WARNING: You are about to feel the urge to scratch but for the sake of sanity, and our four legged friends – this post needed to happen.
Every fall, I become a neurotic whack-job that has a semi-awkward co-dependency with my vacuum. I deep clean my house like I’ve just watched a marathon of hoarders and my mother is coming over to inspect how well I’ve done. This obsessive compulsive behaviour stems from a very real, very large disdain for fleas. Over the years, to save my sanity, I have created a very effective routine for ensuring that they don’t infest my home (or my animals).
Desperation happens and I know the feeling all too well. Three years ago our home was INFESTED with fleas. We had five furry friends coming in and out of the house at the time and when fall rolled around, those little buggers moved in and prepared to camp out during the long, cold winter. My husband’s first instinct was to bathe all the pets in flea shampoo but it failed. Miserably. By the third attempt we were covered in bites, miserable and willing to try anything.
We drove to the pet store down the street and bought the most powerful, dreadful and let’s be honest – unhealthy bottle of flea killer we could find. Full disclosure – we bought six bottles. It was disgusting, chemical ridden and forced us to evacuate for a few hours – but good gravy was it effective! It was the life preserver we needed. Our home was flea-free but I was left puffing on my inhaler for weeks with the stench it left in our home. It ain’t easy bein’ wheezy, kids. Aromatic chemicals + asthma are a terrible combination.
Naturally, after the problem was solved, I looked for more natural solutions, which also included preventative measures to ensure my home, and sanity would be bite free. The year following “the incident” I experimented with citrus. Turns out, fleas hate it – which means I used it in everything! And it WORKED. Still, some fleas made it into the house, but nothing like the year prior. The next year, I added rosemary – and guess what? It worked, too! AMAZING. Smell’s great, works well – what more could you need? Well, we needed something. I needed something to apply directly to my pets and something to spray in the tricky areas that fleas tend to hide.
Last year, I figured out the perfect solution for me (I say for me because it may not work for you and your pet- you could hate the smell, your pet could hate it, or you could live in a super wooded area where bugs go buck-wild). I spray this solution on furniture, curtains, beds, and most importantly – MY PETS! When summer hits, I whip up a big batch of this, and spray my animals – and furniture daily. When end of summer drifts away and the weather cools down I make a stronger batch but apply it just the same – in partnership with my household deep clean!
