Here’s how to go about feline flea proofing your home as an essential part of protecting your cat and yourself from the dangers of cat fleas.

As I am sure you know, fleas love your carpet and furnishings almost as much as they love your cat!!!  And it’s not all about keeping a clean home.  If your cat strolls outside, even for only a few moments, they can bring back a colony of fleas who will love to share your accommodation.

The real perpetrators of the problem are not the fleas but their EGGS!  You must get rid of them first and keep them out of your environment.

As a result you will have

How To Go About Feline Flea Proofing

Take the time to look at this video and really understand where fleas come from, where they live and how they behave…

Fleas have to be controlled at the ‘cat level’ (the adult fleas) and, just as importantly, the ‘carpet level’ (eggs and larvae).  So flea proofing your home begins with the carpets and on this page I specifically cover handling wall to wall carpet or hard floors with scatter rugs.  And you also need to treat your bedding as this is often a favorite place for puss to relax.

Dealing with wall to wall carpet

If you have a big house or if the flea problem is severe, it could be easier and even more economical to call in the big guns of a pest control professional.  However, If you plan to do it yourself here are four essential guidelines.

  1.  Use House foggers or bombs.  There are many makes and models and they significantly speed up the flea proofing process.  Make sure you use enough bombs.  Those available in supermarkets often only do 1.6 Squares so you need many more of them.
  2. Plan to do all the carpeted areas in the one day.  There is no need to do the bathroom and kitchen as the residual egg killing chemical will be wiped off next time you mop.
  3. Vacuum thoroughly first, and move all the furniture, as the eggs are under the couches and at the edges of the room where there is less traffic.  Move the cushions off the sofa so the fog goes down the back where the dust is!
  4. Professional Steam cleaning will get rid of eggs from carpets and upholstery.  However, the machines for hire generally do not get hot enough to kill the eggs.  You need to use a machine that actually heats water.  Most just produce a strong fine mist jet to dislodge dirt but has no effect on the flea habitat deep down.

For Timber or Tile Floors

You may only need to use a surface spray to spot spray rugs and furniture.  These sprays are designed to be used on all the upholstered and carpeted areas where your pet goes.

To spray most effectively, first vacuum the carpet and furniture to remove surface dust and grit.  Then use the spray lightly (hold the bottle at waist height as you go around the edges of the room) all over the main carpeted areas.  Spray particularly down the backs of the cushions of your pet’s favourite chair!!

The surface spray prevents the flea eggs from becoming adult fleas so they don’t develop teeth to bite you or your pet.  These spray treatments usually last for about six months and will kill the new eggs that may fall off an untreated pet.

Once your home is declared a flea free area, make sure you maintain the rage against fleas with regular cat flea combing and other preventative treatments.

Feline flea proofing mattresses and bedding

Ideally the mattress should be steam cleaned.

Wash bedding in very hot water. You need water heat of 70 degrees Celsius to kill flea eggs and larvae so if your washing machine does not go to this, boiling or professional laundering may be needed.

And remember the bedding you have already washed but not using very hot water, may still be harboring some eggs.  So to be on the safe side and rewash all your bedding.