Fleas! Can't beat them!

[seann]

Hi,

Fleas. I hate them.
I have hardwood floor.
I tried DE around the wall.
I tried vacuuming everything.
I tried spraying home defense whatever chemical around the wall.
Kept getting new itchy stuff around my legs.

How do I beat fleas?
Do they come at night?
Do they crawl or jump to my leg?
Can they go through thin blanket? Socks?
How soon will I see swelling/feel itchy after it bites?
How long do they linger around my leg?
Where do they hide?
Do they come from chicken coop and find their way to my house? If not where do they come from?
Do they jump onto my cloth, shoes or me when I'm near the chicken coop and then jump off later when they are inside my house?
I had one of them jump onto my leg. I pushed it against me but it didn't die. It jumped off. How are they so strong?

Thanks for any hints.

 

[junebuggena]

All rugs, pillows, blankets need to be put in the dryer on high heat. Fleas like to lay eggs on fabric. The heat of the dryer will kill any eggs. You have to spray upholstered furniture with something to kill fleas. And you must treat any pets that may bring fleas into your home. And you have to treat every 3 to 4 weeks until there are no more fleas. Fleas are not likely to be hanging out in your coop. They are most likely coming from your lawn. Fleas are difficult to kill. They don't crush. You pinch the head off.

 

[owlflights]

Do you have indoor pets like dogs or cats? First treat them. I recommend Trifexus for dogs, it starts killing them in 30 minutes and works all month.
If you are keeping the indoors clean and having no luck, you might need to treat your yard.

To physically kill an individual flea you have to either roll in between your fingers a lot, or crack it between two hard surfaces like your fingernails. They stand up very well to pressure.

 

[Intheswamp]

Uh, are you having an occasional flea or are you talking about an infestation. You're asking a lot of questions but not giving much information.

If you have a minor infestation going you may need something like an IGR (insect growth regulator) that basically makes the adults infertile so that flea eggs don't hatch. Many times when a flea gets on you it has just hatched (they're hungry when they hatch). Immediately they can jump several 100 times their length. Movement causes the eggs to hatch. Eggs can lay dormant for an extended period. You need an insecticide to kill the current adult fleas and an IGR to combat future generations.

Here's a link to some info that might help you. I have no affiliation with this company other than being a satisfied customer of theirs.

http://www.doyourownpestcontrol.com/fleas.htm

If you want to check out and see what type of infestation you might have you can get a low-sided, opaque container and fill halfway with water and and several drops of dish soap. Suspend a small led flashlight over the container or maybe a nightlight or small reading lamp. Fill about about a quarter full with the water and soap...it doesn't have to be deep. Turn the lights off in the room except for the one above the soapy water container. Check the trap the next morning and the fleas that are attracted to the light will jump towards it, falling into the water and drowning. This will not rid your house of fleas but will let you see the magnitude of the infestation. There's also a bit of satisfaction in seeing the dead fleas. Here is a youtube video of such a trap:

Best wishes,
Ed

 

[seann]

Thanks for replies.
Sorry for not providing more info.

I have parakeets outside the house.
I also have fish inside the house.

I have no dogs or cats.
Neighbors do. Left = dog, Right = dogs, Across = cats (cats like to visit but we don't allow in).

"Fleas are not likely to be hanging out in your coop. They are most likely coming from your lawn. "
"If you are keeping the indoors clean and having no luck, you might need to treat your yard."
Wow really?
How do you clean your lawn from fleas?

"Fleas like to lay eggs on fabric. The heat of the dryer will kill any eggs"
Dang, didn't know. I will do that to our bed sheets and blankets.

"http://www.doyourownpestcontrol.com/fleas.htm"
Checking. Thanks.