Would fleas bite only one person and not another person if they're in our house?

starryeyedtiger

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I have a bit of an odd question. Colin has what appears to be flea bites all over his legs. I do not have any at all -i'm insanely allergic to fleas too- so i would have noticed if any had bit me.

None of the pets have flea dirt or have been scratching and they're all on prevenative. I haven't seen any in the house eithor.

He swears up and down he got them at night while he was in bed, but i sleep in the same bed and don't have any.


I don't think we have bed bugs-i vaccume the mattress often and wash the sheets and i also keep a cover on it too.

They don't look likes hives or chickenpox or anything like that- they look exactly like flea bites...but where on earth would he get them from
He hasn't really been outside eithor to get them there.

The only place i can think of that he may have come in contact with them is in his squad car (he's a cop). On occassion if he sees a stray dog or cat- he'll pick it up and drive it over to the shelter where i work. I asked him if he had done that recently and he said no -so i don't think he got it from there eithor


Any ideas??? Would fleas bite one person and ignore a house full of animals and another person? He's getting the bites at night too- last night we looked at his legs before he went to be and again when he woke up and there were more when he woke up.
Any ideas? This is weird! I'm not sure if i should have our house sprayed or not or what else it could be.
 

theimp98

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since bugs dont normaly bite me , and i have been in houses full of fleas and never got a bite. yea. But they would not ignore the animals.

Bed bugs, does not really matter how clean you keep stuff. you could still have them . But if has that many bites, i doubt you would have gotten away with none.

right now i would doubt if he got at home..check the stuff he wore yesterday to work
 

natalie_ca

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It's possible that he has an allergy to dust mites. Dust mites don't bite but they can cause skin irritation. And if you are both in the same bed and he's waking up with spots and you aren't, it's more than likely an allergy of some sort. And dust mites just might be the culprit.

Did you change fabric softener or laundry soap?
 

mzjazz2u

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When I was growing up and we had out door pets with fleas, I'd get bitten all over and other people in the home wouldn't. So I think it is possible. But as Natalie said, it could be something else too, such as an allergy.
 

momofmany

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When we have fleas, my DH complains about them far more than I do. His body temperature runs a little warmer than mine so our theory is that they like warmer bodies to nibble on. In the spring when the weather warms and the fleas reappear, we start the advantage the first time he complains.
 

lookingglass

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I hate to say this, but it could be bed bugs. Have either of you spent the night in a hotel recently? If so, that's most likely where they've come from. Also, you've moved into a new house, so they could be left overs from the previous owners.

Remove your headboard and see if there are little tracks or any dead bugs. If there are the best thing to do is call an exterminator.
 

pookie-poo

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When I was growing up, my dad would get more flea bites than the cat did! No one else in the house would get a single bite, but he would be chewed right up! Mosquitos love him too...he must taste good.
 

yosemite

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I just heard last week on the radio that Toronto is having an influx of bedbugs. I'd certainly look into that if for no other reason than to rule it out.
 

arlyn

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What are the temps like up there?
Could be bedbugs, dust mite allergy, chigger bites, and yeah, fleas simply won't bite some people (I don't get bit by them, huge amounts of garlic ingested daily here).
 
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starryeyedtiger

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To answer a few questions -the temperature here has been crazy lately- one week it was almost 70 and last night it was about 28 outside so the weather has not been stable.

We brought our own furniture in with us when we moved (bed/mattress /sofas/etc) so it's nothing that she left behind- could bed bugs get in the carpet though and then get into our furniture we brought in?


Also- do bed bug bites look like flea bites? His bites are all on his leg,ankle, and backside area.

We haven't stayed in a hotel or any other place recently- just moved to a new home (which is essentialy about the same time frame this started in.) They previous owner didn't have pets. I'm not sure- maybe it is an allergy or bed bugs
We even bought new sheets this week. Do dust mites look like flea bites? If this doesn't stop i'm calling an exterminator- i have no idea what's going on here- but poor Colin is covered in what looks like bites and i don't have a single one
 

calico2222

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When I was planning my wedding, I was getting what I thought were flea bites. We treated the cats, even though they didn't show any signs of scratching (we only had three at the time) and scrubbed the carpet and the bed and anything that could be scrubbed, cleaned, whatever. DH didn't get bitten at all.

What I was getting was tiny little itchy bumps on my feet, ankles, calves, hands and wrists. Basically where ever clothes would touch me and fit tight. They drove me crazy and if I scratched them they started bleeding. I finally went to the doctor and they were what he called stress bumps. I was stressed out. He put me on low dosage of anti-depressent and told me to use cortizone cream to keep the bumps from getting infected and to take the itch out.

Now, I don't know if this is what is going on with Colin, but with planning a wedding, and the high stress job he has being a police man, it could be.

I had a lot of other things going on at the same time as planning the wedding (cleaning out my parents house, selling it, settling mom's estate..etc). Didn't you just move too (if not, I'm sorry, I still get people confused here). If so, there are a lot of changes going on, and stress comes out in strange ways. If you and the cats aren't getting bit, I would suggest seeing a dermatologist to see if there is a reason for the bites, of if it could just be stress.
 

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Our dog has fleas at the moment (first time in 4.75 years)  My wife is being bitten horribly , all over her back, midriff, lesgs buttocks, feet, and belly, yet I am untouched.  How is this possible?
 

natalie_ca

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Our dog has fleas at the moment (first time in 4.75 years)  My wife is being bitten horribly , all over her back, midriff, lesgs buttocks, feet, and belly, yet I am untouched.  How is this possible?
This is a very old thread.

To answer your question, it has to do with body chemistry and allergies.  Everyone has a different body chemistry and some attract bugs more than others.  Also, if you are sensitive to a bug bite, you will develop a reaction such as a slight swelling and itch.  Many aren't as sensitive and while they may still be getting bitten, they don't react to the bite.
 
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