Synthetic insecticides don’t belong on the four-legged members of your family any more than they belong on your own skin. A word of caution, though: these recipes were developed for dogs and cats. I do not have experience using these recipes on any other animals, including livestock, pet rodents, or birds, so if you would like to try these or any other herb- and essential oil–based formulations on animals other than dogs or cats, please seek the advice of an herbalist and/or aromatherapist with expertise in this area, or seek out a holistic veterinarian.
To gain some perspective on controlling these pet pests, let’s first consider their life cycles — once you understand them, you can take preventive measures. Unless you have an effective, natural flea- and tick-control plan in place, which is crucial to breaking the life cycles of these parasites, ridding your pet and home of them will be next to impossible.
Fleas are much more than a nuisance that make pets itch and scratch. They need a warm-blooded host to provide blood as a food source and warmth for reproduction to take place. In addition to Fluffy and Fido, their “bed and breakfast” list includes wildlife, livestock, and even humans (gross!). These parasites can spread bacterial infections, induce allergic flea-bite dermatitis and sneezing, pass along tapeworms, and even cause anemia if the animal is heavily infested.
If you find even one or two fleas on your pet, an invasion is imminent, especially if it’s warm and humid, conditions that they love. Here’s what the life cycle of a flea looks like in your home: Adult fleas find a host — in this case your pet — feast on blood, and mate. Within a few days, the female lays tiny white eggs, which, being completely smooth, slide off your pet and sink into carpet fibers, floor cracks, pet bedding, and fabric furniture surfaces, among other areas. A flea can lay from 20 to 50 eggs at a time, for a total of about 500 to 800 during her lifetime, which averages 2 to 3 months.
The eggs hatch in a few days to 2 weeks, and the emerging larvae feed for 7 to 10 days on debris and organic matter before creating a hard-shelled cocoon and morphing into pupae. Depending on environmental conditions, the pupae develop into adult fleas anywhere from a week to a year later. The adults find a host and the cycle repeats itself — over and over and over.
A flea can lay eggs only after a blood meal. If she emerges from her cocoon and isn’t able to find food, she’ll die in a matter of days without reproducing. Outdoors, the cycle takes place in the soil, where adults can easily leap onto a passing host. A flea can jump about 13 inches horizontally or 7 inches vertically. In human terms, that equals about 450 or 250 feet — amazing!
Fleas feed on blood, but when they detect garlic in their food source, they will often seek another host. Depending on your dog’s size, add one or two capsules of garlic extract or a few drops of garlic oil to his food a few days per week during spring, summer, and fall. Or add very small amounts of finely minced fresh garlic to their food: 1⁄16 to 1⁄8 teaspoon for an animal under 20 pounds and up to two cloves for a very large dog (say, over 100 pounds).
Note: Garlic and other members of the Allium family can cause health problems for animals if eaten in large amounts, so don’t overdo it. If your dog has digestive problems, garlic may irritate its stomach and intestines. Cats are far more sensitive to the constituents in garlic, not to mention much pickier eaters in general. Mine have always turned up their noses at it, maybe because they know it might upset their stomachs. You can also seek advice from a holistic veterinarian.
Ticks are actually arachnids, a class of arthropods that includes scorpions, spiders, and mites. They are divided into two groups — soft bodied and hard bodied — both of which are capable of spreading disease. Ticks of every species are most active in the summer months when they’re at their sexual peak. They can be found lurking in lush woods, tall grassy areas (neglected lawns and fields), and the brushy edges of your property, waiting to crawl onto any warm-blooded host who comes in close proximity.
Ticks latch on to a host, take a blood meal, then drop off and repeat the cycle until they reach adult size. This method of feeding makes them the perfect vector for transmitting disease. They lay hundreds, if not thousands, of eggs in a safe hiding place, which can include your home — horrors! The deer tick, which carries Lyme disease, takes about two years to hatch, go through its three growth stages (larva, nymph, adult) using different hosts, reproduce, and die. Other ticks go from egg to reproductive maturity in a matter of weeks.
Ticks spread several pathogens, including Rocky Mountain spotted fever, babesiosis, anaplasmosis, and Lyme disease (which tends to infect dogs much more frequently than humans and cats). Pets that live outside or often venture outdoors and are not subjected to regular grooming may attract ticks in numbers that can seriously devitalize their well-being, especially if they’re small or young, leading to severe dermatitis and potentially serious anemia.
