Pests in the home are quite common. Cockroaches, ants, bed bugs and spiders cause a lot of problems for home dwellers with their presence. This list can also be supplemented by genital fleas. However, they have nothing in common with parasites from the field of venereology. This article will tell you about the routes of pest penetration, as well as methods of combating them.
Why are fleas called sex fleas?
Sexual pests are called so because the floors are their favorite habitat. In addition, this collective image unites cat, dog, and rat fleas. They all prefer to settle in the crevices of baseboards, furniture joints and carpet piles.
Periodically, blood-sucking insects attack their prey. They bite to get enough blood. In this connection, genital fleas pose a serious threat to the health of not only your four-legged friend, but also dangerous parasites for people living in the apartment.
On a note!
Plague, encephalitis, trypanosomiasis and anthrax are just a few of the diseases that fleas can carry.
Therefore, it is very important to promptly recognize the presence of pests and remove genital fleas as soon as possible. Indeed, given favorable conditions, fleas multiply rapidly. An adult female is capable of laying up to five hundred eggs within 3 months. And taking into account the fact that the genital flea is a small insect, it can be quickly detected only when a whole population of bloodsuckers already lives in the house. Below you can see what genital fleas look like in the photo.
Signs of infection
To make sure that there are fleas in your home, you can lay out sheets of clean paper on the floor. On a white surface, insects will be clearly visible.
A sign of the spread of ectoparasites is the restless behavior of animals, their constant desire to scratch their ears, neck, and groin. These parts of the body are less hairy and are favorite places for fleas to attack.
A person's legs suffer. Many bite marks appear on them, which look like small red spots. The affected areas are characterized by unbearable itching.
How parasites appear in the house
Fleas in the house
Some people claim that bloodsuckers appear in the house only of those who keep cats or dogs. However, this opinion is not entirely correct. Four-legged friends are indeed capable of bringing bloodsuckers into their homes. However, being able to move quickly, insects are able to penetrate into housing on their own:
- moving from basements and attics through open windows and doors;
- through the cracks of ventilation openings;
- together with rodents that have entered the house;
- on the clothes or shoes of a person coming from the street.
Reasons for appearance
Genital fleas appear in a person’s home for various reasons and in different ways. As mentioned above, they move quite quickly, although there are other conditions for their appearance, regardless of the presence of animals in the house.
For example:
- Fleas can get into your home from neighbors who are trying to control them.
- From the clothes of family members if they visited places where parasites accumulate.
- Through various holes, cracks, holes and utility openings.
- On the fur of pets and rodents.
It is believed that unsanitary conditions and the presence of insects and vermin in the home are inextricably linked, although they often appear in clean homes. However, the presence of unnecessary garbage and remains of organic matter in the house are considered the main conditions for the appearance of parasites. It is important that they are warm and humid and have somewhere to hide.
An integrated approach to pest control
Many people are puzzled by the question of how to get rid of genital fleas. After all, quite often the fight against bloodsuckers does not give the desired effect. The reason for this is the wrong technique. And only with the help of an integrated approach, combining the use of both chemical insecticides and folk remedies, can a full result be achieved.
General Scripture
Fleas are blood-sucking wingless. Science knows more than 2000 species of these parasites. If we talk about those that are able to live in residential premises, then they belong to the Pulicidae family. These common fleas include 160 species. These include dog, cat, and human parasites; there is a particularly dangerous species, rat parasites, which spread dangerous plague.
These insects look like this and are small in size, not exceeding 5 mm. The body itself is oval and laterally compressed. They have 3 pairs of paws, with their help they jump and stay perfectly on any surface. Females do not require a special place for laying eggs; they scatter them, and not all eggs survive. The survivors develop and grow into larvae after 2 weeks, and then the juveniles emerge.
How to rid your pet of fleas
The first thing you need to do is to select products to treat your pet and the contaminated room itself.
Removing fleas from a pet
Shampoos
Antiparasitic shampoos help get rid of fleas from pets quite gently. They do not pose a danger to animal health, since they are based on natural substances.
On a note!
Shampoos that are especially popular among consumers are Celandine, Lugovoy, Mister Bruno, Barsik, Rolf Club, Lord, Doctor Zoo. Their price range varies depending on the brand of the manufacturer and the volume of the container, ranging from 100-700 rubles.
