ENVIRONMENTAL PEST
MANAGEMENT
Madison, Wisconsin
Sam Gottlieb
608-277-8828
Fleas can be a serious problem for the homeowner. If you have had a flea problem before, you know
what I’m talking about. Fleas bite the homeowner as well as their pets and can make life miserable for everyone involved.
Under optimal conditions, a female flea can lay up to 800 eggs during her lifetime. The eggs hatch in about 12 days and the larvae feed until they pupate. The adult flea emerges from the pupae in about seven days. From egg to adult the time span is roughly 3 1/2 weeks.
Dryness is fatal to fleas because they cannot retain moisture very well. Thus hot, dry summers reduce flea populations, and rainy summers produce large populations. Temperatures above 95 degrees Fahrenheit are also unfavorable. Under strict sanitation rules, the homeowner can help keep the populations low along with vigorous flea-combing of the pets.
When flea populations get out of control, a direct-spray treatment to the floors surface is needed. The treatment should contain a knock-down chemical along with an insect growth regulator. Both chemicals should be of the lowest toxicity types, in order to protect the homeowner and their pets from any ill effects.