Flea Yard Control

Yard flea control is an essential part of controlling flea infestation outside the home. No matter how diligent you are about controlling fleas inside the home, if your cat goes outside, he could pick up fleas in an uncontrolled yard and bring them inside, making indoor flea control difficult if not impossible.

Controlling Fleas by Understanding Their Life Cycle

Simply killing adult fleas isn't enough to control flea infestation; flea larvae hatch from eggs and then mature into adults. In order to control flea infestation, you'll need to kill flea eggs and larvae as well as adult fleas. You should be aware that flea control is often an ongoing process; fleas can reappear if you aren't diligent in your control methods.

Preparing Your Lawn for Flea Control Treatment

Many cat owners choose to treat their lawns chemically in order to control fleas. Before you consider using a chemical treatment, prepare your lawn to minimize flea hiding places and ensure that chemical treatment has the maximum effect.

The first step in lawn preparation is mowing your lawn. Mowing your lawn regularly can have enormous flea control benefits, as it allows sunlight to penetrate the soil, where flea eggs and larvae live. When sunlight penetrates the flea egg or larval cocoon, it can be harmful or even deadly for them.

Remove any weeds from your lawn, especially those growing around fence lines and in sidewalk cracks. Remove weeds from around play equipment and furnishings.

Take steps to keep unwanted animals out of your lawn. Fill gaps in your fencing and cover trash cans that might tempt wild animals and strays. Stray cats, dogs and even wild animals can bring more fleas into your yard. Because keeping unwanted animals entirely out of your lawn at all times is most likely impossible, you'll need to repeat flea control treatments regularly to prevent re-infestation.

Remove any debris from your yard. Trash and brush piles are great hiding places for fleas. You'll also want to clean up any overgrown flower beds in your yard, as fleas can hide there as well.

Flea Control through Chemical Treatment

Chemical treatments can be a very effective part of yard flea control. Pet stores and home improvement stores carry chemical flea treatments. Granule treatments are easy to use and ensure complete ground coverage. After spreading the granules, water your lawn to activate them and allow them to seep into the soil.

Liquid flea treatments are usually concentrated and need to be diluted with water. You can distribute these treatments with the help of a chemical sprayer. They are useful for treating trees, bushes and porches or stoops where your cat may spend a majority of his time outside. Follow instructions carefully when using any chemical flea treatment.

Your yard flea control strategy will vary depending on the size of your yard, your location, and the amount of traffic you receive from unwanted animals. You may need to combine treatments and treat your lawn several times before you see a significant reduction in fleas.

 

 

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