The principle of using antiparasitic shampoos is quite simple: the detergent composition is applied to the pet’s fur and foamed with massage movements, preventing it from getting into the eyes, mouth and ears. After the time specified in the instructions has passed, the foam is washed off. After drying, the coat is combed to remove dead fleas.
Drops
Insecticidal drops on the withers for cats and drops for dogs are another type of remedy for genital fleas. The toxic composition is dripped onto the animal’s skin in a targeted manner in the area of the withers, after spreading the fur.
Additional measures
When wondering what to do if parasitic fleas are jumping on the floor, and there is a small child in the house and there is no way to poison the parasites with chemicals, it should be noted that there are a number of alternative and safe folk remedies.
They may not be as effective as store-bought ones, but they also have a right to exist.
In addition, herbs are good preventative methods for re-entry.
Sometimes flea treatment is carried out at home only on the floor, but fleas can remain on the animal's fur. Therefore, it is important, if you have a pet, to first poison the bloodsuckers in his home, and then in his home.
Preventive methods include wet cleaning, ventilation, disposal of garbage and uneaten food, and heat treatment of bed linen.
Animal handling
A sexual flea can live on a pet, so when treating the premises it is very important to take care of the sanitization of existing animals.
To combat parasites, you can use flea drops, a collar, special shampoos, sprays:
- Shampoos and repellent sprays, that is, products that repel fleas. They are safe because they have low toxicity, therefore they gently remove parasites from the animal’s fur. The most popular are Doctor Zoo, Mister Bruno, Hearts, Blokhnet, Bio Groom. Sprays can be used not only on the body of animals; they can be used to treat the pet’s bedding.
- Drops. They are applied to the animal’s withers so that the pet cannot lick the drug. This product does not penetrate into the blood, which suggests its safety. Of all the known drops, preference is given to Hearts, Advantage, and Frontline.
- The flea and tick collar is effective because it is on the body around the clock and protects the pet at any time of the day or night. Hearts, Bars, Bayer are known.
If the bloodsuckers are already active, re-treatment may be required after 2 weeks.
Wearing a collar will allow the animal to remain safe even if fleas accidentally re-enter the apartment.
Folk remedies
In addition to store-bought drugs, there are a lot of folk remedies for parasitic genital fleas. They do not like tansy, lavender, eucalyptus, mint, wormwood.
Natural products are safer than store-bought mixtures; they do not harm the residents of the house. It is enough to place bouquets of these herbs in the house to prevent the appearance of parasites.
Also an effective remedy for genital fleas is:
- Herbal decoction. For 500 ml of boiling water take 2 tbsp. spoons of wormwood, tansy, celandine, cloves. After standing for 12 hours, the broth is filtered and poured into a spray bottle. The house is treated with this liquid; genital crevices, carpets and other places where parasites are localized must be examined especially carefully.
- A mixture of soda and salt. Ordinary rock salt is combined with the same amount of soda. Sprinkle the powder on carpets and leave for a day. Then the surface is shaken off and vacuumed. This method is effective for eliminating fleas and their larvae that have settled in upholstered furniture or hiding in the wool of carpets.
- Pine sawdust. They are sprinkled on the surface where parasites live, and stuffed into pillows or animal bedding. Parasites leave the home on their own due to odor intolerance.
- Citrus peels. They are laid out around the apartment, and the corners can be smeared with essential oils of tangerine, orange, and lemon.
Apartment processing
Treating the apartment against insects
The next stage of the fight against genital fleas involves disinfecting the room. Preparatory activities
- Before using insecticidal preparations, it is necessary to thoroughly treat the apartment, paying special attention to hard-to-reach places. It is good to use a steam generator, a vacuum cleaner and the necessary tools for wet cleaning. It will help to reduce the number of fleas by washing surfaces with a solution of ammonia, vinegar or essential oils.
- Bed linen should be washed at the maximum permissible temperature, as well as heat treated.
- If genital fleas are noticed in the wardrobe, then you can clean the items from parasites through the same washing and ironing. If this is not possible, you must use dry cleaning services.
