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Original poster

Help - I'm being eaten alive by some little creature - need solutions and advice

63 replies

Flyfodder · 12/04/2023 10:01

I am being absolutely eaten alive by something. I never see it. My ankles, behind my knees, hip, back are all covered in bites.
I've changed bed clothes etc. I wear long sleeves and legs on my PJs. I haven't really been out for a walk in nature but would cover up if I was.
One DC is similarly bitten. DH and other DC unaffected.

What are they?
What can I do to stop them biting?
What can I do to stop to bites itching?

Photos attached. Apologies, they're not nice. One is my ankle, one is my hip

Sensitive content
Help - I'm being eaten alive by some little creature - need solutions and advice
Sensitive content
Help - I'm being eaten alive by some little creature - need solutions and advice
OP posts:
cafesandbookshops · 12/04/2023 13:46

Could it be scabies? I’d try and send some pics to the gp if possible x

seratoninmoonbeams · 12/04/2023 13:50

Apparently all people get bitten or stung by fleas and mosquitoes etc but only some people have a reaction and show the marks/itch etc.

AHugeTinyMistake · 12/04/2023 13:51

DH may be being bitten but isn't reacting - it's the allergic reaction that makes you come up in itchy lumps.

I'm a bitey insect magnet and react badly to all of them.

We had a brief flea infestation when we moved into our new house (previous owners had cats). They'd accidentally left the heating on - it was awful. My legs looked horrendous. However a few weeks of hoovering and treating and they never came back.

seratoninmoonbeams · 12/04/2023 13:51

When we had fleas in our old house from the cat we saw them all the time. Im surprised you haven't with all those marks. Also, some people leave random glasses of water about on the floor and they end up in there apparently.

orangeflags · 12/04/2023 13:52

Flea bites. My daughter has no pets but her house still got infested cause she visited a house with an infestation. You'll need the spray to sort that.

ArcticSkewer · 12/04/2023 13:53

Have you taken antihistamines to help with the itching? The redness is probably a histamine response. You could try a hayfever tablet plus a bite relief cream.

I don't know what they are though. Are you anywhere with midges? Although seems early! Could be fleas but if you have animals in the house, they would bite them not you. Could be bedbugs from the one with the straight line of bites especially, but your son's look different.

To treat fleas on your pet, use a monthly vet prescribed flea treatment rather than one you buy in supermarkets or petshops. You'll need to use it for a long time, not just once, as well as treating the area with indorex

Vroomfondleswaistcoat · 12/04/2023 13:57

If you want to know if your house has fleas, leave a warm cup of tea on the floor at the edge of a room for an hour or so. If you come back to find lots of floating black dots - you've got fleas.

We've always had loads of animals and got periodic flea infestations. I'd get eaten, and one of my sons would look as though he had chickenpox, until we got the place treated. The dog I have now just doesn't get fleas at all though.

Shockhorror22 · 12/04/2023 14:00

Best cure for itchy bites is to blast them with a hairdryer. I know it sounds mad, but if you hold the dryer a couple of inches from the skin and blast for a few seconds, up to the point you feel like your skin is about to scorch, that does the trick. Sometimes a really bad bite may need a second go a few hours or a day later, but usually once is enough. Magic.

amylou8 · 12/04/2023 14:09

Fleas. If you have pets and don't recognise a flea bite you've been very lucky. And yes they do have preferences for different people. I get eaten alive by most bitey things, while DP is untouched. Treat the dog, treat the house, and they should clear up pretty quickly.

LadyEloise1 · 15/04/2023 10:41

@Flyfodder did you find out what is causing the rashes on you and your dc ?

Original poster
Flyfodder · 15/04/2023 22:27

@LadyEloise1
I didn't figure it out

But I washed the bed clothes, hoovered the floors and around the bed really well, washed every item of clothing after one wear. I started wearing long socks over trousers when out in nature . I washed the dog's bed and blankets
I got a cream (anti itch) from the pharmacy
All this seems to have worked fingers crossed the bitey creatures are gone!

OP posts:
horridjobescapee · 15/04/2023 22:51

Have you treated the dog with stuff from the vet?

KnickerlessParsons · 15/04/2023 23:15

Flyfodder · 12/04/2023 10:10

If it's fleas - is it common for people sharing a bed to be differently affected?
As in, one bitten, one unscathed?

Yes. DH gets bitten by everything - fleas, mosquitoes, whatever. He can by lying next to me all night and wake up covered by mozzie bites while I don't have any.

Original poster
Flyfodder · 16/04/2023 20:07

horridjobescapee · 15/04/2023 22:51

Have you treated the dog with stuff from the vet?

