fleas

[jay90]

can fleas survive in a house without an animal to feed onor even infest without an animal present?

[Octavius]

When full grown, the flea caterpillar makes a little cocoon, just like butterflies do. Protected by this cocoon, the flea is impervious to insecticides and can wait many weeks for a host to come near. When the flea senses vibration from footsteps, it pops out, looks around and immediately takes a leap. You can spray all you want, but fleas will continue to emerge from their cocoons for about three weeks.

You can vacuum and spray as much as you like, but expect to see some fleas for 2 weeks or longer following treatment.

[jay90]

cheers,but without an animal..i have neighbours who are blaming my animals for infesting thier flat even though they dont come into contact with them or thier flat....

[4getmenot]

Yes because they can live off dead skin cells in the carpet.

[dot.hawkes]

they may have mice

[mccfluff]

oh yes, i moved into a flat and immediatly got covered in flea bites although i didn't have any pets, turned out the previous tennant had cats - he had moved out 3 months previously

[4getmenot]

Well I kept being bitten in my flat and i couldnt work it out as I dont have pets and non of the other flats were supposed to until I knocked on upstiairs and they had a cat. So it is likely you are giving your neighbours fleas.

[jay90]

thing is though would the life cycle not be very short..due to lack of animals?

[jay90]

how though 4fet if they dont pass through your flat?

[4getmenot]

Because that pesky cat of theirs use to roam around the hall way at night, so the fleas would go into that carpet then I'd come in and they'd jump on me and then jump off into my flat and live off whatever is in carpet. Its very rarely that fleas bite humans but hey I'm rare.

[4getmenot]

due you share a hallway. Is it possible that your animals are passing them into hallway. Have your pets even got fleas??

[Octavius]

They feed off the blood of humans and animals such as dogs and cats. Since fleas use a wide range of hosts, diseases can be transferred from one host to another. Fleas are known to transmit tapeworm larvae and, uncommonly, the disease murine typhus and most notoriously bubonic plague. There are three main species of flea that infest humans:

Cat flea (Ctenocephalides felis)
Dog flea (Ctenocephalides canis)
Human flea (Pulex irritans).

Adult fleas can survive for some months without feeding. The flea uses its saw-like mandibles (jaws) to cut through skin, usually on accessible parts of the body such as the legs or feet. Flea saliva contains anticoagulants to encourage the blood to keep flowing. Female fleas are prompted to lay their eggs after feeding. The eggs are light coloured and oval-shaped. The larvae cocoon themselves within weeks of hatching. As I said above, vibration, such as footsteps, prompts adult fleas to emerge from their cocoons. This is why you may be bitten after entering a house that has been unoccupied for some time.

[jay90]

where were the bites aparrently cat fleas bite around the ankle/leg whereas human fleas around the abdomen...human fleas can infest cats.....

[4getmenot]

I mean do you share a hallway :-)

[jay90]

sorry 4get...no they havn't did have last year...but i kept on top of it

[4getmenot]

If your pets do have fleas it can be never ending sometimes. If you put flea powder on pet then the fleas that are still in carpet will just jump straight back onto pet. Best to thoroughly powder carpet and pets. But if you're saying they dont then just tell them they must still have them in their flat from last year and to clean their carpets.

[4getmenot]

I'm so itchy now :-)

[jay90]

lol went on some flea websites before know how you feel...

[RATTER15]

Jay90 Don't worry about human fleas, I never come across them in 13 years of pest control, most common are cat fleas, just follow my earlier advice, pay pest control company to do and save yourself some money, but will need to get frontline from vets