My basement was/is infested with fleas. Through much research, I am extremely grossed out and amazed at the strength of the cat flea. I also know much more than I ever wanted to know. Fleas can go dormant for two years! They hide and reproduce constantly. The live for 200 days. Even if you kill the adult in another week or two you have a whole new generation of infestation. One of the best ways of controlling a flea population after treating is to vaccuum. I have learned from experience this does pretty much nothing on a concrete basement floor. I ran out and bought enough of a product called "Hot Shot" to treat my whole house. I purchased this product because it didn't require you to put out the pilot lights. I removed the pets from the house, treated them and followed the directions on the box. It stated that you may have to do treatment again in 2 to 4 weeks. Twenty-Four hours later, I had just as many fleas as I had the day before. There were not any type of dead insects at all in my basement or anywhere else in my house either. In a long moment of anger I sent a letter to the manufacturer who promptly refunded my money. My next attempt was "Raid" fogger. In the mean time I was using a spray Raid flea killing product. The fogger did kill some crickets and the flea population seemed to dwindle but they were still there. Hiding in wait to attack....I have gotten into the habit of going into the basement wearing shorts so I can see how many fleas jump on my "glow-in-the-dark" white legs. Gross, yes, and it freaks me out too, but I don't know how else to know. I end up jumping around screaming and swatting at them, which, by the way is completely ineffectual. I took the dogs the vet because I thought the older dog was getting sick from the treatments. He gave the dogs cortisone shots and treated them with Frontline. He warned me that I will probably have to keep treating for six months. I was very disenheartened but felt better about the dogs being taken care of. I have managed to keep the fleas in the basement, although the vet did say if the dogs went in the basement, the fleas would bite them and die but that seems cruel to me, so I can't do it. This has all been very expensive ( I've calculated a good $500 so far) and not getting any cheaper as time goes by. What else is new? I have spent hundreds of dollars trying to exterminate these fleas. As a last resort, before calling a professional or moving (which I am seriously debating) I have purchased several cans of a product called "Ultracide". Ultracide claims to be professional strength, serious flea killer that lasts through a complete flea season, although I am not sure what that means. Is it like, winter, spring, summer, fall or is it the life cycle of a flea? I was so excited when the box arrived. At this point, I am broke and exhausted. I open the box, read the directions and start spraying. 24 hours passed. I went down in the basement, near the washer and dryer and stomped around a bit. They are drawn to the vibration of footsteps. Nothing jumped on me so I waited a little longer, afraid to get too excited. I walked to another section and nothing! The excitement I had been restraining all day was building, could this finally be over? Then I walked to the darker, far corner and boom; 4 fleas jumped on my ankles. My heart sunk. I grabbed a new spray can and went crazy spraying all over again. I will probably be dead before the fleas are from inhaling all that poison. If this is my last post...you'll know why.
UPDATE: Ultracide did not kill the fleas.
Another update: I called 2 exterinators today. One said they would charge $160 + tax to spray. The other said it seems like I have done everything I was supposed to do, so give it another week and see what happens. I put on a respirator and sprayed the basement like crazy with 2 cans of Ultraside for 880 square feet. One can is supposed to do 2630 square feet.
UPDATE: I tried Borax and it didn't do anything. The Ultracide seemed to "reduce" the population but didn't get rid of them. I then read that fleas like warmth and dampness. (I sure don't want them to feel comfortable.) I do have a dehumidifier in my basement, so I turned that on. Again, that seemed to help and there seemed to be less of a population. One of my dogs did run into the basement when the door was open ( I wasn't looking) and trotted all over the place. She picked of several fleas but they didn't drop off and die as the vet said they would. She was scratching like crazy for several days and I was getting bit again. I had eight bites accross my shoulder in a matter of minutes. I put Frontline on her again, 2 weeks earlier than I was supposed to. I won't let that happen again.
I did "bomb" again this weekend. I doubled the amount of bombs I had previously used. They are the "Raid Fumigators" and you don't have to turn the pilot lights off. I walked all over the basement in my white tube socks (that I bought just to test the # of fleas).I didn't think I picked up any but a little while later I did notice one crawling up the sock. I killed it, but the next day I was bit on my calf, so they are lingering. I don't like using all those chemicals but my washer and dryer are in the basement and I hate going down there. Maybe the answer is just persistence. You would think with nothing to eat they would die and I'm hoping that the colder weather might help but I'm not sure. I can't even get up the nerve to vacuum the concrete. I am so tired of being bitten. To be continued...
