Category Archives: Flea and Tick Control
Your Carpet and Your Pet
For many homeowners the combination of pets and carpets is a non-issue. A well behaved and healthy pet with ample access to the outdoors means an odor free home. For other homeowners the same combination can result in a host of problems, from stains, to odors, to flea problems.
The most simple of the problems to solve is fleas. The carpets in your home provide an ideal breeding ground for fleas once they have made it into your home. Fortunately there are many non-toxic remedies that a professional carpet cleaner can offer you. The most important factor however is proper grooming of your pet to prevent the fleas from entering your home in the first place.
When it comes to the problem of stains however, the cleaning process in many cases will be of little or no help. Whether it is a discoloration in your carpet from a pet being sick or from an accident, discolorations in your carpet are often permanent. It would be the same as expecting to remove a bleach spot from your favorite jeans by washing them. There are really only two types of permanent stains a carpet can have. Either a color added stain, or a color loss stain.
A color added stain happens when a new pigment is introduced to the fibers and in the process of penetrating them redyes the carpet to a new color. When animals are sick the two main reasons for this are either dyes that were present in the food they recently ate, or from the stomach acids that all animals produce. A color loss stain is a form of bleaching caused by high PH factors. Often carpets will bleach to pure white, or yellow. Yellow discolorations are most often found in colored carpets like green, brown, blue or red. The reason they turn yellow is because only certain parts of the dyes that made the original color are affected.
Depending on the type of fiber your carpet is made of and the age of the carpet you do have two options for removing these discolorations. The first is called spot dyeing. If, for instance you have a green carpet that has faded to yellow, your carpet cleaner can reintroduce blue dye to the area. As we all remember from school yellow and blue make green. You may not get a perfect match, but a section of your green carpet that is a shade lighter or darker is much better on the eyes than a bright yellow section. The second option is called a carpet patch. If your carpet is made of a fiber that will not accept redying this is your only option. With a patch you literally cut out the discolored area and replace it with a section of carpet from a spare piece. If spare carpet is not handy, then you can use carpet from a closet transferring the discoloration from the middle of the living room to the back corner of your closet. However it is important to bear in mind that on older carpets the patch may stand out as much as the original stain due to wear and sun fade.
Removal of pet odors from your carpet CAN be a labor intensive process. I have addressed this issue in another fluffyfeet article called pet odor control. For a brief recap I will simply say that I strongly recommend you consult a restoration professional on the matter of odor removal. The vast majority of urine damage restoration jobs I have worked on have only been made worse and more expensive to resolve due to the well intentioned actions taken by a thrifty homeowner.
Article by Guest Blogger Brian L. Vaubel
Brian has 20+ years experience in carpet and furniture care and founded Eco-Clean in California. He works with environmentally friendly products and consults on Indoor Air Quality issues, and specializes in maintaining homes for those who are chemically sensitive
Pet Supplies June Sales
Please check out the Petco site in our Pets Supplies Mall. Sales this month include a LitterMaid Self Cleaning Litter Box, the Paws for Thought Booster Bath and a Petmate Portion Control Feeder. If you have a new pet that you are housebreaking there are Natures Miracle Training Pads. You get a free pack of 14 when you buy the 80 pack. Of course there are the usual flea and tick treatments and free shipping on orders over $60.00 but restrictions do apply.
For all you fishy readers there is 20% off all Rosin Aquatic Decor.
Also don’t forget to check out the Trupanion Vet Approved Pet Health Insurance. I am sure there are other items on sale. But I have just hit the highlights.
To shop at Petco now go here. Enjoy your purchases and if you have problems, as always please let us know. We will see what we can do to help.
Everyone take good care of your pets and have a happy beginning of summer! We will post the July sales after the first of the month.
Also, don’t for get to check out the natural and organic pet foods at Only Natural Pet Store. You are what you eat applies to your pets, too. To shop at Only Natural go here.
As always thank you for your readership and patronage.
Diseases from Ticks
Guest Article by Dr. Carole Osborne
There are ten tick borne diseases recognized in the United States. Three were identified in the last 25 years:
Lyme Disease (1970′s)
Human Ehrlichosis (1980′s)
Human Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis (1990′s)
Ticks are external parasites that suck blood from other animals to survive. They are most prevalent in wooded rural areas but can be found anywhere animals live. Ticks bite dogs, cats, livestock, snakes, squirrels, turtles, ducks, robins, and people. Most ticks are just a nuisance but some transmit disease. For example:
Lone Star and Deer Ticks carry Lyme Disease
Brown Dog Ticks carry Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever
TICK LIFE CYCLE
The life cycle of the tick plays an important role in determining when disease can be transmitted.
