Bites

[Amia]

My housemate and boyfriend have both been bitten on their legs by something in the house, the bites are small like mosquito bites I guess. I have been bitten once on my hand. Housemate is convinced it is fleas, so we have flea powdered and sprayed everywhere. No one was bitten for a few days then last night 2 more appeared on my housemates leg.There was a cat in the house until about 6 weeks ago but he was flea free and was regularly treated with front line,so it is a bit of a mystery. I am trying to work out what it is that is biting people. Does anyone have any ideas other than fleas or is it more likely to be fleas? I am not too bothered to be honest but housemate appears to be a bit phobic! Ta muchly

[incitatus]

extremely likely to be fleas. many flea powders will not kill eggs, which hatch with heat. wash and tumble dry all covers/mats/rugs etc. thoroughly clean the carpet. if it is stil a problem have the place fumigated.

[KARL]

It would appear to be an insect that is the problem, and flea(s) are probably the main suspect. I once picked up a human flea (somewhere among the public) and was pretty horrified. My doctor advised me that this was one of the best compliments as to my personal hygiene I could get. She advised (something she learned from her father, a treacher): Fill a bath with cold water (must be cold), then gather the bedding very carefully and equally carefully hold it over the water (piece by piece) and shake it gently, unfolding every crease and hem/pocket, etc. so every bit of the surface is presented to the water (close but not so as to get it wet) - this needs to be done meticulously. Keep items separate from those not yet processed. This sounds a bizarre ritual but she said fleas are inclined to jump into the water, and sure enough one did (size and colour of a small housefly), the only one because the problem disappeared completely and permanently. Pet fleas tend to be quite small (pinhead or smaller) and brownish so a white bath is ideal for spotting them. This should reveal if fleas are the culprit. Thorough washing is advisable after all of this. If it is a pet flea then that goes down as one more reason for not having a pet (rarely truly flea free for long in this country). Best of luck.

[incitatus]

dear karl while inci is away from the keyboard i am going to protest at your petist views. you are clearly unaware that cats keep people not vice versa. regards bailey excuse typing, paws are too large for keyboard.

[woofgang]

My husband actually infested my dog with a flea. He had been abroad and travelled home using the taxi firm that had a contract with his employers We thought it was the poor dog's fault when we started to be bitten, and I did actually remove a flea from the dog but when my husband met the taxi driver some weeks later, he apologised profusely, explaining that a previous client (human) had infested the cab. He thought that he had treated it sufficierntly but then found that her had not!!

[Buffy]

The other possibility is a spider. Their bites appear similar to mosquito bites, though they are slightly more severe (itchier, and they take longer to heal), and often occur in an irregular cluster of welts. I have been bitten more than a few times, though I am in North America. Perhaps it is more common over here. The best way to stop it is to find the culprit and kill it. Spiders like to come out in the dark, so if you walk into a room that has been dark for an hour or so, and suddenly turn on the light, you will likely notice it out there in the open (on the walls or ceiling). I once turned back the covers on my bed to find a spider sitting there on the mattress, "waiting" for me!! Now I look inside my bed before I climb into it, every time!! It has always been during sleep that I have gotten bitten. I think spiders like warm, dark places, like under the sheets.

[Buffy]

Re: the spider bites, they were itchy, but then whenever I went to scratch them, it was painful, like there was more damage to the skin. I don't recall ever feeling pain upon scratching a mosquito bite, so that is another major difference. If your housemate received two bites in one night, it could very well be a spider, because a (single) mosquito wouldn't bite twice in such a short timeframe.