Fleas? Help!

[Mewling]

We moved into a new house a few months ago. Upstairs carpeted, downstairs wood floors. We have an indoor cat that doesn’t go outside at all. The furthest they’ve been is to the vet and back.

I am being eaten alive by something and I’ve no idea what. The cat doesn’t appear to have fleas and is Frontlined monthly. My bedroom seems to be Ground Zero for the biting: I’m getting bites predominantly on my torso and around my bra and knicker line. I’ve binned the duvet, washed the pillows and bedding at 90 degrees, and treated the bedroom with a Frontline spray.

I’m still being bitten. I must have about 30 bites on me now. FWIW I don’t seem to have any bites on my ankles, feet or knees. What gives? Is this fleas or something else? Realise nobody can say definitively but any advice/words of wisdom would be gratefully received, before I simply nuke the house from orbit.

Sounds like Chiggers.. Google them ..its the areas Chiggers are around..do you have an overgrown garden or anything.. its about removing their habitat.

Whatever it is.. Hope they do one soon.

The cat is fully up to date with treatments and I haven’t seen a single one on him (and God knows I’ve been checking! 😅). No overgrooming or bald patches either. I’m ok with the duvet going out @HostaCentral, it had definitely seen better days even before this debacle.

I’ve Indorexed the house and have wondered, as @MyTwinklyPandasuggested, that perhaps the previous tenants had pets and the cat being in the house activated them.

I’ve been spot-treating myself with Witch Hazel and Tea Tree oil. Hopefully that’ll put the fuckers off!

Indorex and soresto collars. Till i used those in combination we had a bad issue with fleas. Indorex killed off every living bug, including silver fish, spiders, flies, moths and even a millipede which must have been hiding up our bedroom radiator 😅

You need to hoover your mattress and tgen steam it either a steam mop or- bed bugs do t like heat and indirectly skirting boards

we had them and each time we thought gone came back - you need to do daily and ideally not sleep in that room until done

Frontline is ineffective. You do need to switch from that

Defo bed bugs. They don't necessarily live in the mattress/bed. They live in cracks in the wall or floor. U attract them at night coz of the heat source. Pop a hot water bottle down on the floor in ur room and turn lights off and go check later on at night. Best of with professionals. But u can buy bombs but will have to do the hole house so u would have to stay out for a few hours

Yes I always found frontline to be useless on our Beloved Kitties too

The water bottle is a brilliant idea. I need to know what I’m dealing with!

Don't worry OP!!!!

The chiggers hatched in our garden the day before yesterday, and we've been eaten mercilessly.

They suddenly appear every year without fail on a day in August. When we first bought the house, I worried it was bed bugs, fleas from the previous owners, but after 5 years, and completely new flooring, beds, bedding, mattresses, and protectors, I know for sure it's chiggers in the garden.

Chiggers don't bite in straight lines, and you will be bitten on your upper half as much as your lower half.

If anyone knows how to get rid of them I'll give them thousands....

Does this stop chiggers from biting?

What is their habitat?

I was going to say bed bugs (definitely not fleas they would be jumping on your ankles) but thr fact they are clustering around the edges and underneath tight fitting clothing ie underwear does make sense that it is midges from the garden..Maybe try wearing insect repellant and see if any difference and wearing tea tree and lemon. Is anyone else getting bitten?

Do you have carpet in your bedroom?Even removed downstairs it could be fleas. I think they have a shelf life/breading cycle of 6 weeks(could be a little more/less from memory but google/AI can tell you). When I moved in my house I got bit to heck just removing the carpet in the first 2 weeks! I got rid of all the carpet and used flea bombs (2) per room, every week for a months, and indorex(?SP) on my mattresses, soft furnishings etc. It seemed to do the job and 3 yrs later never had a issue with 2 dogs (they ate monthly flea treated and weekly washed). Hope you manage to sort the issue as itching is aggravating.

Indorex spray (buy on amazon not from vet clinics as much cheaper) and put anything that's appropriate in a hot wash.

If it's bed bugs (it sounds like it) I would get the council pest eradicators in.

I’ve checked the bed and the mattress though and can’t see anything that suggests bed bugs. No marks on the sheets, nothing. It’s so frustrating!

As others have said, bed bugs can be in the walls.
I've had flea bites from my cat and they are always on your ankles or your arms (where you've stroked the cat/from the carpet).

Now, that really is quite interesting!

@drspouse That truly is nightmarish. Definitely just going to burn the house down I think.