otherjustin asked 7 years ago
I’ve been poring over this site since discovering fleas in my apartment a few weeks ago.
My roommate had two cats, the second of which ended up having fleas. He moved out the Monday before Christmas (12/18/17), and I left to go to my parents’ house for the holidays a few days later. I got back and noticed fleas all over the apartment a couple days after that (12/31/17)–mostly concentrated in my roommate’s old room and some spots in the living / dining room.
Since then, I’ve sprayed the apartment twice with adulticide / IGR, I vacuum the apartment every day or every other day, and I’ve laundered / bagged all my fabrics. This seemed like it was working–I was only seeing 2 or 3 fleas per day. I wasn’t getting any new bites, and any fleas that did find their way onto my feet were picked off and killed.
However, the fleas were as thick as I’d seen them the previous week when I came home to vacuum today (1/9/18). It was warmer today than it had been all last week. My guess is that this second wave is from cocoons that are just now hatching because the conditions are better for it?
Since it’s just me in the apartment, there shouldn’t be any new eggs that have been laid since the cats left, right? All that’s left is the adults from the cats plus any immature fleas that are developing? I’m just worried that my guess is wrong, or that there’s something else I should be doing to fix this.
Adam Retzer Staff answered 7 years ago
otherjustin,
First of all, I am sorry for the delayed response.
You are correct in your assessment. The fleas you’re seeing now are the remnants of the cat’s infestation. Without pets in the home, the fleas won’t be able to survive and reproduce. You are seeing the last cocooned stages emerge. Usually infestations end around 8 weeks after treatment or host removal. However, sometimes fleas are seen for up to 5 months. This is because some cocooned adults can enter a quiescent (dormant-like) state for 5 months. But they will rapidly wake up and emerge when they detect a host on the cocoon (heat and pressure). Vacuuming is the best way to simulate these host cues and force emergence.
It sounds like you should be in the clear with some more vacuuming and patience.
Hope this helps!
Adam
otherjustin
replied 7 years ago Hi Adam,
No worries about the delayed response. I think I kind of panicked when the population exploded after it seemed like I was on top of things. Honestly, just finding this site and learning more about them was a big plus and helped put me at ease with a really horrible situation.
I ended up getting some stronger spray the weekend after the fleas resurged. Vacuuming plus the strong stuff on weekends seemed to keep the fleas’ numbers down even in the warmer weather, and I’ve been seeing less and less each week (down to only 1 flea in the last 7 days). It’s good to know that it’s all petering out.
Thanks a bunch for the reply, and for the site too! It’s been a big help.
— otherjustin
Adam RetzerFlea traps are useful for monitoring the population to see if things are declining, and to see when the infestation completely ends. The traps aren’t very useful for control, but they can help you get a better idea of how well the control you’ve employed is working.
