Fleas pose serious threats to your furry pets and even birds. They feed on their blood, reproduce fast, and if you don’t do something quickly, they’ll be crawling all over your house. They thrive only in your pets’ fur but they will bite you or your kids if they get the chance.

Picture out this nightmare: fleas – with tummies filled with blood 15 times their body weight – crawling on your floor, walls, couch, bed, and elsewhere in your house; dogs scratching and biting their fur, the wounds developing into abscesses; kittens getting dehydrated; and you itching all over, nauseated by the sight of fat fleas.

You have to think of a plan to exterminate these household pests the moment you see signs of flea infestation. You can move to a new house. That’s an easy way out. That’s also an admission of defeat, and you don’t want to lose to a bunch of tiny bloodsuckers, do you?

You just can’t act on impulse as regards flea control. The problem must be carefully evaluated – advisably with the help of the veterinarian – so the most suitable solutions can be put into action. There’s no single fix-all approach to it, but these methods have been proven effective when used in combination:
Cleanse the entire house.

It’s your place, not the fleas’. Maintain cleanliness in and around your house to make it uninviting for fleas. Vacuum clean your house and steam-clean the carpets. Get the bedding free from hidden eggs by washing them thoroughly. Mop and sweep all tile and vinyl floors.

Apply flea bombs or foggers to certain areas of the house or the entire house, to make sure that even fleas hiding in nooks and crannies are killed. Tidy up your yard by spraying it with insecticide. You can have a professional cleaner do the job if you have the money for it.
Visit the pet specialist.

Take your pets to the pet doctor, even if they’re not sick. Regular visits to the vet will make sure that your pets are healthy and are well protected against fleas. The vet can also prescribe proven remedies and medication for pets that are already infested with fleas. Veterinary clinics are even equipped with devices that help pets survive severe cases of flea infestation.
Target the fur.

Your pets’ fur is the breeding ground for fleas. It’s a warm place with lots of fresh chow. Your pets need to be freed from these harmful pests. Most pets will suffer from skin allergies caused by flea bites. Scratching and fur thinning are the most common symptoms. If pets wound their skin due to intense scratching, it may lead to skin abscesses.

There are plenty of effective flea treatment products to choose from. Among the leading flea-control firms are Frontline, Advantage, Revolution, Program and Sentinel. These are vet-proven safeguards for your pets, and are available at any pet stores.

If the household budget won’t allow for regular visits to the veterinarian, and you’ll rather trust your judgment in dealing with the fleas, then go to any pet store and grab the flea-control products you can afford.

Some flea medicines are available as non-prescription items. Flea collars are a great help. Bathing pets with flea shampoo every day and grooming them with flea comb afterwards will get rid of most fleas. Although their effectiveness does not last that long, they somehow give immediate results.

However, make sure that you check the labels carefully if you want to purchase them without the vet’s prescription. Some products that have been proven effective might not work on your pets, and you don’t want to see them suffering from the fatal side effects of these products. Permethrin, for instance, is proven effective in killings fleas but it’s also toxic to cats.
Make sure they don’t infest your house again.

Prevention is better than cure but it’s something we often take for granted. Most fleas are acquired outdoor so keep your pets indoor. If that’s not possible, bathe your pets with pet shampoo or pet soap every day. Give them a healthy diet and regular flea medication to totally protect them from fleas.

These flea extermination methods may seem too tiresome and costly, but think of the good they bring to your beloved pets. You just can’t allow these parasites to bother your happy household.