What happens when an animal loving vegan’s cats (and home) get flea infested? Barefoot Tiger‘s Kendra Coppey shares her story of how she scratched the flea itch.
I never thought a day would come when I would be so excited about bug spray that I wanted to shout “I love this stuff!” from the rooftops. I mean really, bug spray?? Come on. But oh YES, let me just tell you. In order to tell you this story, I have to admit that we (being the animal-loving family that we are)….recently had fleas. UGH. It is not fun and would not wish it on anyone. Fleas are the epitome of a ‘pest’ – they are so hard to get rid of (or so I thought) and can make a sane person go loco with paranoia. I was almost considering hiring in someone like the Economy Exterminators to help me out! Anyway, this is not something that I love sharing with the world, but finding a natural solution to a very big problem and saving our animal’s health is worth a little humiliation in my book.
Our precious kitty darlings suffered through many itchy days of my search for the perfect ‘natural’ product. We gave them baths with a natural shampoo (you can imagine that scene) and their itching stopped – but that’s just the beginning of the problem. You see, the fleas you can see are only 5% of the problem…many more lay in waiting to jump out onto our little ones. So I tried everything to clear the house – mixing peppermint oil in water and spraying it all over the house, vacuuming every surface of our apartment like a maniac every other day, trying cedar oil mixed with oil and rubbing them with it (but not too much!). I tried everything short of doing a ‘flea-shoo’ rain dance but they kept coming back.
At one point I was so fed up I went to the pet store to see what solutions they had. What I found was pretty scary – products with warnings all over them that they are toxic to humans and animals, poison control warnings and scary directions (i.e directions on carpet powder that advises 15 minutes of water rinsing if the powder comes into contact with skin…yikes), and many reviews of flea and tick ‘drops’ that painted pictures of pets in distress and ill health because of these products. So why on earth would we want to put any of this stuff near them or on their skin?? It kills the fleas but imagine what it’s doing to our animals. Unfortunately I was so desperate that I admit I bought one can of powder. The smell was so repulsive we had to throw open all the windows to air the place out and keep the cats in a separate room for a while. Never again.
According to leading entomologists, fleas, ticks & bed bugs in North America have grown immune to chemical pesticide treatments promoted by local and national exterminators. In addition, a growing number of university and independent researchers publicly warn against use of Pyrethroid based products for consumer use. Toxic chemical usage in our house is very, very dangerous. Mosquito misting systems are endangering the health of millions. Dr. Ben, a veterinarian for 60 years (!!), agricultural radio host, & senior entomologist says; “We are paying a heavy price for the continued use of carcinogenic (cancer causing), and estrogen mirroring substances that have been linked to breast cancer and autism…and are the same toxins that have led to our diminishing honey bee population.”
I searched everywhere for an answer and finally stumbled upon (imagine me shouting this from the rooftop): WONDERCIDE!! The list of non-beneficial bugs and insects their products repel is jaw-dropping, all while using a simple Cedar oil solution that is completely safe for our families and animals. I read their website from start to finish and checked out any and all reviews I could find all over the web, thinking all of this was too good to be true. I mean this line on their site alone; “It has no toxic effect on the environment, humans or domestic animals. In fact, it is completely safe for newborns and nursing mothers.” made me want to do a hula dance. I was so impressed with what they promised, I just had to try it out.
I ordered an “In and Out” starter kit and two days later, it was in my hands. I tried it out on a few fleas that I found on the cats, putting a tiny bit of solution in a plastic container and dropping the fleas into it. Within seconds they were dead and I immediately went nuts spraying this stuff everywhere. Our apartment smelled like the inside of Aunt Mable’s cedar dresser for a few days but knowing that our home was on the way to being pest-free was worth every second. A few weeks later, we are bug-free and I couldn’t be happier.
Our cats love us for finding Wondercide and I can’t say enough great things about this stuff. What’s more, in a city where bed-bug infestations seem to pop up every few months and roaches abound, it seems like a no-brainer that we should all be using this stuff. As they say on their website, “We know that Wondercide Products CAN SAVE LIVES of HUMANS, ANIMALS, and the ENVIRONMENT.” I certainly agree with that.
Kendra Coppey is the Founder of Barefoot Tiger, an in-home personal training, yoga, nutrition and massage therapy company in New York and New Jersey. She is a certified yoga teacher, personal trainer and nutrition coach, and is infatuated with all things sweet…including her three rescued kitties Emma , Dusty, and Sabrina!
EDITORS NOTE: As animal lovers, we certainly don’t rejoice in killing any creatures, even microscopic bugs. How do you feel about killing or dealing with fleas on your domestic pets or in your homes? Do you have other tips or tricks you’ve tried that have worked for you? Please share in the comments section below.