How to Rid Animals of Skin Pests

Animals can suffer from a wide variety of skin pests -- the most common being fleas and mites. Skin pests can go unnoticed until the problem gets out of control and has infected your home. Most skin pests are easy to get rid of if you use the right products and follow procedure carefully.

Things You'll Need

  • Brush
  • Vacuum
  • Washing machine
  • Flea/tick treatment
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Instructions

    • 1

      Check your animal for signs of skin pests regularly. Make regular brushing and checking the coat for insects or insect excrement part of your routine. Spotting the infestation earlier can make getting rid of it easier.

    • 2

      Look for signs of ticks on your animal. These stab themselves into your pet's skin, so are usually easy to spot. Remove these one by one, using tweezers. Put the ticks into a small amount of alcohol in a closed jar to kill them. Do not squeeze them, as this can release any germs they are carrying, or flush them down the toilet, at they may survive.

    • 3

      See which rooms are infected. There are a few ways to do this. Place white cloth, such as socks, on the floor, and stomp about. Watch the cloth for a while. If the carpet is infested, the pests will eventually be spotted on the white. Also, place a bowl of hot water out. Leave this for as long as possible, preferably overnight. In the morning, check for pests.

    • 4

      Vacuum the whole house on the hardest suction regularly. This will suck pests out of the carpet. Empty the vacuum outside as the pests may still be alive.

    • 5

      Wash clothing, pet bedding and any other potentially infested material, including your own bed linen, on the hottest temperature possible. Above 50 degrees Celsius, or 122 degrees Fahrenheit, is recommended to ensure pests are killed.

    • 6

      Treat your pet for pests. Pet shops will usually sell treatments that will help to clear the infestation. Make sure you keep the treatment current to give them maximum protection from pests.