Cat fleas do the biting, and roughly 95 per cent of the population in a house is not on the animal at all. It is eggs, larvae and pupae down in the carpet pile, in the gaps between floorboards and under the bed. That is why treating the pet alone never clears it. The pupae are the hard part, because the cocoon shrugs off insecticide and can sit dormant for weeks until it senses warmth and vibration, then hatches into an empty house and goes hunting.
So the job runs in two passes. Carpets, rugs, subfloor, pet bedding and the outside run where the animal sleeps all get treated, then you vacuum daily for the next fortnight. The vibration triggers the pupae to hatch early, straight onto treated surfaces. The second visit picks up whatever is left. Fleas take off around Geelong from about November through to April, and empty rentals are the classic case: no host for months, then someone walks through the door and the lot hatches at once.
