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BlueRidge
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How do I make good fleas in the yard?
06/18/05 07:10 AM
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The only good flea is a dead flea. In a couple of weeks we'll be moving into our new country place.  The former owner had 4 or 5 dogs, which were kept in two compounds. One was fairly small - about 10 x 15 feet or so, the other was a large fenced area, perhaps 40 feet in diameter. We plan to demolish the smaller compound. The fenced area is going to be a play yard for our little ones.
Since it's almost certain that there are fleas in the ground in both places, how do I go about killing them, and their eggs? I want something that will not leave toxins behind.
Any suggestions?
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egon
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Re: How do I make good fleas in the yard?
[re: BlueRidge]
06/18/05 09:07 AM
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Heat - using a tiger torch.
Egon
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Bird
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Re: How do I make good fleas in the yard?
[re: BlueRidge]
06/18/05 09:19 AM
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Only one time have we had a dog that got fleas and, on the advice of a veterinarian, I dipped the dog (up to its ears) in a big bucket of "flowable" or liquid Sevin - diluted of course as the instructions on the bottle called for. I then sprayed that yard with that same mixture. One treatment was all that was required in our case.
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Fred
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Re: How do I make good fleas in the yard?
[re: BlueRidge]
06/18/05 09:52 AM
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You could treat your dogs with a flea killer/repellent and they make insecticides that are in a bottle that can be attached to a garden hose to spray the areas.
Now if you can only keep other animals out of your yard that may carry fleas... 
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BlueRidge
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Re: How do I make good fleas in the yard?
[re: Bird]
06/18/05 07:36 PM
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Bird, any idea of the persistence of Sevin in the soil? I expect to have two little children playing in that yard, and I don't want them getting a dose of poison.
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BlueRidge
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Re: How do I make good fleas in the yard?
[re: Fred]
06/18/05 07:38 PM
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Yeah, Fred, I know I'll eventuarlly get the fleas back. I just figure that after years of housing dogs in those two confined areas, the ground has got to be SATURATED with fleas. I want to break the back of the current (assumed) infestation. Then I'll deal with whatever comes along.
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BlueRidge
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Re: How do I make good fleas in the yard?
[re: Bird]
06/18/05 07:46 PM
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Hmmm...
This doesn't look very good for Sevin. OTOH, I don't know if this is a reliable source - they look more like an extremist group. Some people don't seem to understand that toxicity is dose related. For some substances, a little is very good, while a lot - or even a medium amount - is very bad.
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Fred
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Re: How do I make good fleas in the yard?
[re: BlueRidge]
06/19/05 07:16 AM
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Do you get a good freeze in your area of VA? Nothing like a good frost in the ground to do in last season's fleas.
To see if the area is infested, put on a pair of white socks and walk around. Fleas are attracted to white socks and it's a good way to see if you have them in the house, too.
Personally, I think that once the hosts were gone, the fleas probably moved on to look for other food sources. There would be nothing keeping them there.
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Bird
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Re: How do I make good fleas in the yard?
[re: BlueRidge]
06/19/05 08:34 AM
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Sorry, Mark, but I don't know about the persistence of Sevin the soil, but I don't think it's a concern. The link you provided is interesting, but it does say something about being for the pure active ingredient, and of course, Sevin is used on fruits and vegetables. I've always been inclined to think it's one of the safest insecticides to use, but I'm certainly no expert and have no technical knowledge.
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BlueRidge
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Re: How do I make good fleas in the yard?
[re: Fred]
06/19/05 08:54 AM
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Very interesting tip, Fred! I'll try the white sock technique. However, the gap between the hosts moving on and us moving in will be measured in days, and only a few of those. Far less than the lifespan of a flea egg! So, I think I need to spray or something.
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BlueRidge
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Re: How do I make good fleas in the yard?
[re: Bird]
06/19/05 09:28 AM
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In reply to:
Sorry, Mark, but I don't know about the persistence of Sevin the soil, but I don't think it's a concern. The link you provided is interesting, but it does say something about being for the pure active ingredient,
Yes, to make it seem much worse than it really is, methinks. Toxicologists have a saying, "The toxin is in the dose." Even arsenic is beneficial in the right dosage - it used to be the preferred cure for African Sleeping Sickness.
In reply to:
and of course, Sevin is used on fruits and vegetables. I've always been inclined to think it's one of the safest insecticides to use, but I'm certainly no expert and have no technical knowledge.
I think I"ll email a chemist friend of mine and see if he knows anything about it. His family's business is manufacturing a fumigant (used on strawberries) and he's had to do some exhaustive testing to see what the fumigant leaves behind when it breaks down in the soil. The EPA was pretty much on a witch hunt against them during the Clinton years - trying to shut them down. But they came up clean, time after time. Anyway, he had to do a lot of researh into the area of soil persistance, so he may have some info on Sevin.
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