[Anne B]

I would encourage everyone who has a flea problem to rip out all of the carpet from their home and replace it with laminate flooring or linoleum, if at all possible–fleas can’t reproduce in these types of flooring….However, they absolutely love carpet to lay their eggs in.

I ripped out all carpeting from my home 3 years ago, plus I applied food grade diatomaceous earth (DE) in my yard, and still do……..Haven’t seen a flea in my home since, and I live in VA–known for hot, humid summers….The DE was very effective at killing all the fleas in my yard (plus it killed other nasty creepy-crawlies like ants and spiders that would occasionally get in my house).

If you decide to try DE, make sure you buy the FOOD GRADE DE, not the DE used for pool filters….The kind used for pool filters is chemically treated and toxic, but Food Grade DE is completely non-toxic…..I have heard of some people applying directly on their dogs, and it successfully killed the fleas with no ill effects…You can get it fairly cheap at Southern States or Tractor Supply Company.

If applying DE on your yard, use a protective mask and safety glasses so you won’t inhale it or get it in eyes.

Yes, I would rather rip out all my carpet than use Bravecto, Comfortis, Nexguard, Trifexis, etc, or any topical flea product………However I do have to give heartworm preventative, because the DE obviously wouldn’t be very effective against mosquitoes…..I only give the heartworm prevention every 6 weeks, and only during the warmer months when mosquitoes are most active, so my dogs only get 6 doses a year…..This approach has worked well for me–my dogs are always tested once a year for heartworm, and have always tested negative.

My concern is, even if you don’t see any immediate adverse reactions from an oral or topical flea pesticide, who knows what it’s doing to your dog’s internal organs, especially if taking long-term—That’s why I choose not to use them.

• This reply was modified 8 years, 11 months ago by Anne B.