# Fleas? Apple Cider Vinegar and Water to the rescue!!



## honeygrl

So I know a few ladies here have complained about fleas in their house and on their pets other than me and I know we are all uncomfortable with weird chemicals now that we are pregnant. I personally am afraid of pesticides even when I'm not pregnant so I have been searching for a flea remedy for our 9 (yes NINE) dogs and for our house that is something safe. The rainy weather has made it unbearable lately. 

Well, I think I've found the solution! I mixed apple cider vinegar with water (half and half) and sprayed down one of the dogs as a test and my living room and sofa. The fleas immediately exited the area and jumped off the dog within 5 minutes! I'm going to get my DH to spray down the rest of the dogs when he gets home (they are terrified of the spray bottle) and I'm working on the rest of the house. The vinegar smell goes away eventually and isn't too strong anyway when it's mixed with water. I'm thinking that if I do this for a few days they will eventually exit the house entirely or get vacuumed up.:happydance:

I've read that you can put a tablespoon of it in your dog's food everyday and it will make their skin unsuitable for fleas even when they are outside. (a teaspoon for little dogs) It also has a ton of other health benefits for dogs. It balances the pH in their system and kills most bad things living in their digestive tract. It's also supposed to fix hot spots on them and helps with most any skin problems they have. 

Hope this helps someone else! Just never give it to them full strength because it's too acidic by itself. It needs to be diluted atleast by half on the outside and no more than a tablespoon in their food a day for big dogs and a teaspoon for little dogs. (been reading this stuff for days) Also make sure to test it a little first to make sure your dog doesn't have a weird sensitivity to it. (they can be sensitive to literally anything)


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## Seity

I use diatomaceous earth for flea control. It's 100% natural and works via a physical process not chemical. Basically its ground really fine and feels soft to us, but to insects it's like shards of glass. It's food grade, so perfectly safe if the pets lick it when grooming too. It works really well. I first bought it because I was waking up every day with new bites on my body that itched (yeah, nothing on my husband, so I guess I was just super sensitive to whatever it was) This went on for 2 months. I bought this and dusted the couch, our bed, myself (I was desperate), the cats, the rug, etc... In less than a week the problem was solved and I've never had a problem again. My best guess is it was some kind of mite eating me alive.


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## honeygrl

I wanted to try that stuff actually but I had a hard time finding it when I was out today. I had a list of things I wanted to test out and the vinegar was the only one easy to find. I tried salt for the past week with no luck at all. I know the vinegar doesn't actually kill them, it just really really repels them so if they don't completely leave the house I may keep searching for that stuff. 

The fleas were pestering the crap out of me but not nearly as much as the dogs. They are literally covered in them and miserable and we can't afford the stuff from the vet. I tried the cheaper flea meds on them but they don't work even a tiny bit. From what I've read of the vinegar, it will actually soothe the itchy spots and make the fleas hate living on them at the same time.

I just wish they would let me go ahead and spray it on them now. It took me 10 minutes to hold down the test dog and she fought hard the whole time because the spray bottle terrifies them all. She ran and hid from me the moment I let her go (i didn't even get to cover her all over in it b/c I was afraid she might accidentally hurt me struggling so hard) and she hasn't let me near her since. I had to sneak up on her to see that the fleas had jumped off and when she saw me she jumped up and took off. I know it didn't hurt her at all, she's just being a huge baby about it. It didn't even penetrate the top coat of fur to her skin. They are going to freak when DH gets home and holds them down one at a time for me to cover them really well in it! haha They will hide from me for days probably. We use to use the spray bottle with water to scare them away from the trash so they think they are getting in trouble. No other good way to get it on there though so they have to just man up and deal with it.


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## Seity

I ended up buying it off the internet as I couldn't find any locally. It's nice to know there are a few options for flee/insect control that work. The good thing is it kills the insects. Though I admit the cats are not too fond of getting dusted.


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## loopy_lou

Hi guys,

I dont think there fleas but i have spotted quite a few small white or light yellow things started in the bathroom and have now spread there only just big enough to see though.

I have googled and no idea what they are :(

LL


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## honeygrl

loopy_lou said:


> Hi guys,
> 
> I dont think there fleas but i have spotted quite a few small white or light yellow things started in the bathroom and have now spread there only just big enough to see though.
> 
> I have googled and no idea what they are :(
> 
> LL

How do they move? Do they crawl on feet? Jump? Crawl like a snail or slug or worm? Bet we can figure it out and once you know what it is it's way easier to get rid of it!

What surfaces do they like most? tile or carpet? Do they seem to bite?


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## loopy_lou

hard to tell how they move other than fast sometimes i guess feet they dont bite and seam to like dust and flat surfaces but i dont have much carpet in the house


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## honeygrl

Do they look like this?

https://www.extension.umn.edu/yardandgarden/YGLNews/images/springtails-ygl.JPG


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## loopy_lou

nope some are like grains of sand and you only spot because they move.

no bits stick out either


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## honeygrl

From what I've been reading the diatomaceous earth will kill just about anything.. might be worth a shot. 

You might try searching for booklice...? They don't just live in books.. they like anyplace with dust and dampness and are teeny tiny.


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## loopy_lou

Yes, thats them!!

Brillian thanks they were just in the downstairs toilet when we moved into the house and now the they have spread to the whole house!

Found a spray https://www.dobbies.co.uk/acatalog/..._medium=product+feed&utm_campaign=Google+Base which will do the job indoors and i will just have to get the husband to wash everything down one day when i am away and i am sure that will get fid of them :)

Found one is a bowl this morning in the kitchen so its just in time to find something to stop them really. I think i know where the nest it as there is still always at least one a day in the downstairs bathroom and there is a gap in the plaster behind the sink so thats where i think they are. I will make sure that gets a good spray!


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