If you
have lived in Arkansas for one full set of seasons, you have probably realized
that you are; 1) living in a semi-tropical Gulf climate with ten months or
more of warm weather 2) coexisting with insects who also find this weather
very pleasant for reproduction 3) understanding that your friends (dogs and
cats), and you under certain conditions, are very attractive as snacks for
many varieties of insects here. So with that in mind I am going to give you
my personal home routine for coexisting with the various biting hordes of
insects in Arkansas. I have lived for the past fifteen years in both North
East and South Central Arkansas, in both Delta and Mountain locations. This
information works in both areas.
I put
Frontline on both my dog and cat friends every month of the year. My dog goes
in and out and can bring ticks in, so I don’t use Advantage, because it only
gets fleas. The months of November through the end of January are not tick
months here although you may see an occasional one. So I consider those three
months by the label on the Frontline as a time to save a little money or I use
Advantage . During the warm months I spread (broadcast) flea and tick granules
in the areas most used by my outside pets every two weeks. I use only
Dichlorvos as Diazanon doesn’t seem to be as effective in my experience in my
locations . These granules come from the same manufacturer under many labels
so the cheapest is as good as the most expensive. I do not cover the entire
yard. I “band” the yard for three feet in from the fence around the entire
yard and along the foundation of the house . I always treat all the way
around the foundation of my house for about three feet out from the foundation
to keep the ants and other critters from entering the house. I also spread
some of the granules in front of the doorways to the house to discourage the
fleas from jumping into the house when the doors are opened. I treat the
inside of the house with a residual spray containing Permethrin or
Tetramethrin around the baseboards in each room and the kitchen once a month .
Catches the mother fleas before they produce any baby fleas. The permethrin
type of sprays are the best we have at this point, in my opinion. Remember
that these treatments kill all insects that come in contact with them.
If your
house becomes infested and you want to do it yourself, the packs of household
foggers work well if you do the following:
1) open
all of the doors in your house to every closet, room and cabinet.
2) Tilt
the couch pillows down and pull back or strip your bedspreads.
3) Set
the foggers on chairs in open areas, such as a hallway, so that the fog will
reach into all of the rooms.
4)
Remember that fleas don’t obey your house rules about which rooms they will
enter. So treat them all.
5) turn
up your thermostat or turn off your air conditioner so that it will not come
on during the fogging period and pull all of the fog out of your house.
6)
Change vacuum bags monthly to prevent flea larva that you vacuum from
hatching. This is not as frequent as their hatching period but will do if you
fog , treat your house, and use Frontline on your friends.
Some
friendly hints: Flea dips only last three days at full strength in Arkansas on
the dog or cat no matter who says what about that. Flea sprays only last three
days maximum, in my experience . Flea collars are for a high rise apartment in
Chicago! Yeast is for baking bread!
Remember
that we spend all of our lives seeking friends, spouses, family for
unconditional love, when they have been sitting on our laps or at our feet all
the time! Give your pets a hug for me!
DR. BOB
Do It Yourself Biting Insect
Control, Inside and Out
