Pest and Diseases

15 Early Signs of Fleas In Your House

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Fleas are the uninvited and irritating guests in your house who need to be forced out before you allow them to feed on your blood. It would be best to make them stay away from your house as far as possible.

In this guide, considering the importance of early detection of fleas, we have come up with 15 different signs of fleas in your house that are certain to help you take effective actions against them.

1. Scratching

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In fact, when fleas bite your pets, the pets are found to suffer from intense itching of their skin, largely due to allergic reactions. Therefore, if you notice that your pets have been scratching continuously these days, this might be a signal that your home is getting infested by fleas.

This way, if you’ve pets around your house, they could give the obvious projection of the flea infestation which is revealed from their demeanor.



2. Bite Marks

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The skin around the legs and ankles is the primary vulnerable area to flea infestation. If you want to know how to tell if you have fleas in your house, you might as well check for red patches or spots around your body parts.

If you happen to notice bite marks in the form of small, red groups, there’s a high potential it has resulted from the flea infestation.

3. Flea Dirt

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If you doubt the flea infestation on your pets, to be more sure, you can check their body parts like neck and tail, where the fleas are often found to gather. Make sure to gently inspect the body of your furry pets and look for flea droppings or excretes.

Fleas come from pets, so if you see tiny black specks around the body of your pet, you should know that your pet is under the attack of fleas. The flea dirts are often found around the base of the fur.

4. Hair Loss

Apart from the irritating scratching, flea bites can result in significant hair loss in the affected areas of your pets. Yes, to add more to the discomfort caused by the flea bites, your pet may experience sudden patches or baldness without any reason on the bitten areas.

More particularly, you may find significant hair loss around the areas like the neck, tail, and legs, where the fleas often like to infest and gather. The constant scratching and irritation around the affected areas can cause your pets to create bald spots.

5. Inflamed Red Skin

Both you and your pets can be the victim of fleas in your house. But your pets having furry hair are more prone. Once your pet gets flea infestation, if you do not take extra care protecting yourself, you might be the next target of the fleas.

If you notice inflamed red bumps on the skin of your pets, perhaps around the neck, belly, and groin, it might have resulted from flea bites. And if you get bitten, you will notice red, itchy inflamed bite marks, more commonly around the legs, ankles, and knees.

6. Unusual Behavior of the Pets

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The discomfort resulting from the flea infestation can cause your pets to behave peculiarly. The irritating effect of itchiness and scratching often brings anxiousness to your pets.

They are found to brush off themselves with constant scratching in an attempt to get rid of the fleas off their body. If your pet's behavior changes suddenly without any known reason, you might suspect the fleas as the culprit.

7. Restlessness and Agitation

If you happen to notice your pet’s outward behavior some sort random or unpredictable, giving a hint of restlessness or agitation, flea infestation might be the major cause. Yes, you might see your dogs or cats agitated more than usual.

Whether on their demeanor or vocal, if you happen to notice any sort of unfamiliar or unusual element, you should not ignore it. Your pets might need help from you to get rid of the flea infestation.

8. Fleas in Your Bedding

Your bed with warm blankets, mattresses, and sheets is the ideal location for the fleas to hide out and suck your blood at night. You will notice black specks at the edges or under the mattresses.

Further, if you have the habit of allowing your pets to sleep with you in your bed, fleas are more likely to get transferred into your bedroom. Make sure to give proper care and medication to your pets before cuddling with him/her.

9. Stains of the Furniture

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The chairs and sofas indoors are where fleas like to hide out in your house. If you doubt the flea infestation in your house, you should look for your furniture to reveal the actual scenario.

Yes, if your furniture has dark stains on it, which mightn’t be visible at one glance, you have to give a thorough inspection of every side and portion, there’s a high potential that fleas have widened their territory in search of the blood.

10. Fleas Jumping Around

Although fleas are very tiny, you still might be able to locate them on good days. If you notice tiny insects jumping around your house, more commonly near the area of furniture, carpet, and your shoes and socks areas, they might be fleas hanging around.

The tiny fleas are not somebody that can be located and detected pretty easily, but if you catch them, you should know that their hiding spots are nearby. You have to inspect everything that lies around the area where you have seen those tiny fleas.

11. Pale Gums

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Another vital sign of flea infestation on your pets is their gums. Yes, if fleas are the culprit of the scratching, hair loss, agitation, and all the unusual behavior of your pets, they might be diagnosed with anemia.

Fleas feeding on the blood of your pets may cause anemia, which further is found to induce pale or white gums. If you notice your pet’s gums look pale, whitish, or any coloration with irregularities, it needs serious attention as soon as possible.

12. Flea Bite Dermatitis

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Flea bite dermatitis is an allergic skin reaction that takes place because of a flea bite. The saliva of those fleas, which is introduced into the blood veins during their bite, is actually responsible for all the itching and scratching and allergic reactions.

If you tend to neglect its infestation on your pets and your self, fleabite dermatitis can evolve into an evil infection. It would be better if you seek medical assistance should you suspect a flea infestation in your house.

13. Unpleasant Odor

Well, the unwelcoming foul smell around your house might have resulted from the flea infestation. More particularly, the smell might get generated from the areas where fleas feed on their victim, usually at night.

