Ann Weisenberger asked 8 years ago
I am moving into a duplex and found that the place is infested with fleas. Altho nobody has visibly seen them, anyone who enters gets bit on their ankles especially. There is no more carpeting in the place, that’s been ripped up for a week now. New carpeting gets laid next week. The place has been bombed, but the next day I go in and still am getting bites. Idk what to do. I can’t move in to a place that has a flea problem. I’m not moving in for a couple weeks yet but I do have a cat that will be living with me. So far my cat isn’t scratching but I will be treating him for fleas in the next couple days. Help!! How do I get rid of these fleas????
Adam Retzer Staff answered 8 years ago
Hello Ann,
Since you haven’t seen the fleas, it’d be a good idea to identify the pest you’re dealing with. It’s possible the bites are from something other than fleas. Flea traps are useful for catching fleas and making an identification.
If they’re indeed fleas, they’ll have a difficult time surviving without carpeting. Adults fleas live on animals and must feed on blood to survive and reproduce. The larvae live in carpets and feed on the adult flea feces which falls there.
That said, it’s possible for the fleas to survive for a while before dying off. Cocooned pre-emerged adults can remain quiescent in the environment for up to 5 months, waiting to detect a host before emerging. In typical infestations, after proper treatment is in place, fleas are still seen for around 8 weeks before going completely extinct. In your case, this period should be much shorter, since the carpeting removal has eliminated the immature fleas’ habitat and food source.
If your cat is properly treated (e.g. flea drops) before you move in, you shouldn’t have a problem. Adult fleas jumping onto your cat will die, and they’ll be sterilized in case the treatment doesn’t kill them before they feed. Fleas can’t reproduce on human blood. Thus, no new generations will be produced to continue the infestation. If your cat isn’t properly treated, then it could lead to a full-blown infestation.
Hope this helps!
Adam