- Blankets and pillows are cleaned of bloodsuckers by means of temperature exposure, placing them in severe frost or under the rays of the hot sun.
Useful tips
Treatment with insecticides does not affect indoor flowers, but destroys the pests that have settled in them. When disinfesting the premises, flowers do not need to be removed from the apartment.
Fleas and bed bugs have similar feeding methods. All products that are effective against bedbugs will also work against fleas.
The room should be ventilated for at least 2 hours after treatment. After professional disinfestation, walls and floors are not washed for 2-3 days, but door handles and window sills are wiped with soapy water.
When disinfesting an apartment, you cannot limit yourself to places where blood-sucking ectoparasites were found. The entire living area needs to be treated.
Pest control
Disinsection measures involve the use of insecticidal preparations. They may be:
- aerosols such as Dichlorvos, Raptor or Reid;
- concentrated formulations: Butox, Deltsid, Tsifoks or Lambda Zone;
- powdered products in the form of Phenaxin or Clean House dusts.
Why are insects dangerous?
When a flea gets on the body of its victim, for example, a dog, it remains in the fur because it needs constant nutrition. This insect easily switches to other victims that are nearby, for example, a cat or even a person. The danger is that these parasites are carriers of dangerous diseases.
Parasites can cause the disease pulicosis, sarcopsillosis, and they can also infect with nematodes, which are parasitic worms. The list of diseases that these small insects spread includes encephalitis, cholera, brucellosis, hepatitis, plague and many other dangerous diseases.
After the bite, the victim begins to experience severe itching. The victim may not feel the bite itself if it is done by an adult. Because when a flea bites, it secretes a special anesthetic enzyme, but young fleas do not have it, so the bite is accompanied by pain.
Another danger is that the wounds after a bite are scratched, and this leads to additional infection. This causes inflammation and the appearance of ulcers. If treatment is not carried out, pyoderma develops, which is quite dangerous with complications. Pets suffer from dermatitis, which requires mandatory treatment.
Use of folk remedies
Folk methods of fighting parasites
Folk recipes can also contribute to the escape of parasites. In addition, they are much safer than chemicals:
- Herbs. Many insects, including fleas, are afraid of the scents of bay leaves, wormwood, tansy, mint, eucalyptus or citrus fruits.
- Soda and salt. You can reduce the number of parasites by periodically washing floors and other surfaces in the house with soda or saline solution. Taken in equal quantities, these components can also be used in dry form, sprinkling the resulting mixture on soft toys, carpets and fleecy products. After 10-12 hours, the sprinkled objects are cleaned with a vacuum cleaner.
- Garlic. Sexual fleas are also afraid of the garlic scent. A mixture of garlic and brewer's yeast is used to treat the habitats of bloodsuckers, and after 12 hours the mixture is removed using a vacuum cleaner.
Preventive measures
After disinsection, measures are taken to prevent the spread of parasites. Every 1-2 months, pets are treated with drops applied to the withers or washed with flea shampoos.
If there are no animals in the house, once a month you can spray Dichlorvos or Bolfo in the room and leave it for several hours. Upon return, you will need to ventilate your home well for 2 hours.
Wet cleaning is done by adding a little zoo shampoo or a few spoons of soda to the bucket. Branches of repellent herbs or citrus peels are placed in the corners of the house.
Wet cleaning solutions
You can purchase specialized solutions and perform wet cleaning using them. Solutions can be sold ready-to-use or require preparation. Most often, these types of insecticides are not able to kill the entire flea population, but they help to significantly reduce their activity.
You can also prepare the solution yourself; for this, zoo shampoos, blockers, and drugs that are aimed at exterminating parasites are added to the water. When the apartment is not heavily contaminated, use a solution with laundry soap, which is grated into water and mixed well. After the floor has been washed with soapy water, after drying it is washed with clean water. Also, instead of soap, use regular soda, add 5 spoons to a bucket of water.
Aerosols
Quite effective products that allow you to clean the room in 2 times. The first treatment kills adults as well as larvae, and a repeated procedure gets rid of young individuals that emerged from eggs. Such drugs include Reid, Raptor, Dichlorvos and others. Remember that this is a toxic chemical and is dangerous for both people and animals.
