With the official start of the spring season less than a month away, many families throughout the country are battling flea infestations. It’s a little-known fact that fleas actually remain dormant in their eggs until the temperatures warm, at which point they hatch into larvae and eventually transform into adults. As we get closer and closer to spring, fleas are hatching from their eggs in search of fresh blood.
If you’ve noticed an above-average number of fleas in your home and/or yard, you aren’t alone. Homeowners from across the country are experiencing flea infestations thanks to the warming temperatures. Even if you treat your home with a flea-killing product on a regular basis, it may not work on eggs. The good news is that you can take some steps to help control the flea population in your home before it gets out of control.
Ways To Remove Flea Eggs From Inside Your Home
- Vacuum on a regular basis, paying extra attention to areas around your pet’s bedding and underneath furniture.
- Wash your pet’s bedding in a separate load (don’t place your clothes inside) using hot water and a quarter cup of white vinegar.
- Groom your pet with a flea comb.
- Give your pet a bath to wash out any flea eggs lingering in their coat.
It’s important to remember that flea eggs are immune to most insecticides. You can spray the carpet, walls and furniture all you want, but it’s only going to do more harm than good. Rather than using potentially toxic pesticides to treat flea eggs, you should focus your efforts on removing them by vacuuming and cleaning your home.
Furry dog enjoying the warm and sunny outdoors: photo by ssetaro.
If you have a dog or cat living inside your home, you should consider using either an Insect Development Inhibitors (IDIs) or Insect Growth Regulators (IGR). These treatment products differ from traditional pesticides in the sense that they are designed to stop the flea’s life cycle. Rather than killing the flea, for instance, they may prevent it from maturing into an adult.
Learn more about IDIs and IGRs in our previous blog post located here.
Hopefully, these tips allow you to control the flea populations in your home before the spring season hits. Once spring rolls around, the warmer temperatures will bring fleas out of their eggs and into your home. Performing a little routine cleaning, however, can remove unhatched flea eggs before this happens.