Use the flea- and tick-repellent powders, sprays, and collars in this chapter, and apply the Insect-Control Powders from chapter 6 to your hard floors, carpeting, fabric furniture, and decorative pillows, to kill fleas and ticks, including larvae. To help prevent infestations and discourage egg development, incorporate the following steps into your daily pet care and housecleaning chores, especially during peak parasite season.
Comb your pets daily. Even if they only venture outdoors for a few minutes, it takes just a split second for a flea or tick to hitch a ride. Adult fleas can live for many weeks, and combing removes them and any eggs. Use a special flea comb, available at pet supply stores and veterinarians’ offices.
Run the comb right down to the skin, and after every two or three strokes (or as needed), remove the buildup — you’ll see fur, obviously, and possibly a few (or many more) tiny brown adult fleas, plus flakes of dead skin, and teensy specks of black, dried blood (that’s flea feces — yuck!). Place the debris into a jar half full of hot, soapy water. When finished, put the lid on the jar, give it a shake, and pour it down the toilet. Wash the flea comb in hot, soapy water, or douse it with rubbing alcohol or vodka and allow to dry.
Shampoo both dogs and cats. Use a flea- and tick-repelling shampoo once or twice a month to kill adult and hatchling fleas and remove any eggs. If your pet is miserably infested, shampoo once a week as an immediate comfort solution while you use other natural remedies to control the infestation in your home. See recipes.
Make herbal bedding sachets. Place them in all the areas where your pets sleep. Your pet will smell fresh, but the fleas and ticks will not hang around. See recipes.
Change pet bedding frequently. At least once a week, wash blankets, zip-off bed covers, and pillow covers (and small fabric toys, if possible) in hot, soapy water. Add a few drops of geranium, rosemary, lavender, lemongrass, citronella, cedarwood, or peppermint essential oil to the wash cycle to impregnate the laundry with bug-repelling aromas.
Vacuum often. This includes not just wood floors and carpeting, but everywhere your pet sleeps or hangs out, such as sofas and chairs (don’t forget under the cushions), tops of appliances, laundry baskets, rugs, closets, and so on. Add either 1 tablespoon of pure borax powder or five to ten cotton balls laced with several drops of peppermint, rosemary, eucalyptus, lemongrass, cedarwood, or geranium essential oil directly into the vacuum bag or canister prior to vacuuming. This usually kills ticks and fleas, but to be safe, dispose of vacuum bags and canister debris by sealing them tightly in a plastic bag before tossing.
Mop hard-surface floors weekly with the herbal repellent/disinfecting solution (see below). Don’t forget to regularly mop concrete garage and patio floors, too, as indoor/outdoor pets often travel through these areas. This weekly procedure will help prevent other creepy-crawly bugs from taking up residence in your home, too. Bonus: your floors will be sparkling clean, and your home will smell wonderful!
Combine in a mop bucket and use the mop to stir. Mop all surfaces, then wait until dry before walking on floors, or dry-mop the floor after washing.
Infuse fabric-covered furniture with essential oils. Place from 1 to 3 drops of lavender, rosemary, geranium, or eucalyptus essential oil on each piece of medium- to dark-colored fabric-covered furniture (the larger the furniture, the more drops needed) every few days or so to infuse the air with parasite-repelling vapors.
Note: To avoid damaging the fabric, perform a test in an inconspicuous area first. Alternatively, to be on the safe side (or with light-colored furniture), place a drop or two of essential oil on individual cotton balls and tuck them under cushions and into zippered pillows or pillowcases.
Incorporating all of the above suggestions may seem like a lot of trouble, and you may feel like you are getting nowhere in the first week or two. Sure, it’s a lot of work, but it’s worth it. By consistently performing the above recommendations, you will create an aura around your home that adult fleas and ticks will find repugnant. Your home will be toxin-free (and smell refreshingly clean), your pets will be healthy and comfortable, and your sanity will remain intact.
Cats are particularly sensitive to essential oils, and care must be taken to avoid any risk of toxicity. Their acute sense of smell heightens their distaste for strong odors; their thin skin allows for rapid absorption of substances into the bloodsteam; and most importantly, they lack the enzyme glucuronyl transferase, which aids in the metabolism of chemical constituents. My formulas rely primarily on herbs rather than essential oils, and any essential oils are used at extremely low rates.
