burning fleas to death?

coco&teddies mommy

Ok.  Maybe its because i'm new around here and im not used to the lingo (or maybe im just not that computer saavy), but.. WHAT is a troll? and trolling??

Coco, from Wikepedia:  In Internet slang, a troll is someone who posts inflammatory, extraneous, or off-topic messages in an online community, such as an online discussion forum, chat room or blog, with the primary intent of provoking other users into an emotional response^[1] or of otherwise disrupting normal on-topic discussion.

I'll be 100% honest. I'm not a fan of outright killing bugs and things to kill them. If I can I will simply remove bugs and things from areas like clothing and my body without killing them. But when it comes to parasites and things living in or on myself or my family, or in my home, causing detriment to our own health or wellbeing, then I have to worry about myself and those I love first and foremost.

 Unfortunately sort of a survival of the fittest.

 I don't go out of my way to kill spiders outside, I do leave the environment pretty well alone outside of my house, I don't tinker with the homes of others if I can, but I will kill an indoor spider if I find it on my pillow. And I will kill a flea or a tick if I find one on my dog.

I don't expect to be able to walk into a lion's den and just get "flicked aside" or gently asked to leave. I don't expect that the lion will pick me up and just carry me away from the den. No, it'll likely aggress towards me, and/or eat me. Every animal has the right to defend it's "territory" and the wellbeing of its immediate family. And I will do that for my own.

And that, folks, is my attempt at a sensible answer.

 Would it be okay if we used a heart stick on them, or maybe a chemical that puts them down gently. 

I guess I really am not too offended by just smashing bugs that offend, but then I live in Minnesota.  What our mosquitos lack in size they make up in numbers, and if attacked, I will go down fighting.  We use chemicals, hormones, repellents (thank God for DEET), smoke, hands, and occasionally a tennis racket or ball bat to keep them off. Any bug that carries disease or spreads parasites is fair game.

I don't use pesticides in my house or yard with one exception.  Fire ants.  They are too dangerous and there isn't a good natural control. The dogs take Comfortis for flea control.  I use Interceptor for heartworm prevention.  My dogs health is more important than any insect.  Oh, I also have one of those tennis racket fly killers that zaps the flies when you swat them.  Must confess that DH and I fight over who gets to go on fly patrol.  I don't kill anything indiscriminately but I don't think it's logical to think that all life must be preserved at any cost. 

aerial1313

Call me heartless, but I'm never going to fret over the death of an insect invading my home or, doG forbid, my dogs.

I *heart* my exterminator.

DITTO

 Frontline Plus hills fleas. Heartguard Plus kills heartworms and roundworms. Dewormers kill worms, and antibiotics kill bacteria. There is always, always going to be *something* alive on a corpse. If you worry about things so small, you're going to overwhelm yourself, seriously.

I don't kill bugs, just because. I do carry spiders outside. I can't squash them. I vacate the room for certain bugs, LOL. I am a vegetarian, but my dogs are not. You have to do what you can, realistically, and do the best you can for the animals in your care. Worrying about fleas dying in an incinerator, when thousands of fleas die some days in my grooming shop from Capstar and flea shampoo? Is not going to get you far in animal welfare.

 yeah i'm in the same group as people who dont go out of their way to kills bugs just because they are bugs. i got mad at my cousins son because he stomped on a mole cricket just because it was there (he was four) and she said "it doesnt even have pain receptors. its not a sentient being. it felt nothing" .... so! what the hell is wrong with you! it wasnt in your house, it wasnt on you, it was just going across a sidewalk and got smooshed by a brat! that aint right!

she held her stance, i held mine...  but.... parasites? sorry. the way i see it is fleas can kill (the black death? ring any bells? the people who died from that plague suffered far more than any flea in a crematorium) not to mention you havent lived until you've had a kitten die in your hands because it was so covered in fleas there was nothing ANYONE could do because it was too young to be treated with flea killer. aaaand you also havent lived until your cat passes a tapeworm in your house..... tape worms suck the life right out of you. hook worms are even worse. need i go on? they reproduce so quickly BECAUSE they often times kill their host. 

i know more about parasites than i care to.... and to be honest there is no love lost in that area of my heart. i feel more pity for the poor unsuspecting mole cricket (pesky ask some people may find them) but parasites are just that. they are fast moving, quickly reproducing killers. damned difficult to get rid of, and painful if left untreated. 

ETA and if anyone passes a "SAVE THE INTESTINAL PARASITES" bill i will commit an act of treason.

Just an aside to our OP, since I am from Massachusetts, too.  We have been trying for years to pass a sensible dangerous dog law which does not harbor prejudice against any particular breed of dog, and that's been hard enough (and still trying).  I doubt if you could even get your legislator to file such a bill for you, which means that you would have to do it on your own.  I'm sure that the Flea Protection Act would die a slow (or maybe not so slow) death.

luvmyswissy

aerial1313

Call me heartless, but I'm never going to fret over the death of an insect invading my home or, doG forbid, my dogs.

I *heart* my exterminator.

DITTO

Me too!!!

Deb, can you pass the vodka.  I think that I need it.

BEVOLASVEGAS

Deb, can you pass the vodka.  I think that I need it.

Not a problem - sending bottle of Grey Goose over.

Deb W.

 i think our OP is just still suffering from the loss of her beloved pet. i suppose its natural to have extra compassion for all living creatures(vile or otherwise) in the wake of such a disaster.

but be reasonable please.. 

bopper

I admit I had not thought about it, especially because the 2 remaining dogs get Frontline (except in dead of winter) and have not had fleas in 11 years. Someplace in the last 2 weeks I have seen that you should use a vacuum cleaner on fleas, but then put the bag in the freezer (as a humane way of killing them) to prevent their further multiplication.

I could be wrong, but I thought FL worked by killing fleas on contact.  In which case it is unlikely that your dogs have not had fleas in 11 yrs.  They have had them briefly, and you have just never seen them... just killed them.

BEVOLASVEGAS

luvmyswissy

aerial1313

Call me heartless, but I'm never going to fret over the death of an insect invading my home or, doG forbid, my dogs.

I *heart* my exterminator.

DITTO

Me too!!!

Deb, can you pass the vodka.  I think that I need it.

AMEN!