The flea dirt and the odor of fleas in your house, bedroom, or where your pets sleep, is where the irritating and foul smell might have been coming from.

14. Visible Fleas

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You should know that fleas like to hide out in the soft surfaces like rugs and curtains and they often lay their eggs on the pet bedding, carpets, and such soft areas. This way, you must have been wondering, there are a lot of elements that can be perfectly fine spots for the fleas to hide and grow.

The eggs of the fleas are difficult to observe with the naked eye, but their tiny and white structure can quickly accumulate at the preferred spot if you allow them to flourish. Therefore, through simple visualization and inspection around your house, you can find out the early flea infestation.

15. Flea Larvae in Cracks and Crevices

We are pretty sure, your house has several small cracks and crevices around the walls or floors. The dark, small, and isolated spots as such are the best places for the larvae of the fleas to hide out.

Through the naked eye, they are hard to get sight of, but if present in larger numbers, they give you a hint of their presence. Every possible crack and crevice around your house has the potential for the fleas to offer a hideout and safety spot.

How to Discover Fleas in Your House?

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Begin with Your Pets

Your pets, especially if they are furry ones, are more vulnerable to flea infestation. This is because fleas like to suck on the blood while also getting warmth and a soft spot to hide out.

Start by gently combing your pet's hair or fur thoroughly to check for any fleas signs, do not miss the parts around the neck, ears, legs, and the tail. Make sure to observe for every possible sign including, flea dirt or droppings coming from your pet’s body.

What Color are Fleas?

You should know you are looking for small, dark-brown colored adult fleas, most of which are about the size of a sesame seed. Thus, reciprocating to your question can you see fleas, the straightforward answer is that it is difficult to locate and observe them with your naked eyes.

Look for Fleas in Your Home

After giving a thorough inspection of your pets for fleas, you then have to watch out for them around your house. Yes, they could be hiding in your house in a wide variety of spots such as carpets, rugs, furniture, and cracks and crevices.

It has been found that fleas often jump onto the legs of people if they happen to roam wearing socks around the place where their pets are mostly found. You might find out some of them in your socks if they are highly active on the floor.

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Check Bedding and Furniture

Your bed where you sleep at night, or your pet’s bed is the primary area for flea infestation. For the signs of fleas in bed, you have to check every corner and edge of the mattresses. Both dirt and eggs might be found on the bed sheet and mattresses resembling black-colored specks with an awful odor.

Further, look out for the furniture and their cracks as well. Make sure to check under the cushions of your sofa and chairs for any tiny jumping creatures or flea-digested droppings.

Perform Test

How to Make a Flea Trap?

  • Pick a bowl or shallow container and fill it with water and dish soap.
  • Place the bowl on the surface where the fleas are most likely to appear such as, on carpets and rugs, near pet bedding, near windows, doors, and food, around pillows and furniture, around pet bowls, and near drapes and curtains.
  • Make sure to keep the trap the whole night and check for it in the morning.
  • Continue placing the trap at different locations each night until you find a significant number of fleas on it.
  • Dispose of the trapped fleas in the appropriate garage bin.

What to Do After a Flea Infestation?

Treat your Pets

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Once you detect the flea infestation on your furry pet, you have to take him/her to a respected veterinarian for a possible and effective remedy as soon as possible. Your pets might need to take suggested medications.

Make sure to follow the doctor's suggestions and treatment to effectively mitigate the problems created by the fleas on your pets.

Clean your Home Thoroughly

Cleanliness and hygienic habits are one of the home remedies for fleas that can keep you safe from almost every pest or bug infestation. If you ensure clean surroundings, carpets, floors, and walls, fleas can never survive in your house.

Keep the bedding neat and clean, and make sure to use hot water while washing the infected sheets and mattresses. This applies both to your pets and your bedding.

Use Flea Sprays and Powders

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If necessary you can use flea sprays and powders but under effective guidance and support to treat the fleas around your house. There are varieties of sprays and powders available in the market that can eradicate all the phases of fleas including, eggs, larvae, and adults.

The chemical constituent of such powders and sprays can kill the fleas instantly but you have to make sure you've taken the necessary precautions and followed the safety protocols, or else you might put the health of your pets and your family members at risk.

Use Flea Prevention Products

Once infested, it is quite hard for you to eradicate fleas from your pet or your house but it can be achieved through consistency and applying the right measures. Seek help from an experienced vet doctor to use effective flea-preventive products.

People prefer taking effective homemade strategies against fleas in their house to cope with the small infestation but on a larger scale, you can go for flea preventive products available in the market. Choose your product wisely seeking professional assistance!

Regularly Clean Your Pets and their Beds

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Your pets are prone to harbor fleas and hence, can transfer them into your house. You have to give more attention and care regarding their cleanliness and hygiene by bathing and combing them regularly. Make sure to use effective shampoos and soft comb to brush their fur.

When to Seek a Professional?

Early detection of fleas is the best way to cope with the fatal situation that may come in the later days if fleas flourish. That’s why, you have to keep a sharp and keen eye around your property and house for any signs of flea infestation.

If you are unable to be sure that your house is free from fleas, or finding it hard to take the early infestation signals, it would be best for you to take the help of the professionals who are into pest control services. If this is the first time, you might as well learn a lot from them.