7 Home Remedies for Fleas – Natural Treatment

For most home and pet owners, a flea infestation (see images) can cause panic. Below I’ve discussed the 7 top home remedies for fleas – they’re useful, convenient, and budget-friendly.

Fleas bite humans and pets to suck blood, leading to anemia and transmission of diseases such as Tularemia, Tungiansis, Murine typhus, and Bubonic plague. 

In summary, you can keep your cats, dogs (including dips, flea combs), and home being flea-free using simple home remedies that are effective and safe equally – control on the carpet and furniture – including killing flea eggs. Read Also: Flea Drops for Cats. 

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Details: 7 Home Remedies for Fleas – Natural Treatment

1. Dawn Dish soap

To get rid of fleas, I first recommend you use dawn dish soap to wet plus lathe your skin or pet’s hair., Dish soap will reduce the surface tension of water and make the fleas drown.

Further, dish soap tends to break the waxy layer in the respiratory system of fleas. Breaking the waxy layer in their trachea will allow water to go into the bug’s respiratory systems. 

The bugs will suffocate once the air is replaced by water – further, the dawn soap will block the fleas’ spiracles. So, place a plate or dish and drop some dish soap – position a lit candle. 

The candlelight will attract the fleas from where they’ll drop and suffocate into the soapy water on the plate. It acts as a trap for the fleas – they’ll trap the fleas temporarily. 

• The dish soap created high viscosity in the water – trapping the fleas like glue to kill them.
• However, fleas treat with dish soap only at night since fleas are nocturnal bugs. However, the dish soap flea treatment with candlelight may pose a fire hazard.

2. Diatomaceous earth for fleas

Diatomaceous earth will kill fleas at home – this will exterminate the fleas will the fossilized-algae diatoms. Luckily, the home remedy is non-toxic for pets and humans.

Besides, Diatomaceous earth will help exterminate fleas on pets, including killing fleas on cats and fleas on dogs – the sharp diatoms break the bug’s exoskeleton and cause dehydration. 

• Sprinkle the diatomaceous earth powder into places that you think have a massive flea infestation and traffic – but apply only a thin layer of the powder. 
• Let the DE treatment do its work for 3-5 days before you vacuum the floors and carpets thoroughly to prevent the bugs’ spreading. 

However, ensure to use the food-grade diatomaceous earth since it’s the natural option that’s equally safe for humans and other pets, including cats and dogs. 

Don’t miss your face with the DE powder since it may irritate your throat and eyes – so ensure that you put on some personal protection equipment like face masks.

3. Baking soda 

Baking soda will kill fleas just like diatomaceous earth, and it’s equally safe to exterminate the bugs – but vacuuming is still the most recommended. 

Vacuuming will remove the fleas from your furniture or carpet fibers. Using baking soda with your vacuuming machine on fleas will help improve its effectiveness. 

• So sprinkle the baking soda on the furniture and carpets. However, rub and brush the surfaces and fabric and empty the vacuum bag into a trash can that’s placed outside. 
• The powder will dehydrate and exterminate the bugs, eggs, and flea larvae and, hence, avoid another infestation. 
• Use the baking soda plus table salt – you’ll only need to sprinkle some of your table salt. The best thing is that it’s safe for both humans, pets, and kids.

But the salt plus baking soda could trigger some minor irritation on the pet’s open wounds. Also, remember to isolate animals in the treating zone. 

Baking soda plus sprinkle salt on the affected places, furniture, and carpets and letting it sit overnight will dehydrate the flea eggs and larvae. 

However, you’ll need to repeat the flea treatment – clean the bag and canister. Repeating the treatment allows you to remove all the left-over eggs to hatch and trigger a re-infestation. 

4. Lemon spray 

The lemon spray will both exterminate and repel fleas as it contains D-limonene as an active ingredient. But lemon may be used to treat the wasp stings – check best wasp spray.

You’ll require a spray bottle, funnel, large bowl, strainer, large pot, fork, and knife. Ingredients; 356 ml or 1.5 liters of vinegar, 711 ml or 0.7 liters of water, and three lemon fruits. 

