6 Pest Control Tips for Pet Owners

While pets are welcome members of the family, you certainly don’t want unwanted visitors such as rats and cockroaches making themselves comfortable in your home. Pet owners need to take a few additional precautions to control household pests without creating unnecessary risks for their animals.

Following a few practical pest-prevention guidelines can help keep your home protected while maintaining a safe and comfortable environment for your pets.

1. Choose Your Dog Door Carefully

A dog door can make it much easier for your pet to move in and out of the house, but it can also provide an unexpected entrance for rats, raccoons, insects, and other unwanted visitors. Fortunately, selecting the right type of pet door can significantly reduce this risk.

Choose a dog door that closes securely and creates a tight seal after your pet passes through it. This can help prevent outside light from escaping through the opening, making the area less attractive to certain pests.

A flap constructed from an opaque material is another useful choice because light will not shine through it. This simple precaution can help discourage bugs that are naturally attracted to light from entering your home through the pet door.

2. Keep Pet Food Cleaned Up

In locations where cockroaches and rodents are common, avoid leaving pet food available throughout the day. Instead, provide meals at scheduled times and remove whatever your pet does not eat. An unattended bowl of dog or cat food can quickly become an easy food source for household pests.

Pick up any remaining food within about an hour after feeding. It is also important to regularly sweep or clean the area around your pet’s food bowls because crumbs and scattered pieces of food can attract insects and rodents.

3. Don’t Feed Your Pets Outside

Avoid routinely feeding cats or dogs outdoors because leftover pet food can attract unwanted pests to your yard. Once rodents, insects, or other pests begin finding reliable food around the property, they may eventually move closer to your house and find a way indoors.

If you notice stray animals around your property, contact your local animal shelter rather than feeding them yourself. Leaving food outdoors for stray animals can unintentionally create an ongoing food source for other unwanted pests.

4. Let Professionals Handle the Pesticides

Using pesticides around pets requires extra care. Products must be selected and applied correctly so your animals are not exposed to potentially harmful chemicals. Any treated location that your pet could reach should be carefully considered before an application is made.

For this reason, pesticide treatment is often best handled by knowledgeable pest-control professionals. Experienced technicians understand where and how products should be applied while reducing unnecessary exposure risks for pets.

In some situations, your animals may need to be temporarily removed from the treatment area. A professional can explain what precautions are necessary and tell you when it is appropriate for your pets to safely return.

5. Give Your Pet Regular Flea Treatments

Fleas are a nightmare to get rid of once they enter your home. Their eggs and larvae can linger in the carpet for months, hatching and re-infesting your animals. It’s far easier to prevent a flea infestation in the first place. Ask your vet to recommend a good flea-prevention treatment. These include both topical and oral options. Many repel ticks as well as fleas. Since fleas spread tapeworm, regular flea treatments will also protect your pets from worms.

6. Wash Pet Bedding Often

The odor of unwashed pet bedding may attract roaches and other insects. Pets may also hide pieces of food or treats in their bed, which is attractive to pests of all types. You should launder your pet’s bedding once a week. If your pet has sensitive skin, use a scent-free laundry detergent to reduce flare-ups. If you notice any bugs in or around the pet bed, clean the area well. If the problem persists, contact a pest control company — and also your vet if you suspect the bugs are fleas. It is possible to keep your home pest-free when you have pets; you just have to pay attention to details. Contact Jones Bros Pest Control, Inc., for all of your pest control needs. We’re experts at dealing with rats, ants, and other pests.