9 Things To Do Before And After Your Flea Spraying Treatment
Fleas are some of the world’s most common pests. While fleas are easy enough to deal with, they breed and spread quickly, and that makes them a serious issue that should be addressed quickly. Professional flea spraying treatment is the most effective way to manage fleas and eradicate an infestation. To ensure the treatment does its job, there are a few things you’ll need to do before and after your pest control appointment. In this article, we’ll go over the 9 things you can do to prepare your home for a professional flea spraying treatment.
1. Wash Your Pets Thoroughly
Dogs, cats and other furry friends are one of the main causes of flea infestations around the home. Your pets spend all their time exploring and lying around in the grass outside, and they’re a tempting target for roaming fleas.
The best place to start with preparing for your flea spraying treatment is to wash your pets with a flea shampoo. Flea shampoos can kill adult fleas and eggs that are living in your pets’ fur. It’s also a good idea to wash your animals more than once in the lead up to your flea spraying treatment. This will help prevent the fleas from continuing the cycle of laying eggs each time they feed.
2. Start Pets on a Flea Treatment Program
For major infestations, you should also start pets on a flea treatment tablet. It’s best to consult your vet about which option is right for your animals. You should start your pet’s flea treatment as soon as you find fleas, and you should continue treating them for several weeks until you’re sure the infestation has been dealt with.
3. Wash Pet Bedding
We aren’t quite done with the pets yet – the last thing we need to do is thoroughly wash their bedding (as well as any other areas they like to hang out, like on the lounge or at the foot of your bed). Fleas love to hide amongst the fabric fibres, so this step is critical to ensuring fleas don’t come back once the treatment is complete.
Pet bedding should be washed in hot water with laundry detergent. The high temperatures and soap will kill adult fleas, larvae and eggs. Items can be dried in the dryer or placed in direct sunlight. Alternatively, you can use a steam cleaner to wash pet bedding that can’t be placed in the washing machine.
4. Vacuum and Clean Your Floors Daily
Carpets, rugs and the gaps between wooden flooring are prime breeding grounds for fleas. In the run up to your appointment, you will need to vacuum and mop your floors on a daily basis. The extra vacuuming encourages eggs to hatch and makes the flea spraying treatment more effective. Remember to be thorough and don’t be afraid to move furniture so you can get at every inch of the floors in your home. The more thorough you are, the less likely the fleas will come back after treatment.
Make sure to remove and dispose of the vacuum bag each day.
5. Wash Bedding and Linens
One of the toughest parts of dealing with flea infestations is when they make the jump from pet beds to human beds. Fleas are incredibly uncomfortable to live with, and their bites can cause inflammation and itchy rashes.
Just like with pet bedding, you need to wash your sheets, quilt covers and quilts to get rid of adult fleas or eggs that are living amongst the fibres. Use hot water and dry items in the dryer or in direct sunlight. After washing, store your linen in an unaffected part of the home to prevent the fleas from taking hold again.
6. Pick Up Anything That’s Stored On the Ground
A major party of flea treatments includes spraying insecticides on your carpet and flooring. To be effective, we need to be able to apply these treatments to every bit of the flooring in your home.
During your daily vacuuming routine, make sure you’re picking up anything that’s normally stored on the ground. Things like children’s toys and toy boxes, laundry hampers, potted plants, shoes and other boxes should be temporarily moved to elevated shelving.
7. Mow and Water Your Lawn
Complete flea control treatments include killing any fleas in your lawn. To make lawn treatments more effective, you’ll need to mow and water your lawn the day before your scheduled treatment. A freshly mowed lawn ensures we can reach the fleas that are living amongst the grass, and the water encourages the flea eggs to hatch.
8. Tidy Up Your Yard
Just like the inside of your home, we’ll need good access to every part of your lawn to apply an effective treatment program. Tidy up anything that’s stored on your lawn, such as trampolines, children’s toys, garden furniture and barbecues. While you’re at it, trim back any bushes and trees that will prevent us from getting to the exterior of your home.
9. Continue Cleaning After Treatment
Fleas are one of the trickiest pest infestations to manage. Flea eggs can lay dormant for months before hatching and restarting the problem. Professional treatment programs are designed to kill fleas at every stage of their lifecycle. This greatly reduces the chances that the fleas will come back once the treatment is complete. But you shouldn’t rely on treatment sprays and products alone. You need to continue your regular cleaning schedule even after the professionals have come and gone. For the first 4 weeks after treatment you should regularly vacuum and clean floors, wash pet bedding, clean linens and continue pet flea treatments. You don’t need to do these things every day, but they should be done every few days to maximise the effectiveness of the professional treatment.
Get Ready for Your Flea Spraying Treatment with Pete’s Pest Control!
Fleas are one of the most common and stubborn household pests, but they’re simple to get rid of with a professional flea spraying treatment. Combined with proper cleaning, pet treatments and a little bit of after care, our professional flea products can get rid of pests at every stage of their lifecycle. If you’re seeing the signs of flea infestation then don’t wait – get in touch with Pete’s Pest Control Toowoomba immediately! Our professional pest control specialists can design a flea treatment program that’s affordable and effective. Contact us today to find out more or to book your appointment!
