- Mix your own repellents
Homemade flea repellents are easy to mix and bottle, so why not give them a try?
Use them to spray your dog or cat almost all over, especially under the ‘armpits’, behind the ears and around the head, taking care to shield the eyes. When you spray at the base of the tail, avoid spraying your pet’s genitals. Here are two quick and easy recipes:
- Lemon spray Cut 2 lemons into small pieces put the pieces into a saucepan of 1 litre water and boil the pieces for 1 hour. Remove the pan from the heat and let the mixture stand overnight. Strain the lemony liquid into a spray bottle and spray your pet as directed above.
- Vinegar flea repellent Repel fleas with a solution made from 10 parts water to 1 part white vinegar. Pour it into a spray bottle and spray your pet as directed above.
- Pine scent in the doghouse
A pile of fresh pine needles, or cedar shavings, placed underneath a dog’s bed will discourage fleas from settling.
- Draw a line in the salt
Pour table salt around all the crevices of the kennel to keep fleas well away from your dog’s cosy abode.
- Cedar deterrents
Add cedar chips or cedar sawdust to the stuffing for your pet’s pillow or bedding. If your dog has a kennel, hang or nail a cedar block inside. The odour of cedar repels fleas as well as other nuisance insects, including moths.
- Scent flea collars with essential oils
Shop-bought flea collars often carry an unpleasant odour, and you may hesitate to put a chemical-laden collar so close to your pet’s skin. Fit your pet with a natural, pleasant-smelling flea collar instead. Rub a few drops of tea-tree essential oil, or lavender, eucalyptus or scented geranium, into an ordinary webbed or rope collar or a dog bandana and then refresh the oil weekly.
- Kill flea eggs with salt
This flea killer takes a little time to work its magic. Sprinkle salt on your carpets to kill flea eggs; let it sit for a day, then vacuum. Repeat the process a few days later to make sure you haven’t missed any flea eggs. Each time you vacuum the salt, tie up and discard the vacuum cleaner bag that you’ve used.