Checked the dog, all seemed fine, no fleas. Checked again today - found millions of the little buggers. So we'll be treating the dog.
Washing machine is going 90

OP posts:
Jewel1968 · 16/04/2023 20:13

Could be bed bugs. Use white bedding and see if you see any small black marks after a couple of nights. This is a telltale sign of bed bugs.

Some people are very sensitive to their bite and others are not.

horridjobescapee · 16/04/2023 20:15

you Won’t get rid of fleas without vet prescription treatment. Sorry. And you need to keep on top of it with a monthly treatment after this or you’ll end up back here again.

Original poster
Flyfodder · 16/04/2023 20:24

Jewel1968 · 16/04/2023 20:13

Could be bed bugs. Use white bedding and see if you see any small black marks after a couple of nights. This is a telltale sign of bed bugs.

Some people are very sensitive to their bite and others are not.

I really think (am hoping) it's not bb

OP posts:
Original poster
Flyfodder · 16/04/2023 20:27

horridjobescapee · 16/04/2023 20:15

you Won’t get rid of fleas without vet prescription treatment. Sorry. And you need to keep on top of it with a monthly treatment after this or you’ll end up back here again.

Yes, we'll treat the dog. We thought it was just random bites, not fleas from DDog.
Where do dogs get fleas from?

OP posts:
DailyEnergyCrisis · 16/04/2023 20:30

Obviously get the dog treated with vet strength stuff but hydrocortisone cream and piriton tablets are great to relieve the itching.

ofasphodel · 16/04/2023 20:30

Bed bugs

Quveas · 16/04/2023 20:38

Your dog gets fleas from other dogs / animals and your house. If it's as bad as you say the eggs will be all over your house and just cleaning won't do it. You need to properly treat the carpets, furnishings, skirting etc. And repeatedly until all is resolved. And regularly treat your dog - much of the stuff on the shelves no longer works so you need to speak to the vet.

And yes, it's common that some people get bitten and others don't. I have acidic skin, and its rare that anything is daft enough to bite me as I taste horrible. Biting things have been known to travel thousands of miles to get at my best friend! She can be bitten by just about anything.

Newjobanxious · 16/04/2023 21:20

You need to treat the dog and any other pets in the house.

You also need indorex spray and diatomaceous (sp?) earth.

And a LOT of hoovering.

Make sure you take the hoover bag outside to the bin as soon as you've hoovered (I'd personally tie it in a black bag). If you have a bag less hoover you need to wash it thoroughly in soapy water every time you hoover.

Concentrate where your pet sleeps. Wash all pet and human bedding (40 is enough, the detergent clears the fleas but use a long wash not a quick wash). Tumble dry if you can as hot as possible. Don't forget to wash pillows and duvets.

Concentrate around baseboards and corners. You need to shift all furniture and spray and hoover.

You're in for a long road. (Been there done that got the t shirt with the first cat when I was a naive first time pet owner)

Original poster
Flyfodder · 16/04/2023 22:21

Quveas · 16/04/2023 20:38

Your dog gets fleas from other dogs / animals and your house. If it's as bad as you say the eggs will be all over your house and just cleaning won't do it. You need to properly treat the carpets, furnishings, skirting etc. And repeatedly until all is resolved. And regularly treat your dog - much of the stuff on the shelves no longer works so you need to speak to the vet.

And yes, it's common that some people get bitten and others don't. I have acidic skin, and its rare that anything is daft enough to bite me as I taste horrible. Biting things have been known to travel thousands of miles to get at my best friend! She can be bitten by just about anything.

Well that is horrifying 😩
I think they're on the wane though. Changed bedding. I didn't think to wash the actual duvet though. Would a flap on the washing line in the fresh air do? I've no tumble dryer. And my duvet is feather (?) so I don't know if I can wash it anyway.
Would sunlight wind and fresh air do it?
I washed the dog's bed last week. I have it outside again til I can wash it again.
I'll spray the base boards etc

OP posts:
Newjobanxious · 16/04/2023 22:24

Is there a laundrette you can take the duvet to? I wash my feather one and dry it in one of those revolution laundry places (it's in the car park of the local small mace shop).

Newjobanxious · 16/04/2023 22:27

The problem is the life cycle of the flea. They're basically indestructible. What you need to do is get them to hatch and kill them

Once they're in the cocoon they're hard to get rid of. Good news is if you get the flea killing chew things from the vet, your dog becomes a flea killing machine and when they hatch and jump on the dog to feed they die.

www.taylorvillevet.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Fleas.pdf