Natural flea repellent can be an efficient and safe alternative to dangerous chemicals. Flea collars, baths, and treatments all contain chemicals that are dangerous to pets and people. If there is a question about this, all one needs to do is read the label on any of those types of products. They all contain health warnings about the chemicals contained in them. Every day pets and children are exposed to these products and there are documented cases of serious illnesses resulting from the chemicals.
According to Hobart Pest Control experts order to effectively use natural flea repellent techniques, it is important to understand the lifecycle and habits of the common flea. If your pet have fleas, so does the pet bedding and your house. Experts say that for every flea on your pet, there are 30 in its surroundings. Fleas are persistent breeders and they are not picky about where they lay their eggs. They will lay eggs in pet bedding, carpets, and furniture. Fleas are also similar to cockroaches in that they are very adaptable. Their ability to change their defenses to chemicals makes them hard to kill after the first 3-4 treatments.
The first step to implementing natural flea repellent tactics is to start with your home and your pet’s surroundings, not with your pet itself. All pet bedding needs to be thoroughly cleaned at least weekly. If the bedding can go in the washing machine, wash it in hot soapy water to ensure that the fleas are killed. If it can’t, either hand wash the bedding or vacuum it painstakingly. Vacuum all carpets, curtains, and furniture and dispose of the bag, or canister contents, immediately making sure to remove it from the house.
Now you can focus on your pet. You can buy good flea combs at any pet supply store. It’s a worthwhile purchase and you should use it frequently. It will remove adult fleas from your pet’s fur, but will probably not remove any eggs. You need to wash your pet in warm, soapy water in order to effectively kill any remaining fleas and eggs. Be sure to wash your pet thoroughly, including the head. You can use any mild soap for this. This process may be a challenge for pets, such as cats, that do not like the water, but it is very important to do this to kill the fleas that remain on your pet after combing.
To trap and kill fleas that remain in your pet’s bedding, you can place a dish of warm water near the bedding. Fleas are attracted by warmth and will drown in the water. This method is effective, but often there are issues with the pet drinking the soapy water. In that case, there are also electric flea traps for sale. These types of traps work moderately well at continuing to remove fleas from your pet’s surroundings. They typically plugin and have a sticky pad. If the traps are used consistently, you will notice that fewer fleas are caught on the sticky surface as time goes by. This is a sign that the flea population is being reduced.
There are also essential oils and other natural products that are great at repelling fleas. It’s important to know the quantity that is safe for your pet. Onions and garlic ingested by dogs help the animal repel fleas, but too much of either can be toxic for dogs. The best advice for natural flea repellent is to research the method that is chosen. Many natural flea remedies are still toxic to pets or children. Products can be advertised as natural as long as they contain no chemicals. As an example of the problem, this can present, hemlock is natural but is certainly not safe for pets or humans.
