# Flea Bomb Precautions



## angelrose (Oct 16, 2011)

Hi Guys, I need to flea bomb the house and im concerned about residue and my bredli... obviously the tank will be relocated during the 6 hours the house will be in quarantine, but will it be safe to return after that?
Cheers
Angel


----------



## SteveNT (Oct 16, 2011)

Dont do it anywhere near your reptiles or any people you love.

it's a VERMEX DEATH RAY CHEMICAL CORPORATION product.

just quietly


----------



## angelrose (Oct 16, 2011)

Yep got that... thanks... im seeking advice re: after quarantine residue as above. Cheers
Angel


----------



## kitten_pheonix (Oct 16, 2011)

Just give the carpet a good vaccume and wipe down any surfaces after a few weeks the residue should not b able to harm her.. Ie you rinse plates befor you eat off them so rinse off surfaces befor she goes on them =]


----------



## Ambush (Oct 17, 2011)

Don't let the dogs under the house or concrete it. Good flea control and flea powder on your paths ect. Wipe down with vinegar and water. I have flea plague problem here sometimes when nieghbours spray. Biggest problem is dogs under the house. Last time all I did was use a good flea control on the dog. It killed the cycle.


----------



## wokka (Oct 17, 2011)

A flea bomb is a colloquial expression. You need to look at the active ingredients and download appropriate fact sheets (they might be called chemical data sheet) to assess risks.


----------



## Pythoninfinite (Oct 17, 2011)

The 'residue' is not harmful to reptiles - it is a hormone based insect growth regulator which stops the larvae from moulting into the next development phase, so in the strict sense of the word is non-toxic. The knock-down phase (first couple of hours) simply requires you to remove all animals from the residence for 2-3 hours (you can leave the enclosures in place) during which it's closed up, then air the house out for a couple of hours and you'll be fine to return your animals to their enclosures.

We have 3 dogs which are in the house a lot of the time, so, although we don't have fleas because we live remotely, it's almost an annual event for us as a preventative measure. Never had a problem...

Jamie


----------



## angelrose (Oct 17, 2011)

Thanks everyone, im still looking into my options, but fyi here is the sotroy so far.... i have nearly overdoesed my animals with everything from flea powders and collar to $70 per dose spot on treatments and comfortis pills.... nothing works, the dog goes to the par and comes home with fleas and the cycle starts again... with your average female flea laying 1000 eggs per day the cycle goes on and on... I have 3 cats, 1 dog and 1 snake and I love living with them but i cant handle the fleas and neither can they, the flea bomb i am considering is the mortein flea bomb, i can't seem to find much chemical information - only how to's and FAQ's with are fairly useless... i've been told before that having ant rid on the property can be toxic to your captive reptiles and im highly concerned that once i return sasha to the home... she will get sick. can anyone tell me if they have used this product before and what results? Do I need to keep her off the grid for a few weeks or what? I have been advised to remove the tank or glad wrap- air tight covering all over it and remove her for 6 hours, but it's the residue im worried about. Pythoninfinate are you 100% positive that it will not harm her? Have you ever had any adverse effects?
Cheers
Angel


----------



## Ambush (Oct 17, 2011)

Oh yeh.. I used no tears baby shampoo onetime. Instant death for the fleas on the animal


----------



## StimiLove (Oct 18, 2011)

i may not be an expert on snakes, but i know a lot about the flea and their life cycles. Use oral treatments on cats and dogs. Centinal is awesome. Then regular vacuumes on carpets and material chairs will controle the fleas. Fleas only live on animals. So if the animal is on centinal, and you vacuum on a regular basis, you will wipe them out in a couple of months. You dont need to drown the house in chemicals. Centinal renders the grown flea sterile. So once the treatment is in the animals blood stream - they wont be around for long


----------



## Pythoninfinite (Oct 18, 2011)

Mortein flea bombs are safe when used according to the instructions. Simple as that. The precautions you take are: remove your animals from the treatment zones. Remove their water and food containers too. Treat the rooms as per the instructions. Leave closed for the recommended time (2hrs I think), then ventilate for an hour before replacing your animals.

I have used this routine in the snake room on the 2 occasions I've encountered mites - remove the snakes and their water bowls, leave enclosures open, set bomb off... etc...etc. Do not wash the enclosures or wipe them over after treatment because you remove the residual hormone growth retardant, thus reucing the effectivness of the treatment.

AS I said, the residue is non-toxic, it's not even a poison - it simply stops arthropods going through the moult cycle and reaching adulthood by inhibiting the growth phases. It will not hurt vertebrates such as cats , dogs and snakes.

