Friend has fleas

I believed this too until we moved into our lovely (very much longed for - a long story!) private rental house and spotted a flea on my 3 year old son’s pj top!
I also had the classic itchy bitey ankles 🙁
It turns out the previous tenants had an undeclared cat!🐈‍⬛
I had to get Rentoki in. Thank goodness LL paid!

I couldn't be friends with somebody like that. It's absolutely cruel to have pets that you don't look after properly. It's horrible to be friends with someone and expect them to come round to your house where they're going to get bitten and carry fleas back to their own house.

Turn up in a scenes of crime suit with mask, gloves, hairnet and wellies.

I couldn't be friends with someone who didn't look after their pets properly.

Encourage her to contact PDSA for low-cost flea treatment. Either that or she needs to contact Cats Protection (or the dog equivalent) and ask them to take the pets. If she can’t afford routine treatments she’s putting those animals through hell. My cats caught fleas over the summer that appeared to be resistant to the usual brand of treatment/preventative therapies. One of them ended up with awful scabs and lost fur from scratching, which all resolved not long after getting a new treatment from the vet. Animals shouldn’t live like that long term — a brief incident is bad enough.

RE your house: have you tried Indorex? There are some useful threads on The Litter Tray board about banishing fleas. As you don’t have animals in the house you shouldn’t have too many problems shifting them.

As she knows about them I'd be blunt and say you don't want to come round due to the fleas, you're sick of being bitten and bringing them back to your home.
She needs to find the money to sort this, it's disgusting, pets come with responsibility and this is a big one.

We have 5 happy, healthy cats and always a few fleas, despite monthly and spot treatments. I wonder if your definition of an infestation is different from hers?

“Sorry, I can’t come round as last time I transferred fleas to my own home and it was expensive to have them removed.

Happy to meet at the park for a walk and a coffee though”

There are no human fleas. Fleas are disgusting but your house won't be infested with fleas if you don't have pets.

You need to tell her to sort out her animals. She's neglecting them.

This is a really good website for natural and inexpensive treatments, some of them actually do work:

https://hamptonspestcontrol.co.uk/9-flea-home-remedies-for-pet-owners/

OP - talk honestly to your friend and get her to contact PDSA (https://www.pdsa.org.uk/) for low cost flea treatment help.

The RSPCA won’t do anything so please don’t waste your and their time.

Report to who though? RSPCA do not come out for reports of fleas. They barely do anything for animals actually being abused.

Cat/dog fleas are unable to survive very long and infest an environment without the intended host.
I am not sure that this is true. I let my flat and the tenant had a cat. When she moved out, fleas had infested not only my flat but the communal area. It was a hot, dry summer and they bred like mad. I had to get it professionally treated 3 times before the fleas went away.
I would tell her very plainly and suggest a joint trip to the vet and professional flea treatment. She should pay for your place to be done too.

I'd tell a friend if I had fleas after going to their house. If it was the other way round, I'd want them to tell me too.

Yuck. I got this from someone bringing a dog to work, my house git infested and then resinfested. It was horrible! I'd tell her. Definitely don't go there again. After my ordeal I don't even think I'd want to be friends with the person out of fear of being reinfested again!

She's being abusive to her animals. Anonymously report her please.

I’d just say “Sorry I can’t come round. I react so badly to flea bites and last time I came around I had to go get antihistamines at the chemist. Would you like to meet at x Cafe instead?”.

I bet her house reeks too. I wouldn't even go back in the house if I were you. Disgusting

How do I avoid going there without being rude?

I think sending guests home with fleas is ruder. You tell her you cannot visit her house because you are arriving home covered in fleas and then having to treat your car, house, clothes (with noxious potions). It's a health hazard.

Her poor animals.

You just say no when invited over, it’s that simple.

Look, you have two options: either wash your hands of it and refuse to visit her place. Or, you agree to pony up for flea buster and combs and you both go at her pets and house from top to bottom over the course of a weekend.

Then burn your hair net, masks, and overalls.

Do this.

And suggest the free vet clinic/hospital who help people who live on benefits.

Although as a PP said, your friend's house is probably riddled with fleas so even if/when the animals are treated, don't go there.

Yep, RSPCA will not be interested. Tell her best treatment to get without trip to vets is Advantage. Can get indorex house spray online too.

Just don’t go! Fleas are the worst!!!