No fleas please, we’re British.
Its one of the great taboos. No one I know will ever admit to having fleas. Its still feels very embarrassing to have to call up a pest control company and admit that you have fleas in your house. We’ve had people in tears on the phone. We’ve had people who can’t bring themselves to utter the word ‘flea’. But, they really, really want us to get rid of fleas in their property.
All of these reactions are completely understandable. If we didn’t know better, we’d feel the same too. The thing is that, as we often get rid of fleas, we
do know better. So, let me put your mind at rest…
Having fleas is no indication that you have a dirty house
We’re often called to desirable, large, affluent residences which are spick and span. Nothing out of place and probably with a cleaning service that visits regularly. These people have been forced to get rid of fleas and will often say to us – ‘I just don’t get it. We have a clean house’.
You do indeed. But did you know that fleas actually quite like clean houses? So, although their presence is undesirable, its a tribute to your ability to keep your house clean.
Its the dog’s fault.
It may very well be but the odds are that the cat is the source. The poor old dog often get blamed but 80% of flea infestations are due to cats. People sometimes encourage ‘flea-ridden’ cats into their houses as cats tend to wander. Its nice to give them a saucer of milk but your payment may not be pleasant. Before you know what is happening, the fleas are living in the house and biting everybody. Dog owners normally spot flea problems immediately. Dogs don’t get put out at night to go wandering and hang out with other dogs that have fleas. The moggy is probably the source of the infestation
I can get rid of fleas myself by just treating the cat.
A high-risk strategy – and, in all likelihood, its not going to work . There are loads of products online and in the shops that claim to get rid of fleas. The problem is that unless you apply the product absolutely perfectly, they won’t cure the problem. Sometimes, even if you do follow the instruction perfectly, it can be a ‘big ask’ that a product treat a large 5 bedroom house. If products were 100% effective, we’d sell them – but they’re not. So won don’t.
They’re not my fleas…they’re my friend’s fleas.
Well, they’re in your house now. We often hear this sort of this. Some will infer that someone they know brought the fleas into the house. Well, the may well be true but you can’t prove it. Even if you could, what difference would it make? You’re still go fleas in your house. Your friends are, in all probability, not breeding fleas with the sole intention of releasing them into your home.
Getting fleas is distressing but displacing that distress through blame really doesn’t do anything: much better to just get them treated by a professional sooner rather than later.
I don’t need to get rid of fleas – they’ll go by themselves.
No, no and thrice no. They will not and you’ve just won the gold medal for wishful thinking. As long as there is someone to bite, they’ll endure in your house.
If you want to talk to us in confidence about your flea problem, call us on 0800 092 5259 or me directly on 07989 422469. We act discreetly to provide unrivalled
flea control.
An original blog by Dan Gaskin
