Does washing on a 90 wash kill fleas?

Just_Peachy

I have just been to vets and bought my cat some flea and worming treatments and have also bought some spray for the house and her bedding (safeguard i think?) but what i want to know is if washing everything that can be washed on a 90 wash kill the fleas??

I really want to sort this problem out this time, last time i used wilko's flea treatment and house spray but it has obviously not worked as she still has fleas!

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

If she's an outdoor cat, this will be an ongoing process, if an indoors one, it usually takes about 6 months to guarantee every last hidey hole of flea bits through thorough vacuuming (stick a flea collar in the vacuum cleaner bag/bin), washing on hot washes and ensuring every last biting thingy is removed.

Just_Peachy

thank you - how often should i flea her and how often should i be washing curtains/cushions/bedding etc on a hot washa and spraying the room/furniture with the flea spray?

~Chameleon~

Just_Peachy wrote: »

thank you - how often should i flea her and how often should i be washing curtains/cushions/bedding etc on a hot washa and spraying the room/furniture with the flea spray?

It all depends on the product you use. A household spray such as Acclaim will give you 12mths protection, so just an annual spray round the house will keep you flea free. It kills both the larvae and fleas. Cost = £10

I'm not familiar with the one you mentioned ...Safeguard(?) ....so you would have to follow the instructions on the tin.

The cats will need to be treat more regularly but again it depends on the product used and whether they spend a lot of time outdoors, in which case (if using Frontline) I'd recommend treating every month from April-October. Other products may vary so ask your vet for advice.

As you've already discovered, buying products from pet shops and supermarkets are a complete waste of time & money

vl2588

Jojo_the_Tightfisted wrote: »

stick a flea collar in the vacuum cleaner bag/bin)

Fab tip! I always use to tell clients to spray the inside of the bag with acclaim (or whichever) but that is much easier!

Re ridding house of fleas: hoover regularly (e.g. daily) for a week after you spray the house. This will induce the pupae to become adult fleas and become susceptible to the insecticide. Otherwise they will continue to lie dormant as the pupal stage is very resilient!

You also may need to use flea treatment all year round as in summer they thrive outside and in winter they thrive inside, although if you spray at the beginning of winter, when you first turn the heating on, it will prevent the grand majority of fleas for the winter.

Edit: meant to say that any wash should drown the fleas as far as I am aware.

meritaten

I am so sorry but I cant help it - when I saw the thread title I thought - yes but it will kill your dog or cat!

from experience I can tell you that flea eggs can survive a low temp wash. but not a boil wash. I had a prob with last cat with fleas and couldnt work out how spraying everything with frontline didnt work - until i realised that i was doing the cats blankie at a normal synthetic wash. (it didnt survive a boil wash as it was polyester).

SnowyOwl_2

I would have thought putting unwashable things into the freezer would kill off any unwanted specimens living in them. Eg meritaten's cats' polyester blanket - wash it, then put it in a plastic bag and place in the freezer for 24 hours, then take out, let thaw and dry. That's my theory anyway....

BitterAndTwisted

Just_Peachy wrote: »

thank you - how often should i flea her and how often should i be washing curtains/cushions/bedding etc on a hot wash and spraying the room/furniture with the flea spray?

How often you should treat your cat will depend on what the vet has prescribed, are there no instructions on the package?

I think you should wash the cat's bedding on a hot wash if the fabric allows, if not, chuck it.

I really don't think you need to take curtains down and launder them or anything. Give the bottoms of the curtains a spry with whichever preparation you have if they are floor length. The most important places to use the spray are where the cat likes to sleep. This is where she will have been scratching and shedding flea-eggs and flea-dirt. Hard floors can be washed with a chlorine bleach solution.

Even after treating the cat and using the environmental spray you will still see adult fleas for a short while. This does not mean that either preparation are not working, it's just that the young adult fleas are continuing to emerge from the pupal stage. If both products have been supplied by the vet things should be under control quite quickly.

Most of the really effective environmental sprays offer protection from re-infestation for about six months, so as long as you treat your home and the cat at the same time and continue with the flea protection medication on your cat you're very, very unlikely to suffer a re-infestation.

paulwf

Since using Advocat to treat our cats we haven't had a problem. Frontline seems to be much less effective and we ended up having to spray the place with a flea spray.

~Chameleon~

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

The most important places to use the spray are where the cat likes to sleep. This is where she will have been scratching and shedding flea-eggs and flea-dirt. Hard floors can be washed with a chlorine bleach solution.

Not advisable to use bleach where cats are likely to tread frequently as it's toxic. It can cause chemical burns and is poisonous if ingested (when they lick their feet).

Also avoid products containing phenols (e.g pine disinfectant) as they're also toxic. Rule of thumb - if it turns water cloudy then don't use it.

vl2588

It can also make them pee everywhere due to the ammonia smell! I.e. it makes everything smell like a cat toilet to them!

No need to chuck things out, they're only fleas! Also I do believe the freezer trick works