Whether you have a pet inside your house or mammals outside your house, fleas are bound to enter and cause havoc. And getting rid of them isn’t going to be a walk in the park. Here is a methodical procedure of how you can get rid of them with the minimal usage of chemicals.

You’ll have to do some thorough cleaning. Gather all the belongings on which your pet has slept on or made him/herself comfortable on. Their bedding especially has to be washed. So put it in a dryer for 15-20 minutes in hot water. All the fleas, larvae and eggs will get destroyed. The next step is to vacuum your house. The couch, areas where sunlight is minimal, places with dried blood stains – caused by the fleas themselves – draped furniture etc. are places they usually infest. Before vacuuming the carpet, throw borax, baking soda or salt over it. Let it be like that for hours, so the eggs can come out if they’re hidden. Make sure to keep your pet away after you’ve done this. Once the vacuum bag is full, throw the dirt and all into a plastic bag encompassing a dustbin and do this outside the house. Buy a dehumidifier for the rooms. Keep the dehumidifier level below 50%, as this will keep the moisture less than 50% in the air and the fleas, eggs and larvae will die. Vacuum the remnants. Trim your lawn and keep cool, moist places sunny and hot, especially places where your pet hangs out a lot.

The next thing you need to do is bathe your pet. For a dog, use gentle shampoo and wash the neck first after you’ve done the body, so that they don’t jump to the head. For a cat, anti-dandruff shampoo does the trick. You can make an herbal flea dip by boiling two rosemary leaves in two pints of water for 30 minutes. Strain the solution, throw the leaves and add to a gallon of warm water. Wash your pet with this and let him/her air-dry. Then use a flea comb and comb off remaining pests. Brush their fur thereafter. Make a flea collar by taking your pet’s collar and dipping tea tree oil, geranium, eucalyptus oil, lavender, or citronella. Just don’t use them on cats, as this affects their metabolism.

If you pets don’t tend to eat plants or if you don’t have children, plant the pennyroyal plant around your house, as this discourages the breeding of fleas. Make a citrus spray by slicing a lemon thinly and boiling a pint of water with that slice. Let it set overnight. Spray on suspicious areas on dampen your pet’s skin with it. Don’t overuse it on your pet though. Alternately, you can make a vinegar spray. Add distilled white vinegar to ¼ of a spray bottle and fill the rest with water. Add a tablespoon of dish water soap to get rid of dirt. It is good for cleaning counter tops, but even for ridding you of fleas. Spray once or twice per week to fabrics to get rid of fleas.

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