Fleas are annoying, and while many people associate them with being a pest that only infests pets, fleas can also be bothersome for humans. “Can fleas infest a mattress?” is a common question we get asked by pet owners, when they start being bitten by something in bed. When fleas get in a mattress, they can be a big problem. Let’s take a look at how you can tell if you have fleas in your mattress or whether you have a different pest entirely, and how to treat the problem.
Detecting Fleas in Mattress Fabric
Dealing with the situation promptly when you have fleas in bed with you is very important. It is crucial to ensure you have a healthy mattress to sleep on. Fleas often get mistaken for bed bugs, and vice versa. You will need to know whether or not to target fleas with your chosen mattress treatment for pests.
While you might not allow your pet on your bed when you sleep, chances are you aren’t keeping them off 24/7. Pet owners who have had recent flea activity should definitely check their mattresses for fleas.
Fleas in mattress fabric look similar to bed bugs but are smaller on average, only growing up to 3.3 millimeters. Fleas have an oval shape and are longer than bed bugs.
What you will find is that both fleas and bed bugs are less interested in the actual mattress and more interested in the people on it. However, fleas will hop around any time, while and bed bugs will be more active at night than during the day.
Capturing a flea will allow you to have a better chance of identifying it. To catch one, take some clear tape and press it to the mattress where you see a flea. The flea will be stuck to the tape and you can use it to identify and prevent your pest problem.
Dangers of Fleas For Humans
On humans, flea bites are very similar to mosquito bites but will appear in a grouping. There is no pattern to the bites and the centre will be darker than the rest. The middle of the bite becomes darker because that is where the flea has attached itself to suck your blood.
For the most part, the dangers of flea bites on humans are low. The two most likely side effects of a flea bite are infection or tapeworms. The infection comes from the bite wound either being dirty or being reopened. As for the tapeworms, some fleas are known to carry these parasites.
There are a few types of fleas that are capable of carrying disease. Both the oriental rat flea and the cat flea have been known to carry diseases.
Some of the diseases spread by fleas are more serious in other parts of the world. No matter what kind of flea problem you have, a mattress treatment for pests is needed. You need to get rid of these insects to protect both yourself and your pets if you have fleas in mattress.
Treating Fleas In The Bed
Now we are going to address how to treat fleas in the bed. Getting rid of fleas from a mattress takes multiple steps to eliminate them fully.
Firstly, make sure to clean all the linen on the bed, including any pillowcases which don’t have direct contact with the mattress. The hot cycle should be used on the washer when washing them. When you combine the hot cycle on the washer with the dryer, it will kill off the fleas.
Thoroughly vacuum the whole bedroom, as you don’t want to give a single flea the chance to escape. One flea can lay up to 300 eggs in a weak. This includes vacuuming the mattress off to remove any fleas that can be easily sucked away.
A professional flea fumigation treatment or similar flea removal treatment can be useful in treating a flea infested house. When this is carried out, chemicals are used to kill the fleas in mattress completely. These chemicals will dissipate after a few hours, but during the treatment period you will need to be outside of the room, and potentially leave the house for a while. Using an expert for chemical treatment is always wise because we know how to maximize the effectiveness and how to deploy the chemicals properly.
Treating Your Pets
Don’t forget to treat any of your pets for fleas. Without getting rid of fleas on your pets, you could start the problem over again.
Now you know how to treat fleas in the house as well as fleas in the bed, you can rest easy once again. Treatment for fleas is not a long process and the whole procedure can be done within a couple of days in most cases. It is a vital process though. You want to keep both yourself and your pets healthy, and removing fleas is essential to that goal.
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