Pre-emptive flea treatment?

Agencies and other headaches, keys and cleaners, running costs and contracts...in short, all the things we spend so much of our time doing behind the scenes.<br>
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Robin S
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Pre-emptive flea treatment?

Post by Robin S »

Having read some recent posts about fleas I was wondering if anyone (especially those that are pet friendly) proactively treat their properties for fleas in any way? Maybe an annual fumigation or is that over the top?

Thoughts as always greatly appreciated!
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Mouse
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Post by Mouse »

Why not check you have them first? Its easy to do with a light bulb and soapy watr. The heat attracts them and they end up in the water and drown.
Google it.....its a cheap and effective solution to finding out if you have them.

Mousie
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akwe-xavante
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Post by akwe-xavante »

I too after having read a couple of post about fleas wondered about whether I should be thinking about this too as most of my guests bring a dog.

Did a little googling and a little researching, went to a couple of local vets armed with a few questions etc.

I'm told by 3 different vets that Fleas, Ticks, Mites and Midge numbers are particularly high this year with well above average pet owners, particularly those with dogs suffering with Fleas this year.

So I've decided to proactively treat ALL flouring with RIP Flea spray by Genitrix. It's supposed to stop dead Fleas, Ticks and Mites and last 12 months. May consider reapplying in 10 months or early june next year. So OK having bought it from one of the vets it cost me £16.00 and I could of got it for £9 online but I couldn't find out without actually going through the whole process of buying it what the postage was going to cost me.

My next dilemma is whether I should actually inform guests that the property is treated for Fleas or not......

If I do then guests may believe I have or have had Fleas, some may be reassured that there aren't any whilst others may feel uneasy about it and may not like the idea of being informed that the place has been treated.

Certainly forewarned and forearmed is a good thing now that I understand the lifecycle of the creatures and what to look for and where etc. Buying the product and having that receipt as proof of purchase in advance of a complaint may help I suppose.

The Flea lifecycle can take anything from a few weeks to a year depending on the weather and several other factors and can be very serious. Depending on the severity of the infestation it can take 1 to 3 months to get rid of them, not good.

Given that I have a dog present 4 out of every 5 weeks I consider my £16 a year purchase from now on in very good value for money.

Do I inform guests the place is treated or not?
zebedee
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Post by zebedee »

I think I would keep that one up my sleeve.

What you need is for your guests to be responsible and apply regular and adequate flea treatment to their dogs prior to coming on holiday (and the rest of the year).

I have in my TCs that dogs should have treatment before coming to our cottage after reading helpful suggestions on this forum.

Your treatment of the property is your fail safe and you don't want to encourage any busy people to think they can delegate an important job to you.
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PW in Polemi
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Post by PW in Polemi »

I agree with Zebedee - you don't want to have potential guests either thinking your property is/has been infested, or to think they don't need to treat their dogs before arrival at your property!

Do you advertise the fact that you scrub and disinfect the toilets before each arrival? No, of course not. So treat your anti-flea treatment the same way. Your guests don't need to know every tiny detail of your cleaning routine, whether it's once a year (curtains, for example) or every changeover (sheets & towels). They just want the place to look clean - and actually be clean, i.e. no nasty surprises during or after their holiday (I'm thinking hot tub or pool water generated infections here).
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Mouse
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Post by Mouse »

Agree with the others....no need to mentoned it but you also have to treat all upholstery, cracks in walls etc. plus the mattresses if dogs go in the bedrooms. Just doing the floor won't prevent them unfortunately.

Mousie
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