All of you want to ensure the utmost safety when it comes to your house, family, and pets. You would want to ensure taking whatever steps necessary so that no discomfort falls on any one of them. And this is exactly why you should make sure that your home is free of fleas. Fleas can cause major health issues to not just your pets but to other members of your family as well.
You can employ a number of methods to get rid of fleas from your house and one of them is using a household ingredient like baking soda. You heard it right! You need to mix a little bit of table salt with baking soda and this will kill the larvae of the fleas eggs, ensuring there are no more uninvited guests in your home.
What Are Dog Fleas
Fleas are one of the most common parasites that are found on your four-legged furball. Fleas are usually 1-2 mm in size and can live for around 7-14 days. This time is divided between laying eggs and sucking your dog’s blood. Female fleas can lay about 40 eggs every day, these are white and oval-shaped. These eggs develop into larvae and can burrow inside the bedding of your dog, the carpet, and upholstery.
The larvae develop into pupae which lie quietly for many months. These pupae ultimately turn into adult fleas and will jump onto a host, most likely your dog. The reason for more concern is that there can be hundreds more growing in your home, no matter how clean you keep it.
Dog fleas are known to transmit many diseases, most commonly skin problems. Severe allergies can be caused by fleabites to dogs and they are very itchy as well. The most common way to tell if your dog is infested with fleas is if you see it scratching continuously or if you see bald patches appear on its coat. Some dogs develop red sore areas on their skin.
How Will Baking Soda Get Rid of Fleas
Does baking soda kill fleas? The answer is yes. Let’s see how to use baking soda for fleas.
One way to get rid of fleas is to stop them from spreading. Baking soda mixed with salt can be applied to areas infested with fleas, this mixture dehydrates the fleas, the eggs, and larva. This in turn results in stopping the spreading process. This ultimately kills them off so they cannot spread by reproducing.
The best part is that this solution poses no health risk to pets or children. You need to ensure that your pet has no cut or would before you apply this as salt is known to sting a little.
How Should You Apply Baking Soda For Fleas
Fleas get around very quickly so you should have enough baking soda and salt to cover your entire home. You then need to check that the baking soda is still good and has not been kept open during the past month. If it has been standing open for the last month on a cupboard then you should get some new baking soda.
Now you must ensure that you are spreading the mixture on all carpets, couches, and beddings. You have to be careful to see that the mixture is not just resting on the top, instead, going to the very bottom of the carpet, and it reaches the corners of the couches and beds.
The best solution is to leave the mixture overnight so the eggs and larvae can be properly dried out. Be sure to vacuum thoroughly in the morning over all the places that you spread the mixture. A thorough vacuum will suck up the dead fleas and also any live ones too in the process.
One important thing to note is that you must try to empty the vacuum cleaners canister or bag far away from your home after you are done vacuuming. The best way is to take the short walk over to the garbage disposal bin on the street in front of your house and empty the canister in it. This way you can ensure that the fleas don’t come back into your house.
This process needs to be repeated in a few day’s time so that you can be absolutely sure to get the remaining fleas and larvae cleaned that you may have missed the first time.
What Else Can You Do
Prevention is always better than cure and this is what you must practice when it comes to having fleas infest your home. Look out for the way your dog is behaving. If it is itching too much then you need to get it checked out for fleas and ticks and take immediate measures if you can find even one flea. There are flea collars or different shampoos available in the market that you can use. The bedding in your house needs to be washed. Not just the ones that you and your family use, but the pet’s bedding as well. After washing them in the washer properly you need to dry them in the dryer at a high temperature. Heat is also known to kill fleas. Cutting the grass by mowing your garden is a good precaution as dogs love to run the garden that hides fleas in the tall grass.
Vacuuming all corners of your home thoroughly at regular intervals is a must. Just be sure to not empty the canister inside your home, instead take it outside and empty it on the street’s bin. This is especially important when you have already had a flea infestation previously. You would rather be safe than be sorry.
Professional Carpet Cleaning Service
A professional dry carpet cleaning service can be effective in helping to control fleas. Dry carpet cleaning methods, such as encapsulation or bonnet cleaning, involve using specialized cleaning agents that don’t require excessive moisture. These methods can help remove dirt, debris, and even some fleas from your carpets without saturating them.
Here’s how a professional dry carpet cleaning service can assist in flea control:
- Mechanical Action: Dry carpet cleaning involves using machines and equipment that agitate the carpet fibers, dislodging dirt, debris, and some pests like fleas. The mechanical action can help remove fleas and their eggs from the carpet.
- Chemical Treatment: Many dry carpet cleaning products include insecticides or insect growth regulators that target fleas. These chemicals can help kill fleas at various stages of their life cycle, helping to reduce infestations.
- Minimal Moisture: Dry carpet cleaning methods use minimal moisture, which means your carpets won’t become excessively wet. This can be beneficial in preventing mold growth and minimizing the risk of further flea infestations due to dampness.
- Quick Drying Time: Since there is minimal moisture involved, the drying time is usually shorter compared to traditional steam cleaning methods. This can help you get back to using your carpets sooner.
However, while professional dry carpet cleaning can be a useful part of your flea control strategy, it might not completely eradicate a severe infestation. For the most effective results, it’s recommended to combine dry carpet cleaning with other measures such as regular vacuuming, washing pet bedding, using veterinarian-approved flea treatments on pets, and considering treatments for both indoor and outdoor areas.
If you’re grappling with a significant flea problem, it’s advisable to consult a professional pest control service, such as Pro Dry Carpet Cleaning. They can offer a comprehensive plan to address the issue.
Finally
Dogs are our loyal companions and they are fiercely loyal to their cohabitant humans. So as humans who have taken the responsibility for a dog we have to keep the living conditions for it as hygienic and safe as possible. We have to take all measures to keep our dogs healthy and comfortable and getting rid of the parasites definitely tops the list. So we hope our tips on how to get rid of fleas with a home remedy such as baking soda has helped you. So what are you waiting for? Whip up a batch and start exterminating those fleas out of your home.
