Fleas!!! Don't die! Help! SOS!!

Crazy8catlady

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Ok so recently we had a MASSIVE flea infestation that claimed the life of one of our youngest. We sealed the room and lit off 7 BOMBS!!!!!!! 7!!!! Still they refused to die. Then I used a black flag spray and saturated the floors and doorways. (No one was going in anyways to slip and fall so I was very crazy with two handed spray technique)
We followed that up with a flea glue trap. And in 3 days the room was LOADED with bodies. I just went in today to see what the Carnage was today. 🤦 THEY ARE STILL ALIVE!!! Biting, jumping, partying it up in there.... HOW! HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE!!?!! I sprayed enough chemicals in that room to kill a grown man. I reset the trap and shoved it closer to the window and almost INSTANTLY it was catching fleas.

Any ideas as to how to eradicate the remaining hoard? They have stopped escaping the room so we're all good. I'm about ready to just board up that back room with brick and be done with it.. although I don't think I'll get the green light on that plan with my parents 😂 but anyone have ANY ideas? I HAVE NEVER had such a flea infestation in my 30 years. And these little 🤬 just don't die!!!!

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FeebysOwner

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Hi. I could repeat information about what I did, or offer to you this web site: https://fleascience.com/, which I used heavily with my flea infestation. I think the best approach is to let you read all the information there is on the web site and decide what to do next. There is a lot of great information and some recommended products that you might want to try in place of the ones you are using. The big keys are: daily vacuuming, and using sprays with IGR (Insect Growth Regulators), along with treating your cat(s) - also with a product containing IGR.

I didn't lose Feeby (so sorry for your loss), but she had numerous indirectly related health issues.

Best of luck to you!!! These bugs are the worst!
 

IndyJones

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Have you contacted a professional exterminator? From the sound of it they might be camping out in rugs or even the insulation also flea dip all your pets cats dogs anything (do not use dog flea products on your cat or vice versa also avoid hartz brand products ) . Use a lice comb to remove any eggs or dead fleas.

Burn the dead fleas and eggs if you can. Put any contaminated plush toys carpet or bedding in the garbage away from the house.
 

sivyaleah

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First, I'm so very sorry about your little one!

The problem with fleas is that they lay eggs all over the house. So once the adults are dead and gone, all those eggs are just hanging out waiting to hatch. And when a host comes by (CAT) they jump on, and start their life cycle all over again. Hence why you need to tackle literally everything at once and, continue treating for months afterward. It's not a one shot deal.

The one time we had them (which we suspect, came from the vet's office since our cats are indoor only) it took weeks to be rid of them completely. First, the cats were treated with Revolution. Second, we flea combed every single day, multiple times a day. Third, we had the house completely cleaned head to toe professionally. Fourth all bedding, clothing, anything that was cloth was washed in hot water or dry cleaned as appropriate. Fifth all toys were discarded. Sixth - the ripple rug, we found out from the manufacturer, was able to be put in our spare freezer for several days - apparently below 32 degrees will kill off fleas too. We vacuumed like crazy every day thereafter too.

Mind you this wasn't even a bad infestation. We caught it really fast as it turned out. If I were you, honestly, I'd have the house professionally bombed at this point. I just don't see how you can possibly get rid of that much of an infestation on your own.
 

sivyaleah

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I know! Who knew? As an aside, the owner of the company was actually extremely helpful and nice to deal with 👍
But seriously, if you have a large separate freezer - you can pack up the ripple rug into a large plastic bag (you don't want any possible fleas to be in the freezer itself obviously) and leave it there for about 5 days if I remember correctly. I would imagine this would work for any other toys too now that I think of it if you have things that were pricey though I wouldn't want to try it with things like cat beds where flea eggs could really bury into the fabric. I think it would work better for more surface type objects.
 

Jcatbird

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I had an infestation two years ago. I ripped up ALL carpet. I tossed every fabric thing that could not be put in the washing machine. My cats are indoor only and once that occurred, I treated the yard. I still don’t open windows near the woods as they seem to come in from the woods! I switched up the topical flea treatment too. The ones that previously worked, stopped working. Every year I switch. Right now, Advantage 2. Kills larvae and eggs as well as adults. Make sue that if a mattress has had them to get the edges well when cleaning. The seams can hide a flea. I keep a fan running for the vibration. I’ve read that vibrations can cause eggs to hatch so.... hatch now so I can kill you! No more breeding. I tossed every fabric toy. I tossed anything with crevices. I removed baseboards and cleaned with a scrub brush, then caulked and painted! I then put baseboards back and caulked at the top edge. Make sure to treat windowsills. I sprayed the screens too. I removed books, magazines and everything from shelving, sprayed all that and shut it in containers to store away until things were controlled. I then painted shelving. Just keep at it. It takes time but repeated vacuuming, mopping with Dawn dish liquid and diligence will get them. :alright:
 

