I trapped a cat once first try. I took it to the pound, the owner got it back and let it run loose again but the cat never came back in my yard. If I had known it would remember I would not have taken it to the pound. You probably need to check with the city about a fence that tall. We have to have special permission and a good reason for it being that tall.

We have a family of fox in the trees behind our homes and all they do is scratch. My research said foxes are usually not bothered by fleas except in the litter den. Fleas must be very bad this year because all they do is scratch.

Emma not sure where you are located but we have had allot of rain this year and I think it didn't help. Also neighbors who think stray cats are their pets. Sigh.

I doubt stray cats passing thru your yard would cause the infestation, but if they tend to hang around and live in areas of your yard, then it's possible they're the culprit. Wildlife could also be bringing fleas into your yard if the hosts have places to hide and live.
I would continue the spraying and be sure to clean up any areas of your yard that provide a place for the fleas to nest.....wood piles, debris, etc.

For the fence, consider adding a wire barrier along the top of the existing fence or place a hot wire along the top rail. Hot wires work wonders!

Here is a link that might be useful: Treating fleas

Can't blame the cat for this one. Cat fleas and dog fleas are a different species.

Here is a link that might be useful: First google link, there are more if you want to look

Plaidbird, the most common flea is the cat flea and it is perfectly happy infesting dogs, humans, and other animals. They are an equal opportunity pest. In other words, the fleas on polyd's dog are most likely to be cat fleas.

Emma, I wonder if the foxes you've been seeing are exhibiting symptoms of mange. That problem seems rampant in foxes.

Polyd,

I have learned that here at least, fleas outdoors show up when I've had bark dust or the more obvious dry grass. If by any chance your getting them in bark dust, that would be an easier solution that spraying so much. What a difficult situation.

This post was edited by plaidbird on Sun, Jul 6, 14 at 1:13

Whoa... learned something new today. Thanks Rhizo.

What a trip. All my life I've had several pets, so combos of cats and dogs. Out of every group, there has always been one..just one that was bothered by fleas and clued us in that it was that time of year to dose the bunch. Then as the treatment was due again, that same one would start itching.
Knowing apparently only half the story, we assumed that since there are cat fleas and dog fleas, that was why the difference. I'm thinking back over decades, so don't have specific examples.

But I do know that brands of flea treatments were the same, just the different ones of either cats or dogs. The reason I remember that clearly is it's so frustrating when one, reliable brand of flea drops seems to stop working , the box is wasted and I need to figure out which brand works these few years. Not counting the month I can't dose with a new brand because the dose of brand A is not working this year. The last one was about three years ?? ago. Poor kitties going mad as fleas start on the one cat ( always the less robust cat or dog ), then gradually bothering all of them. When the brand works, it's just the one cat that first week or so till I get the flea meds.

I saved the last dud flea stuff to remember. For us it was Frontline. Since then Advantage II is working great. ( just cats right now)

I always wonder if the fleas become immune or the companies change the formulation on us. And I know it's not just me. Cat chat groups agree and vets I've asked don't want to seem to want to commit, they seem to nod / shoulder shrug and say buy this now.

It's frustrating that the flea drop companies only list a lot number on their packages. Seems like if they had to put an expiration date, this might not happen. I have learned to try and only buy from places that have a lot of turn over. Got the last bad batch of Frontline from the pharmacy that had only just started selling it. Should have been fresh but who knows.
Can't compare the Advantage II because I switched brands and where I buy at the same time. PetMeds online is my preferred place to buy now. Let's face it.. theirs is pretty likely to be fresh. Better price too, but that was soooo not the point.
Obviously they want to sell a formula that works, but maybe it varies by region and they pick the most popular flea of the year. ??? ;)

So... since we're here and I value your opinion, on that ?
Why does a brand of flea drops no longer work after X years, requiring a different brand to be effective ?

Can't believe I've been so wrong on that for so many years. And it always made perfect sense. LOL

This post was edited by plaidbird on Sun, Jul 6, 14 at 2:03

Most topical effective flea products have an extremely long shelf life (dozens of years) so unlikely these products are actually going bad due to time alone.. however, if products are kept poorly (overheated for example) that might result in a lower effectivity. 'Not working' otherwise is also unlikely, though what you see as not working may be a lag effect as some products work faster than others... but most of todays products (fipronil, imidacloprid, selemectin, spinosad, moxidectin etc. ) are still nearly 100% effective... but if you have a several environmental problems or you are putting it on your pet where they are licking it off, you will either get a 'lag effect' (fleas taking days to die and/or dying fleas replaced by new yard/house fleas) or your pet will have eaten most of the product off them (making it useless). LOTs of stories of resistance on the internet, but research has failed to show any significant resistance to any of these products... yet. It will probably happen, but so far it has not. But... selamectin can take up to 4 days to kill a flea, Fipronil 2 days, Imidacloprid 1 day, spinosad 30 minutes... and I really have no idea how fast Moxidectan works... some other newer products out, too which I still have to catching up to do (afoxolaner, e.g.).

Get a pest control company advice to get free from the fleas infestation.

Here is a link that might be useful: Fleas Pest Control

Thank you for all the replies. I have nothing to report. We bought some spray that was supposed to treat fleas in the yard, hubby accidentally used too much. We still have fleas. I don't know what else to try. Grass is cut short. Can't afford a pest control company.

In the link I listed, using cedar chips for pathways or in flower beds should help keep them away.

You can try sprinkling Diatomaceous earth in your yard, Lowe's and Home Depot usually carry it and it's fairly inexpensive, environmentally safe, and non-toxic to pets. We used it several years ago when a wet spring caused a flea explosion, and it worked very well.

I also wondered what stray cats have to do with your dog having fleas!

I live in Florida and fleas are a HUGE problem here. Unfortunately its a reoccurring issue, but I find its best to give regular baths with flea shampoo, treat the yard regularly and I don't use topical treatment anymore, i get confortis tablets from the vet and it works SOOO much better, and it doesn't bother their skin or interfere with bathing. You can get a great discount on the supplies with www.drsmartphonemd.com/pet_discounts

Read up on Diatomacious earth before you buy. Food grade is what we use, and we also give it to our cats in their food.
Pool grade is not recommended as a pesticide.

Here is a link that might be useful: here is one link that might help

Like ingeorgia said, Diatomacious earth is very effective for getting rid of fleas. The same goes for baking soda. Mix it together with salt and you have a deadly yet natural flea killing solution without toxics that can potentially poison your dog.