• So, you’ll need to make some citrus spray that’ll use on the infected surfaces and furniture. Juice the three lemons after cutting into 3 millimeters thick slices. 
• Get a lemon slice and put it into the water – finally, boil the water for about 30 minutes. 
• Now steep your three lemons – and let the lemon to simmer before removing the water from heat. Allow the citrus juice to stand over the night before putting it into a spraying bottle the next day. 

Finally, spray the citrus spray on infested places on the yard, including chairs, pet bedding, and sofas. It’ll kill with the juice in the rinds or use a fork to cut down the rinds. 

• If your pet has a flea collar, you’ll need to add 2-3 lemon mixture drops in the pet’s flea collars, which will control the fleas. Further, you’ll need to drop some lemon mixture on the pet’s shoulder blades. 
• For use with pet’s shampoo – you’ll require 0.25 cups of the lemon treatment that’ll mix with the cat flea shampoo or the flea shampoo for dogs and use it for bathing the pets – but avoid the eyes. 

5.  Apple Cider Vinegar 

For fleas, Apple cider vinegar is an effective home remedy against the bugs besides using collars and yard flea sprays besides other natural flea remedies. 

Luckily, you’ll discover that vinegar has no fragrance, and it’s equally friendly to the surroundings – it’s chemical-free and natural, which means that it’ll be safe for kids, adult humans, and pets. 

• For a dog, use a single apple cider vinegar teaspoon for 40 pounds of the dog. Add this vinegar into a bowl of water and make sure to change the water after each dog wash. 

Fleas like bed bugs hate vinegar, and hence they’ll be repelled easily from the house and surrounding – you can also use the vinegar solution like a spray. 

Despite that dogs and cats will love apple cider vinegar more – particularly its scent, it’s also helpful to use white vinegar. However, cats might not love the vinegar spray flea treatment. 

• Mix equal parts of the water and vinegar ingredients into a big bowl – this is the dilution process that’ll make the solution fit for controlling fleas. 
• However, some homeowners also tend to mix in the ingredients in the ration of 1:3 for vinegar and water. 

Before spraying the vinegar for fleas control, inspect if the dog or cat has open wounds, sores, or cuts on their skins. Avoid using the flea treatment on open wounds. 

Avoid spraying the pet’s into their eyes – this may lead to pain, irritation, or reduced ability to see. It’s your role to ensure that the flea treatment is safe and comfortable for the pets. 

• Put the vinegar solution in a spray bottle or use some cloth that you’ll dip into the vinegar solution – for example, the rub-down technique will be more appropriate for cats.  
• However, remember to clean your spraying bottle, mainly if it had previously been used to spray a different chemical to avoid adverse reactions.

Finally, within half an hour, comb the cat’s hair to remove any of the dead or live fleas plus their eggs and larvae that’re stuck or trapped by the sprayed vinegar. 

6. Salt for fleas 

Salt for fleas (salt will kill fleas), just baking soda, will effectively kill fleas – particularly if you combine it with vacuuming. The salt will dehydrate the adult fleas and thus kill them. 

• So, sprinkle some finely-ground table salt on surfaces like furniture and carpets. All the sprinkled salt to sit on the surfaces for about 1 to 3 days. 
• Finally, vacuum the surfaces and carpets to clean up the salt and fleas trapped or trapped by this effective home flea remedy. 

Constant flea vacuuming plus salt treatment against fleas will help keep the flea infestation at bay. You can use the salt on pet beds, carpets, and live hosts – cats and dogs to kill even flea larvae.

To treat you home effectively with salt for fleas, you’ll need to treat the upholstery, home floors, and carpets. However, ensure that you empty and clean the vacuum bags and canisters. 

• Further, salt must allow sitting on the sprinkled areas overnice or for long hours so that the fleas will be dehydrated. But note that fleas won’t kill flea pupae in the cocoons. 

Conclusion

Natural remedies for fleas will work just as well as chemical flea treatment, including sprays, shampoos, and flea collars. Also, flea repelling plants like Spearmint, Lavender, Chrysanthemums, and Penny Royal is equally effective.