Persian mother

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Ok so recently we had a MASSIVE flea infestation that claimed the life of one of our youngest. We sealed the room and lit off 7 BOMBS!!!!!!! 7!!!! Still they refused to die. Then I used a black flag spray and saturated the floors and doorways. (No one was going in anyways to slip and fall so I was very crazy with two handed spray technique)
We followed that up with a flea glue trap. And in 3 days the room was LOADED with bodies. I just went in today to see what the Carnage was today. 🤦 THEY ARE STILL ALIVE!!! Biting, jumping, partying it up in there.... HOW! HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE!!?!! I sprayed enough chemicals in that room to kill a grown man. I reset the trap and shoved it closer to the window and almost INSTANTLY it was catching fleas.

Any ideas as to how to eradicate the remaining hoard? They have stopped escaping the room so we're all good. I'm about ready to just board up that back room with brick and be done with it.. although I don't think I'll get the green light on that plan with my parents 😂 but anyone have ANY ideas? I HAVE NEVER had such a flea infestation in my 30 years. And these little 🤬 just don't die!!!!

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Hi,I am new here,I saw your post and had to register to reply,I have been trough this flea hell. Used all kinds of stuff that didn’t work, including DE, Revolution and Advantage. First thing I would do is vacuum up all the diatomaceous earth because that will only make the stuff you want to use useless. It will bind to it and react with it, making them useless. After that, spray the whole house (not just the room in question) with Virbac knockout SE area treatment. Also spray your cars. You can order it from Amazon. Until it arrives, treat the cats with Cheristin, do not order it from Amazon as it could be counterfreight. Order from 1-800 Petmeds. Do not read the bad reviews, every pesticide can have some side effect but this is very rare with Cheristin. I have four Persian cats and have been using it for years,every four weeks without any side effect and it is 100% effective.You might have to spray your yard too. After you did all this, it is very important to prevent fleas so you don’t have to deal with infestation in the future. Keep the cats on Cheristin, apply it every four weeks and you won’t have to go trough this again. I know how frustrating it is. Good luck!
 

sweet jane flash

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So sorry about your loss. I lived through a severe infestation so I know how disturbing it can be. Even I had 6 or 7 flea bites on me. It was so overwhelming, but the only thing I might add to some already good advice is that steam cleaning of any carpeting, cleaning of the upholstery also is something to be done. I threw away lots of things and every single thing was washed and then stored in plastic bags for months. My goodness, it all seemed completely overwhelming and draining at the time. I got almost no sleep in that long time period so don't give up. You can overcome this problem! We're keeping our paws crossed!:vibes:
 

RangersMom

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Since the bombs didnt work, I wouldnt use them ever again. I've had bad flea infestations before and honestly a fine tooth comb is your best friend. Also vacuuming vacuuming vacuuming vacuuming vacuuming vacuuming every day and washing all bedding in HOT water. All the vacuuming sucks but its better than toxic bombs and toxic topical treatment chemicals that do nothing.
 

basscat

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Continue what you have been doing (bombs and spraying and traps to check the progress), every week, or every other week. NOT just that room, but everywhere.
Continue for 8 weeks. That's what it will take, at least 8 weeks. Hopefully not more
Everything you've done so far has worked. It's not the products or methods as much as it is....time. It's not some miracle product you find 6 weeks from now. It's what you used to begin with + not stopping for 8 weeks.
 

IndyJones

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Since the bombs didnt work, I wouldnt use them ever again. I've had bad flea infestations before and honestly a fine tooth comb is your best friend. Also vacuuming vacuuming vacuuming vacuuming vacuuming vacuuming every day and washing all bedding in HOT water. All the vacuuming sucks but its better than toxic bombs and toxic topical treatment chemicals that do nothing.
When using the vacuum make sure you use a bag and dispose of it outside after each use. Bagless vacuums can sometimes hide eggs and fleas within them and reinfect your house.
 

ArchyCat

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Or, if you can stop fi d them, add a flea collaer to the bag. That will kill any fleas you vacuum and kill any fleas that hatch from eggs or larvae you also pick up.
 
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