HOW TO CONTROL FLEAS 3 
from going beneath houses. Their backs should be lightly sprinkled 
with crankcase oil or crude petroleum every 2 or 3 w eeks. 
If fleas are properly controlled on animals, house and yard infesta- 
tions will be avoided. 
Destroying Fleas in Houses and Outbuildings 
Fleas in houses and barns originate in the sleeping places of animals. 
If these are in cellars, in outbuildings, or beneath buildings or porches, 
spraying the infested areas with creosote oil with a good force pump 
is most satisfactory. A compressed-air sprayer, or, better, a bucket 
pump, with a lead of high-pressure hose with tight connections, should 
be used. 
Creosote oil will burn animals and plants. It has an objectionable 
odor and will stain. Therefore it cannot be used in every situation. 
It is not necessary to spray the walls of a cellar or outbuilding. Creo- 
sote oil is relatively cheap (50 cents 
to $1 per gallon) and is generally 
available, since it is commonly used 
as a wood preserver. It is remark- 
ably effective against fleas. Usually 
one hight spraying will w ipe out an FIGURE eget oy OF mae aol of a flea, greatly 
infestation. One-half gallon is suffi- 1-8 
cient for 1,000 square feet of floor surface. More is required for dirt 
floors with cracks or where much dust or litter is present. 
When fleas are found to be breeding in hog pens or barns, the litter 
should be raked up and scattered on fields, or burned, before the 
spray is applied or after a preliminary spraying to give relief while 
cleaning up. 
If fleas are abundant in living quarters, scatter flaked naphthalene 
over the floor of each infested room at the rate of 5 pounds per room. 
Keep the room closed for 24 to 48 hours. The remaining naphthalene 
crystals may be swept up and put in a tight container for future use. 
If animals have been sleeping on overstuffed furniture, it also should 
be covered with the naphthalene. 
In cases where the main trouble is in the basement, the creosote oil 
spray applied there will usually give immediate relief. The scattered 
fleas carried into the living rooms may be destroyed with a commercial 
fly spray applied with an atomizer. 
As soon as the premises have been treated as described, the treat- 
ment of the dogs and cats with derris powder should be begun. 
Occasionally fleas will spread from infested outbuildings or base- 
ments to the yard and lawn. Treatment of the breeding places and 
keeping the lawn closely cut will usually meet this situation. Fleas 
do not live long when exposed to sunshine and rains. 
Prevention of house infestations by keeping fleas off animals is not 
difficult, and pets are much relieved if they are kept free of fleas. 
Sticktight Flea Control 
Sticktight or chicken fleas are often troublesome in the South. 
They infest poultry, cats, dogs, rats, and other animals, and annoy 
man. The adult fleas attack the heads of their hosts principally and 
