and give the carpet a sprinkling of baking soda and then leave it to sit for a short while and vacuum it all up. It may sound a bit obsessive, but getting rid of fleas is not something you want to do half-heartedly.
Use The Machine!
No, we are not talking about some magic flea seeking machine, we are talking about your trusty washing machine. You want to machine clean everything that you fear could be a home for fleas. Anything that your pet has used needs to be cleaned and cleaned properly.
A nice machine wash is going to show those fleas you mean business. Also, if things like dog bedding, cushions, blankets and whatever else you are washing can go in the tumble dryer, do it! Just 15 minutes in a dryer will kill all stages of fleas so it is a great thing to do if you can.
No one likes to deal with fleas and no doubt just reading this has resulted in you scratching all over. However, keeping an eye on your pet and how much it is itching is vital to making sure they are kept free from fleas. Keeping a clean home and giving your vacuum a real workout is going to do wonders when it comes to making it hard for fleas to thrive in your home."
by Fitbark.com
About the Author: James Garner is a keen writer who loves nothing more than spending time with his 2 children and 3 German Shepherds. He loves writing about any topic related to home life. He currently runs the blog at Clean Home Guide.