Ticks lay eggs in the spring, one month later larvae emerge. The larvae feed once in the summer on small mammals (like rodents) especially the white-footed mouse, then over winter.
The next spring, the larvae molt into nymphs. Nymphs feed on dogs, cats, deer and people in the late spring and early summer. Nymph are tiny, smaller than a mole, and therefore, difficult to detect in your pet’s fur.
In the fall, nymphs molt into adult ticks and feed on larger mammals, like white-tailed deer. They mate, lay their eggs, and die. Nothing can actually prevent ticks from attaching to pets or people. The key is to remove the tick promptly.
TO REMOVE A TICK
Use tweezers and grasp the mouthparts of the tick as close to the skin as you can and pull back. If part of the tick’s head remains, use a sterilized needle to remove it, just as you would a splinter. Don’t squeeze the tick because that can cause the contents of the tick’s body to be injected into the person or pet, and if the tick is carrying a disease, the individual can become infected this way.
When you’re in an area that may have ticks, i.e., hiking or camping in the woods, check yourself, your children, and pets carefully in less than 12 hours. Most ticks don’t carry disease and if those that do are removed in less than 12 hours, it is unlikely that you and/or your family or pets will get a disease.
TIP: Wear rubber gloves to remove ticks, and then put them in a sealed jar containing a little alcohol. Call your vet and/or physician to identify the tick, just to be sure.
Lyme Disease
Lyme Disease is the most commonly reported tick borne disease in the United States. A multisystem illness caused by the spirochete Borrelia burgderferi and transmitted by Ixodes ticks. Lyme Disease is a complex illness that affects dogs, cats, other animals, and people. To date, cases have been reported in 44 states in North America and many other countries around the world and the incidence is increasing.
Lyme Disease is caused by a microscopic organism called a ‘spirochete’, which is transmitted through the bite wound of certain types of ticks, i.e., Deer Tick, Black-Legged Tick, and Western Black-Legged Tick. The ticks must be attached to the victim for at least 24 hours to transmit Lyme Disease.
If infection does occur, the disease affects the skin, joints, and nervous system. In cats, signs are generally more vague than in the dog but arthritis with fever, lethargy, and appetite loss may occur two to five months after initial exposure. Treatment is with antibiotics given for two to four weeks and your cat may suffer relapses.
PREVENTION OF LYME DISEASE
Since nothing can stop ticks from attaching, prompt removal and preventing exposure to ticks in the first place are the solution. In the past insecticides applied to the coat as a spray, powder, or dip killed the ticks, but their protection only lasted three to five days. Therefore, in high-risk areas, treatment had to be repeated every seven to ten days.
New monthly medication prescribed by your vet can be given to cats as a pill or drops. These new products are easier to give and far more effective than those previously available. Frontline is a new, over-the-counter product that kills adult fleas on contact and controls ticks. Frontline is approved for cats over 12 weeks old and dogs. It comes as a liquid, which is applied to the skin between the shoulder blades at 30-day intervals.
TIP: Cats are very sensitive to insecticides and only products specifically labeled for cats should be used. Your vet will be able to recommend the best product for your pet.
FACT: Vaccines are available for people and dogs living in high-risk areas. and after treatment.
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Copyright 2007 Dr. Carol Osborne Get FREE pet advice from Dr. Carol at CarolonPets.com/ Visit Dr. Carol’s blog at CarolonPets.com/blog/ Buy PAAWS and VitaLife dog and cat vitamin supplements and other pet health products at DrCarol.
Flea Control Part II
by Guest Blogger Brian Vaubel
In this second flea control article we will discuss some options for removing a flea infestation from your home.
In my opinion an infestation can be as small as seeing one or two fleas a day up to and including having thirty or forty of the nasty little guys jump you as soon as you walk in the door. Yes, I have seen homes become that infested. I always recommend swift action when fleas are seen in the home because the way that fleas breed the difference between a couple and a mob could be as little as a few weeks.
In the case of a minor infestation, quite often all that is needed is repeating the steps I laid out in the first part of this article: pet bathing, thorough vacuuming of the house or a spruce up carpet cleaning.
With a moderate to major infestation you may wish to consult with a professional to insure a quick solution to the problem. The two professionals most homeowners consult are; number one the pest control expert, AKA the bug guy, or number two the carpet/furniture expert, AKA the carpet guy. Both are well equipped to handle the problem for you, but they do it in different ways.
Now I want to state that I have no experience in the use of commercial or residential pesticides. My knowledge of that industry comes from friends in that industry combined with customer feedback.
At first, The bug guy will be less expensive. He will spray around both outside and inside your house and leave with the promise to be back in a month to spray again. The pesticides are left behind to kill the fleas, but they only kill the fleas exposed to them. Those fleas nested in protected areas that were not sprayed, like inside your sofa or between your mattress and box spring, will remain and continue to be a problem.
