The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #156862   Message #3719853
Posted By: GUEST, ^*^
29-Jun-15 - 02:45 PM
Thread Name: Declutter (x-hoarders), Fitness Apr-June 2015
Subject: RE: Declutter (x-hoarders), Fitness Apr-June 2015
An organic approach to fleas is to spray beneficial nematodes around the yard outside the house (to stop the egg stage in the soil) - this is best accomplished after a heavy rain (or heavy watering) and done at dawn or dusk if it is hot weather during the day. The nematodes get into the soil and go to work, but spreading them in sunshine and heat kills them before they get into the soil. Find them refrigerated at a local gardening or feed store.

In the house, a dusting of food grade Diatomaceous earth (there is a pool variety but it isn't meant to be used anywhere else because of impurities). You may have DE for your wildlife - that can be used. The feed store may have a can with a long narrow tube (like the tube that comes on the can of WD-40, but much longer) that is for puffing DE around the area.

If you have carpets, there are a couple of options. You can work DE into the carpets if they are wall-to-wall, but the thing to do first is a steam cleaning with the water as hot as you can manage to kill eggs.

There is a product you can get from the vet called Revolution that is a liquid put on the skin between the shoulder blades once a month. It prevents heartworms, fleas, and repels ticks. The vet version is expensive, but you can buy it without an RX from the UK for about 1/3 to 1/4 of the US cost. The UK version is called Stronghold and is for dogs and cats. http://www.vetmeds4pets.co.uk/catalog/index.php?manufacturers_id=20 Cats are all one size box.

Since you have a dog, it would be good to put it on her also. The UK brand comes in the same weight classes (but in kilos, not pounds). The teal box of Revolution that my dogs get is from dogs 40 - 85 pounds, and the teal box of Stronghold is the same weight class. I get it from Vet Meds 4 Pets (http://www.vetmeds4pets.co.uk/catalog/) and their shipping to the US is reasonable - under $5. All pets should have a heartworm test before getting this product, it won't kill worms in place, it is meant to be used in healthy animals and keep them healthy.

Good luck! And congratulations on Jeremiah running his own closet!