As the weather is getting warmer, the flowers and plants are waking from their winter sleep, and so are the bugs. At our house, the most prevalent crawling thing this season has been spiders. They seem to be everywhere.
Pesticide Free Flea Treatment
Some of you might be experiencing troubles from other, more obnoxious pests – like fleas. A flea infestation can be annoying and dangerous. But the current treatments are also dangerous because they are full of pesticides.
We have successfully been able to win the war against fleas with all natural products. Products that are safe for our dogs, ourselves and the environment. This is what we do:
For the outside (lawn and garden), we use food grade diatomaceous earth. It is very important to buy the food grade material and not what you find at a pool store. The diatomaceous earth at the pool store contains silica which makes the dust harmful if inhaled. We sprinkle it all over the yard. It also works for other crawling bugs – roaches, ticks, bed bugs, beetles and more. At our house, it’s kept in an old ketchup bottle, which makes it easier for spreading under the deck and in other hard to reach places.
On our pets , we use an all natural soap to bathe regularly. Franklyn’s is a good choice for dogs because it contains Eucalyptus and Tea Tree essential oils which are both great at repelling fleas. The Tea Tree oil has the added benefit of being a natural antiseptic so it will help ease the pain and itching from any flea bites. Roxy’s is also very effective at fighting fleas and can also be used on cats. For dogs we also make Fido Fresh which can not only be sprayed directly on a dog but can also be sprayed on bedding or other places where your dog likes to hang out.
If we get fleas in the house, we use Borax. It can be found in the grocery store with the laundry detergent. To use we recommend this process:
- Locate carpeted areas where fleas are most likely to nest. Pay particular attention to areas where your pet spends a lot of time.
- Conduct a spot-test on your carpet by spreading a small amount of borax on a small section of carpet and allowing it to sit for a short period of time. Check the carpet for a change of color or any other damage; if the borax appears to alter your carpet in any way, do not use it.
- Apply a light layer of borax over the area you would like to treat.
- Work the borax into the carpet with a broom or brush, making sure it works down between the fibers, where fleas and their eggs are.
- Allow the borax to sit for at least 3 hours
- Vacuum the treated area several times and empty the canister or replace the bag.
The Borax process should be repeated in three weeks because this is the gestation period for fleas and any eggs that were missed will be starting to hatch and you don’t want another infestation.
We have been using this approach for the past two years and have had less problems with fleas then ever before. We encourage you to fight fleas all naturally this year. You, your pet and your environment will be better off.