Second, the carpet guy whose cost will be higher. For a major infestation I recommend the following:
- Clean all carpets, move all furniture and clear plus clean all closets.
- Thoroughly clean all furniture, mattresses and box springs.
- Clean all drapes.
The more thorough you are the better your results.
With the steam cleaning you have broken the breeding cycle of the fleas by removing their eggs and larvae. You have also killed off the majority of the adults. Many cleaners now offer “flea control”, but the products they offer are not pesticides. The product I use kills the flea eggs and larvae and will drive the adult fleas out of the area. It is a sodium-borate compound that is mixed with water and applied to the fabric or carpet with a sprayer. The manufacturer says it works for up to one year. But I have found it to only be fully effective for six to eight months. Depending on how aggressive you want to be with this method your cleaner could spend a full 8 hour day at your 3 BR house or 2 – 3 days at your mansion if you own one.
I know there are many more options for flea control. Everything from sonic waves to tea tree spay. The bottom line is that it is your home and how you choose to keep fleas at bay is your decision. I have only addressed what I feel are the two most obvious choices. I know for many people pesticides in the home are not to even be considered and I tend to agree with them. If you are sensitive to chemicals or have immune system problems, please remember you do have options that will work as well as pesticides.
Brian has 20+ years experience in carpet and furniture care and founded Eco-Clean in California. He works with environmentally friendly products and consults on Indoor Air Quality issues, and specializes in maintaining homes for those who are chemically sensitive.
Flea Control Part I
by Guest Blogger Brian Vaubel
Well summertime is just around the corner and all pet owners are once again face to face with fleas.
Over the years I have helped homeowners with every aspect of a flea infestation, from preventive measures to reversing the discomfort of massive infestation. As with most things in life taking preventive measures is less time consuming and MUCH more fiscally sound.
In this first of two posts, I will discuss some preventive measures you can take in your home that can save both time and money.
When I was a kid we had both cats and dogs, and with my grandmother in charge of the house spring cleaning was a HUGE deal. I remember (not so fondly) the way EVERY surface, cabinet and stitch of cloth in the house had to be cleaned. I also remember how we kept the fleas out in the old way back times.
It was a simple two part plan. First all animals in the house got a flea bath in the big wash tub in the back yard. (God only knows what was in flea shampoo in the 70′s) Once the howling and crying stopped the animals were all fitted with the standard of the day: a pesticide laced flea and tick collar, combined with a good rubdown with flea and tick powder. Then the second stage began: A spray down of the house, furniture and bedding with a good, strong flea and tick spray. That done we knew we were safe from fleas, between the fog of sprays and powders no flea stood a chance. The trade off was all food tasted like spray for several days, and from time to time you could not feel your fingers and toes. My grandmother reasoned it was a small price to pay.
Today flea prevention is less time consuming and the need to expose yourself and your pets to the nerve agents present in most pesticides is massively reduced.
Regular bathing of your pets is the first step, for your pet is the gateway for fleas into your home. A clean and flea free pet will most likely lead to a clean, flea free home. In addition to bathing you have the option of treating your pets with a topical treatment that will kill fleas on your pet for up to a month.
The rest is simple maintenance of your home, and how you approach that maintenance . If you work with a carpet cleaning service, speak with them about flea control. Most cleaners cannot work with pesticides, but there are natural flea control measures they can provide. First the cleaning itself; a steam extraction cleaning will remove or destroy adult fleas, eggs and larvae leaving you momentarily without a concern. To protect your home for the flea season, ask about flea control. I know of several sodium borate or borax treatments that can protect your home for up to one year.
If you maintain your own home your best friend is your vacuum cleaner. As you vacuum you are picking up fleas. Many people recommend throwing away your bag every time you vacuum to remove the fleas from your home. However, in this day of triple hepa filtered vacuums the cost of bags may make you think twice about that. (the hepa lined bags on my own vacuum run 3-4 dollars each) The easy step to keep fleas from breeding in the bag is to cut a one inch strip off a flea collar and drop it in your new bag.
Remember, fleas like to hide to breed. So be sure to vacuum or clean: under sofas/bed, your furniture, under cushions, and between your mattress and box springs. Regular vacuuming will also help reduce allergens such as pet dander, and dust mites.
Next week we will discuss steps you can take to remove a mild to serious infestation from your home.
Brian L. Vaubel
Brian has 20+ years experience in carpet and furniture care and founded Eco-Clean in California. He works with environmentally friendly products and consults on Indoor Air Quality issues, and specializes in maintaining homes for those who are chemically sensitive.