These days, pet parents tend to follow natural remedies for eliminating pesky parasites like fleas as they are cheap and safe. And, salt is one such remedy for fleas. But does salt really kill fleas and flea eggs? Read on to find out more.
Does Salt Really Kill Fleas And Flea Eggs?
Yes, it does. Salt is the most common, natural at-home remedy, as it can effectively eliminate fleas effortlessly.
However, it is imperative to note that salt should only be used in your home and not on your pets as it can cause irritation to their skin. For your dog, you can choose a good flea and tick treatment or try other methods.
Salt Can’t Kill Fleas At All Stages Of The Flea Cycle…
The salt definitely works to kill fleas, but not at every stage of their life. Hence, it is important to understand the flea cycle to know about the vulnerable stages. You might be aware of the fact that a single flea can lay up to 50 eggs every day. Therefore, once a single flea lands on your pooch, a whole flea population is sure to rise unless treated.
These eggs can fall off onto the carpets, furniture and backyard to proliferate even further. However, salt treatment will not affect the baby fleas at this stage since the egg protects them.
After one to ten days, the eggs hatch and the fleas enter the larvae stage, during which they are the most vulnerable. Therefore, it would be the best to target them at this stage, but it is almost impossible to know what in stage the fleas are at a given point of time. So, the best way out is to use periodic treatments to kill any new flea larvae that may have emerged.
Source: CanadaPetCare Blog
Now, before becoming adult fleas, the flea larvae form an impenetrable shield known as a ‘cocoon’. They stay inside this cocoon from a few days to a year and are very difficult to kill during this stage. However, once they leave this cocoon as adults, they again enter into an extremely vulnerable stage.
All in all, now it shall be clear that salt can be effective in killing fleas at the adult and larval stages, but not while they’re in eggs and cocoons.
How Salt kill fleas?
Salt is a dehydrating agent, hence it sucks moisture from fleas, which is essential for their survival. Fleas lay eggs in warm and moist places like couch cushions or mattresses, so you can sprinkle salt periodically on such endangered places to target their larvae and adults.
Stepwise procedure of using salt to remove fleas
Salt should be reapplied weekly to eliminate any fleas that might have managed to survive in the previous application and as a good measure to ensure that you have killed every last flea. Follow these simple steps:
- Use only highly refined household salt or sea salt
- Use finely ground salt as larger particles won’t impact fleas much
- Sprinkle it on all the moist and warm places in your house where fleas could be proliferating, like on your carpet, furniture and your pet’s bedding
- Let the salt penetrate deep by brushing the surface where applied
- Leave the salt for 12 to 14 hours
- Make sure the dog doesn’t enter these areas during this period
- Next day, vacuum these areas properly
- Repeat this process weekly till the fleas are gone!
Other natural methods
Salt isn’t the only method for killing fleas. There are other effective home remedies for flea removal, which can be combined with the salt treatment:
- Lemon Spray: Add lemon to boiling water and store it in a spray bottle after it cools down.
- Baking Soda: Replace salt with baking soda and apply using the method described earlier.
- Diatomaceous Earth: A very powerful natural remedy to keep fleas at bay.
- Coconut oil: It is a great natural ingredient to prevent fleas.
The Final Word
Salt is a terrific method of killing fleas. It will not only save you money, but, since it is safe, it will also give you peace of mind regarding the safety of your family and pets!