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Hey Annie,
Was wondering if you had an update to your 9/18 flea saga. We're in Trenton, and suffering BADLY. Our situations sound similar: the fleas are problematic, but not heinous on the animals, not TOO bad through the house, but they have claimed the basement for their own. We have a sandy/concrete floor, and have tried borax, pennyroyal, a product called Wondercide; treated the animals, and not much works, at least not for long. We were hoping to avoid the big bomb sort treatments because we've heard they don't work. Plus, we have a newborn, and a bunch of animals, and just don't want to put anyone else at risk. Anyway, would love to hear back from you by email (trentonkatblogstriss@yahoo.com) or even a follow-up post. Oh, my husband is actually allergic to flea bites, which adds a whole new level of suckage for us. You have a great blog; glad we found you.
Recommended Instructions for Flea Eradication with Wondercide™
When these directions are followed, you will no longer have fleas. We can’t emphasize enough; you MUST treat the property completely to remedy the problem. Spraying here and there will NOT make these parasites go away!
INDOOR Control for Pets, People, Property:
For the animals, people and in the house, use EVOLV™, Biter Fighter™ & BioDefense™ as these products will kill the fleas and eggs on contact. All of them can be used on Pets, People & Property (indoor). Be sure to spray everywhere or the fleas will congregate in the untreated areas and the infestation will be back within 3 weeks. You don't need to soak anything, just a light misting everywhere.
BioDefense™ is not meant for use on plant life and cannot be diluted.
BE SURE TO FOLLOW THESE DIRECTIONS COMPLETELY:
For inside treatment using BioDefense™; just pour it into a pump-up/compression sprayer and lightly mist everywhere inside and on the animals. Begin with the animals then, get the furniture (sides and cushions of couch and chairs, bedding, etc.) Then, spray entire flooring, even closets and hardwood. (You will not need to spray linoleum or tile flooring but, do spray any wooden baseboards around the floors.
IMPORTANT FACT ABOUT FLEAS: Fleas are some of the most difficult parasites to get under control once there is an infestation. They can jump 3-4 feet and can lay dormant up to 3 months. Only 5% of the Flea cycle that you see is adult fleas. Meaning, the other 95% of the flea population is in egg and larvae stages…just waiting to hatch a huge problem if it goes untreated.
BE SURE TO SPRAY EVERY ROOM IN YOUR HOME FIRST! IF YOU LEAVE A ROOM OR EVEN A CLOSET UN-TREATED THAT IS WHERE THE FLEAS WILL CONGREGATE. This will not stain anything, including furniture, drapes, carpeting, clothes, etc. (test silk or satin fabrics before spraying).
FOGGING: NEVER fog with animals present inside, including birds. Any person inside while fogging must wear a mask included with our fogger machine. This is the ultimate in flea, mites, bed bug eradication. Nothing will survive BioDefense™ in a fogger if you follow the directions.
FLAMMABLE: DO NOT USE Wondercide BioDefense™ NEAR OPEN FLAME.
VERY IMPORTANT: Begin by spraying the sides of furniture; couches, chairs & cushions, bedding, etc. THEN, spray the floors (except vinyl or tile floors) It is imperative to get enough of the BioDefense™ to spray the entire square footage of your home and furniture as well as any animals you may have. Each Gallon of BioDefense™(used in the compression/pump-up sprayer /fogger will cover 1,000-1,200 sq. ft.)
Example: If you start spraying in the middle of a room, the fleas and eggs that get a direct spray will die within 1-3 seconds but, the fleas in the surrounding areas will try to get away from it by jumping on you, your animals, the furniture, etc. So, if you spray those areas first when the flea jumps there it will retreat back to the floor and subsequently die. I also recommend spraying your legs first also so you don’t get bit.
FOR CATS: Unlike dogs, cats are constantly grooming themselves and you don’t want them ingesting too much of the cedar. So, just give them a light misting all over EXCEPT on their face. Spray a little Evolv ™ or BioDefense™ in your hands and just rub it on their face. You can also apply it via eye or ear dropper for ear mites and the fungus thereof. Just do this once or twice per week as needed.