We have three house dogs which only get fleas when they contact other dogs (we live remotely), and I have snakes which have on a couple of occasions had mites. To treat fleas effectively, you need to treat the animal AND the environment in which it lives. If you have carpets, the only way you'll control fleas in the long term is by using a product like the Mortein bombs to kill all hatched fleas & larvae, and control those which hatch after treatment, which the bombs will do for 3-6 months.

I have been using these products for 20-odd years with no harmful effects ever.

Jamie


----------



## mysnakesau (Oct 18, 2011)

Would the cockroach bombs be the same? I haven't compared the ingredients between the flea and cocky ones. I presume the Mortein Roach Bomb would be the same as the flea bombs. We have always had issues with cockroaches and I would like to think something like this can work without killing my animals like that potent crap - I can't even remember the name of it.

My family won't let me have lizzies running loose for cocky-control.


----------



## wokka (Oct 18, 2011)

Roach bombs, flea bombs, atom bombs all have different components which have different effects. It can be dangerous assuming that all bombs are the same. The important thing is the active ingredients which should be printed on the can. Whilst i agree that insect bombs aimed at controling insects with exoskeletons may have chiton inhibitors as the main ingredient which will generally not harm snakes, different brands and recipes may have additional chemicals which can harm reptiles. Recipes change over time so what was safe 20 years ago may not be safe today. Read the label and then spend a few minutes on the net.


----------



## KingSirloin (Oct 18, 2011)

Use Comfortis instead. No need for flea bombs at all. Frontline, advantix and flea bombs etc... do little or nothing at all in my experience. Comfortis killed all fleas in a matter of hours, and I havn't seen another one in over 12 months now.


----------



## angelrose (Oct 20, 2011)

Thanks Jamie that puts my mind at ease. 

I have been using Comfortis KingSirloin and its great for the dog, but not recommended for the cats and i need an all round solution.

I have tried it all... i live in units and i think one of the neighbours must spray and they all left and moved in here so now i have to bomb... I feel better after ready about your experience Jamie
Thanks everyone


----------



## mje772003 (Oct 20, 2011)

KingSirloin said:


> Use Comfortis instead. No need for flea bombs at all. Frontline, advantix and flea bombs etc... do little or nothing at all in my experience. Comfortis killed all fleas in a matter of hours, and I havn't seen another one in over 12 months now.



Hi King could you tell us where you get comfortis etc how is it applied and what is in it? please


----------



## Ambush (Oct 21, 2011)

You have to mix your control around. I used to use the same product each time and it seemed they would stop working.
Jinxed. Just walked out into my garage and got attacked. Somebody must of sprayed over the back.


----------



## KingSirloin (Oct 21, 2011)

mje772003 said:


> Hi King could you tell us where you get comfortis etc how is it applied and what is in it? please



It's available at most vets and pet shops, but I got mine online from petsgard.com.au. It's a chewable tablet that's taken once every month. I've fed him every 1 1/2 - 2 months without sight of a flea. My dog is very fussy, and won't eat them, so I just break it into smaller pieces and hide it in his food. Active constituant is spinosad.

It is available for cats, but I don't have cats so I can't advise on them.

Cheers


----------



## angelrose (Oct 21, 2011)

angelrose said:


> Thanks Jamie that puts my mind at ease.
> 
> I have been using Comfortis KingSirloin and its great for the dog, but not recommended for the cats and i need an all round solution.
> 
> ...





> The duration of treatment is also decided by the vet. _Comfortis_ is formulated specifically for use in dogs. Pet owners should avoid using products labeled for dogs on cats as the dosage varies and cats may suffer from toxicity.


-Vetinfo.com

Where can i get comfortis for CATS?

​


----------



## angelrose (Dec 20, 2011)

OK Update:
flea bombed the house and used half a comfortis for dogs on the dog and each of the three cats, I haven't seen a flea for over a month, very happy with the outcome, im going to continue with the comfortis treatments monthly. Thanks for all your advice. 

I took my bredli out of her viv and left it open so any fleas hiding in there would have also been killed and put her back in after 6 hours as adviced by the vet, she was not affected.


----------



## Schnecke (Dec 21, 2011)

As was mentioned above - be very careful using dog products on cats - it can be lethal (have had several cases locally and a vet warning issued)

Glad you've been able to improve the situation. I have been very lucky to only ever had to deal with fleas on a new pet and a flea bath has always fixed that. I have bought some flea and roach bombs but haven't been game to use them here (to control the white tail spiders in the area) but this thread has given me the confidence and know-how to give it a go over the holiday period!

Thanks


----------

