Natural Flea Control

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Fleas.

At times they seem to be taking over the world. These bloodsucking pests not only are irritating to man and beast alike, but can also cause severe skin problems in both dogs and cats. Worse yet, as fleas become increasingly resistant to the synthetic chemicals science has produced for their control, pesticide manufacturers are making their products increasingly stronger — and more dangerous — in an attempt to keep pace with the parasites.

As a result of this unhealthy race, household pets are suffering twice: They're chewed on by fleas, and they're used as a battleground for the chemical warfare being waged by their well-meaning owners. In fact, I've often encountered cases of severe poisoning in dogs and cats due to the overzealous application of synthetic-chemical flea treatments. And many of those poisoned animals still have fleas!

Fortunately, there are effective nontoxic ways to do battle with fleas and win. But before we can attempt to control these pests without harming our pets, we must understand the tiny monsters' life cycle and purpose in the natural scheme of things.

THE ENEMY: A BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

The adult dog flea (either Ctenocephalides felis or C. canis) is a wingless insect equipped with a set of powerful hind legs that enable it to jump nine inches straight up or five feet sideways. Like vampires, adult fleas feed only on blood.

But the most important thing to know and remember about the flea is that the majority of its life is spent away from the host animal. Fleas invade our pets only when they need a transfusion.

The female flea prefers to lay her eggs not on your dog or cat, but in dark, damp places such as cracks in the floor or a corner of the basement. (Most of the few eggs that do get laid on host animals soon fall off.) The flea lays up to 20 eggs at a setting and may deposit as many as 400 during her lifetime.

Most flea eggs are laid when humidity is high and temperatures are moderate (65° to 85°F). It takes only about a week for the eggs to hatch into small, white, toothy-mouthed worms. This larval form feeds on feces, debris, hair and vegetation. Its growth cycle, depending on environmental conditions, takes from 10 to 200 days. Each larva then spins a cocoon and pupates for a period that can range from seven days to a year.

Thus, one pair of adult fleas can cause the three stages of offspring — egg, larva, and adult — to be present in your home for almost two years! Combine this with the fact that many commercial pesticides kill only adult fleas, leaving healthy deposits of eggs scattered around your home, and it becomes easy to understand how it is that you can "kill every flea in the house" one week and be greeted by a whole new generation of the miniature Count Draculas the very next.