FOR DOGS: Spray liberally everywhere, including the ears via spray, Q-Tip or dropper. You can spray them as often as needed.
OUTSIDE TREATMENT: After spraying thoroughly inside using BioDefense, use EcoTreat™ with a hose-end applicator outside. Begin by spraying the outside of the house first , getting down to the foundation and/or patio and spray outward. Spray the sides of the house, the eves, shrubbery & trees as best as you can. Just pull off the little black tab on the hose-end sprayer to get a 20’ stream for the eves. Spray all structures on premise. Fleas are difficult to get rid of so treat all areas where the fleas are. You must treat 2 times outside, within 4-7 days to end the egg-laying cycle. For example; if you spray outside today, do it again within 4-7 days. Afterward, it is just a maintenance issue of once a month or so, depending on the time of year. (OUTDOOR TREATMENT IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED FOR FLEA ERADICATION. AFTER ALL, INSECTS COME FROM OUTSIDE.)
Hey there, again!
Honestly, I have nothing but good stuff to say about Wondercide as a company. I had paid for expedited shipping, but my order took much longer than it should have (due to a hurricane in Texas); when I asked about that, Stephanie at Wondercide sent me a load of free, new and improved bottles of their flea-killin' stuff.
It arrived right around the same time my husband's order for Ultracide arrived; Ultracide is another, heavier-duty, chemical laden arthropod-killing product, and he was sick to death of getting eaten alive (he's allergic to the bites), that he went to town in the basement, and threw a lot of stuff away (very big for him; he's a packrat), particularly stuff like old rugs and clothing. He moved the kitty litter boxes upstairs, and sprayed the dickens out of the basement, alternating between Ultra- and Wondercides; he kept this up for the last two months, spraying every other weekend. It has been hell, but we seem to be in a better place now. I am, of course, concerned about the chemicals -- natural and synthetic -- that have been unleashed in our basement, but I am just as pleased that we don't seem to have fleas at the moment. I will treat the animals with the Wondercide as it warms up later this year, as a preventative measure against the parasitic bastards. Hopefully we can touch base again with success stories. Best to you.
I just used Wondercide's Evolv and Biodefense precisely as directed. My cat was absolutely miserable until I bathed her the next day in Dawn to remove the Evolv. It's very oily and she would not clean it off herself - she would not play, she would not eat until I got that stuff off of her. 4 days after application I still have a swollen throat, blood shot eyes, elevated blood pressure and pulse. The cedar odor is unbelievably intense. A friend came to visit and almost immediately got a sore throat and strange feeling in his ears. All of this might have been worth it if there were no more fleas - but that is NOT the case. And I will never subject any animal or myself to Wondercide's so called "holistic health" remedy again. Repeat application of Wondercide? Hell no.
Same problem here with fleas.... I've done everything from wondercide, home remedies, ultracide,3 different vacuums, permatreat out here twice. Sprayed inside and out. Will try the wondercide treatment listed above. On my way to buy vacuum number 4
I have one cat,he doesnt go outside,he sees the vet more then I see my doctor,he is totally up to date on everything.One day I noticed he was howling and jumping from chair to chair avoiding the floor.I dont have carpeting only old hardwood and linoleum.And I noticed he wasnt eating his food or drinking.I took him to the vet and he was loaded with fleas?I had no explanation other then I had recently taken about 20 bins of dishes and glassware wrapped in old newspaper from a friends father who had the stuff in a storage unit for years and then his garage.I wanted to help him recoup some money so I brought them to my house and proceeded to wash them take them out of the paper and get ready for a garage sale.It was during that first week I noticed that I had some bites on my legs but had no reason to think of fleas.Turns out my cat was loaded with them,the vet treated him,and since the 21st of August when I had my apartment sprayed I still have to comb him and wash him in soapy water.Nothing seems to be working and my basement is so wet Iam noticing now every time I go down to empty the dehumidifier I have several fleas on me before I get back upstairs.I want to get rid of them but have no idea where to go from here and my landlord doesnt give 2 hoots.If any one can give me the "answer" please feel free to send me an email at snow49ca@yahoo.com thanks so much
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