Signs of Fleas at Home
Fleas are an oval-shaped pest that is reddish brown in color and appear long and skinny. Ranging from 1.5 to 3.3 mm in size, they have the ability to jump onto host animals and travel to vast locations. As their hosts can range from domestic pets to humans, fleas in the house can become a common issue. Although found primarily on the host, fleas can also be found in other places, such as carpets, socks, and bedding. Quick to repopulate, a flea problem can easily become an infestation if not identified and treated quickly.
Examine Your Pet
One of the biggest culprits of a flea infestation at home is your pets. As pets frequently spend time both between the outdoors and your home, fleas have quick access to a host that often travels inside. The following are signs that your pet has fleas, and is highly likely that it has brought them into the house:
- Your pet is experiencing hair loss due to alopecia or an allergic reaction to fleas.
- Excessive scratching and appearing uncomfortable.
- Flea deposits in the fur and powdered white flea eggs speckled in the fur.
- Your pet is irritable, fidgety, and not getting a full night’s sleep.
- The gums of your pet will appear pale in color.
Check the Carpet
A flea infestation at home can primarily be found starting in the carpet. This is because fleas will lay up to 50 eggs per day, and the pre-adult fleas will hide within the fibers of carpets and rugs. The following are two methods to help indicate the presence of fleas within your carpet:
- Capable of jumping to great heights, fleas can be found hitching rides on socks when walking around carpets. Since we are dealing with darker colored pests, wearing white socks helps to indicate whether there is an infestation in your carpet.
- Place a warm bowl of soapy water on the carpet and shine a light above it. If you have fleas, the light will entice them to jump up and they will land in the bowl.
Search All Bedding
Fleas often attack their host when they are either resting or eating. As both beds and pet beds are visited often, fleas can be found hiding in the crevices of these areas waiting to strike. If you expect that there are fleas present in your living area, the following should be done to search the vicinity:
- Lift bedding, pillows, and the mattress to look for black/white/brown mounds in both dog and human bedding and the surrounding areas.
- Check for white colored deposits, which indicate flea eggs are present. The darker colored deposits indicate adult flea poop. This means eggs have hatched and adults have had blood meals recently.
- If indoor pets are present within a home, they are the most likely culprit of transporting the pest to your bedding. Check the areas the pets most frequently sleep.
Look at Your Skin for Welts
If fleas are present in your home, flea bites will generally appear on ankles, feet, and the lower parts of the legs. However, flea bites may appear in other areas of the body if the fleas are present in bedding and higher areas. Check your skin for these signs as an indication of flea presence:
- Flea bites appear as small red dot-like bumps and can become quite uncomfortable and swollen.
- Bites resemble a cluster of mosquito bites.
- The bites on the skin from fleas will be excessively itchy.
How to Get Rid of Fleas in the House
Although at-home remedies appear to remove fleas, they are only a temporary fix and do not destroy the entire population of fleas. Since fleas have a high reproductive rate and repopulate in unseen areas, it is best to call a professional to remove the problem. Contacting a pest control professional is the best solution for eliminating a flea infestation and keeping them away for good.
The Bug Master is a pest control professional that eliminates fleas through a 4-step process. Our successful fumigation service will not only remove the pest but also protect your home for 60 days. For more information about our flea pest control, contact The Bug Master today! We are located in Austin, Temple, and Waco, Texas, while serving surrounding areas.