Chris and Matt Posted September 23, 2010 Share Posted September 23, 2010 So, we have a bit of a full house around here with 3 people (sometimes 5), 2 dogs, 3 rats, and of course Maggie who is about 4 months old now. About an hour ago I discovered that both of the dogs have fleas! I just moved to Alabama from the desert and we never had to worry about fleas much in the drier climate. Anyways, I put some Advantix on the dogs. Tomorrow they'll get a bath and get their crates/beds cleaned. I'm going to take Maggie outside and treat the carpets. I looked around but I couldn't get a definitive answer, would it be possible that Maggie could get the fleas? I'm leaning more towards no but I figured I'd ask anyways. Not looking forward to the flea warfare tomorrow. Even worse is I keep itching since I found them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azzie Posted September 23, 2010 Share Posted September 23, 2010 http://en.allexperts.com/q/Parrots-1638/2008/10/dog-fleas-parrot.htm Loads of articles on the net that all state that parrots do not get fleas. Some wild birds like pigeons do act as a carrier to spread a flea infestation, but apparently the fleas don't bite the birds. Good luck battling the fleas, terrible things! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katana600 Posted September 23, 2010 Share Posted September 23, 2010 Even reading about fleas makes me start scratching. Azzie, I read your reply and being that keeping our birds misted, sprayed and softened with aloe, my mind immediately went there when I read good luck battling the fleas, I saw "bathing" LOL and had to read closer to see who was giving fleas a bath. LOL. It is a serious subject though and so much work to get them out once they have taken a quiet little foothold inside. Good luck getting things cleaned up, it would be a nightmare if you had to use heavy chemicals and take Maggie out of her home right while you are making a transition anyway. Good luck and hope you get things sorted out and back in place soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azzie Posted September 24, 2010 Share Posted September 24, 2010 Lol bathing fleas is called DROWNING them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 24, 2010 Share Posted September 24, 2010 Hi, ChrisAndMatt, I've just read your post from yesterday and am probably too late, but thought I'd write anyway. It is my understanding that you are not supposed to bathe your dogs right after putting the anti-flea treatment on the dogs. Oh, also, at least with FRONTLINE, it eradicates all fleas in the house and yard, just by putting the solution on the dog as directed. Anyway, that's my understanding, for what it's worth. And yes, your dogs can go swimming and so on, but my understanding is that for 24 hours or so you aren't supposed to bathe them or allow them to swim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danmcq Posted September 25, 2010 Share Posted September 25, 2010 Great replies everyone. We have used Advandtix for years on Dobermans. It is waterproof, so bathing or if they swim (As one of my dobermans love to do) will not remove it. One note on this around your birds or cats for that matter. It is poisonous to them if ingested. I would highly recommend keeping your parrot away from anywhere your dogs may lay to prevent accidental ingestion by your parrot perhaps pulling or chewing on any materials. Good luck with catching those fleas before they get a foot hold in your home. It's great to see people that are so proactive and keeping all their critters healthy and happy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris and Matt Posted September 27, 2010 Author Share Posted September 27, 2010 Ok, well, thankfully I did a little research before washing my dogs. I waited about 36 hours (24 is recommended) before washing the dogs. It looked like within 12 hours all the fleas were dead anyways. The dogs are now clean and flea-free! The house appears to be flea-free as well. I did a thorough vacuuming the night I discovered them and even crawled around on my hands and knees inspecting the carpet (I'm sure Maggie got a kick out of this). I think most everything is fine and well in our little zoo of a home, although we are a little less of a zoo now, yesterday I lost all three of my rats to some sickness and some extremely aggressive behavior Thank you everyone for your insight and responses. I spent about an hour today putting together some new toys for Maggie to keep my mind off of my poor ratties and to make Maggie a little happier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Birdnut Posted September 27, 2010 Share Posted September 27, 2010 So sorry about your ratties. I have kept rats before, and they are such great little pets. Just be careful not to combine flea treatments on your dogs or cats. Each type of treatment is designed to be a dose that your pet can handle. I don't know about Alabama. But I know here in Texas, if you have pets that spend any time outdoors, fleas are a constant battle. You also want to treat your dogs for heartworm, if you haven't been (after consulting with your vet). The mosquitoes in moister climates spread the heartworms. Also, your pets can get tapeworms from ingesting fleas. You'll recognize this problem by seeing squirmy little rice-like bits in the stool or around their bottom. Fun, huh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 2, 2010 Share Posted October 2, 2010 Chris and Matt, So sorry to hear of your pet rats passing! I had a roommate many years ago who had two rats as pets and they are very interesting, and very interactive, and very cute! I hope you are doing ok. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pearllyn Posted October 2, 2010 Share Posted October 2, 2010 Hi Chris and Matt, Well done on getting the fleas under control - they would be ehard to get rid of if they got a hold of the place. So sorry to hear about your rats, how upsetting to lose all three the same day. I've kept rats myself and they are great pets - so intelligent and funny. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coral&Andrew Posted October 4, 2010 Share Posted October 4, 2010 sorry to hear about your flea problem, my 2 cats awhile back at my mums caught fleas there absolutely annoying and frustrating to get rid off, good sprays should do the trick also frontline, and make sure you hoover the carpets and proper scrub them, they get into all your furniture, and fleas love hot weather, ive been told thats when they mostly hatch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azzie Posted October 4, 2010 Share Posted October 4, 2010 (edited) Be careful with sprays and such. Birds have very sensitive (and very different) respiratory systems, and are nowhere near as hardy as humans or other animals. Something seemingly innocent like air fresheners or scented candles (and Teflon coated pans!) can do serious harm to a bird, or even kill them. An example of this is the old Egyptian tomb explorers using a budgie to see if there were any noxious gasses in the tomb. A budgie would succumb far quicker than a human would. Here's some natural remedies to get rid of fleas. I've not tried any of them, but I'd be weary of putting down borax or diatomaceous earth inside the house where a pet could accidentally ingest it. http://www.grandmashomeremedies.com/fleas.html Edited October 4, 2010 by Azzie Forgot link. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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