Does Winter Cold Kill Fleas?

If you're wondering, “does winter cold kill fleas?” the answer is a flat-out no.


There is an existing myth that lures many people into thinking that they are safe from fleas during winter time. Well, it's now time to put your guard back up since there's no time of the year when you shouldn't take the case of flea infestation seriously.

Although temperature has dropped and humidity has been reduced, flea can still survive. During summer, the natural 3-week cycle of eggs to fully develop will extend to about 8 months during the cold temperatures. Therefore, it is possible that the survival of fleas are threatened or reduced during the cold months, but that is not to assume that you have entirely rid of them.

When outdoors, fleas are less likely to survive the extreme cold weather. However, in-house fleas can pose a bigger threat to your family's health. It is the survival instinct of fleas that drive them to find warm hosts that allow them to thrive, so they seek refuge indoors to survive this extreme weather condition. Fleas and other insects survive winter by staying in close association with warm-blooded animals.

That's how indoor infestation of fleas persists and creates health problems to pet and pet owners alike. This also the reason why it is of utmost importance to have a year-round flea treatment imposed on your homes to ensure that even during the cold months they cannot survive. Flea infestations that happen indoors could either be apparent or not, so detecting it may become twice as hard.

At home, your pets can become carriers of any surviving fleas. Then, they will eventually reach various parts of the house such as the carpets, floors, beddings, or upholstery. Again there is a need to stress the point of treating fleas even during winter times to prevent them from increasing in numbers. There are easy to follow steps to curtail the survival of fleas within your homes.

You can use several flea control products in washing off or vacuuming the carpet and floor. You may also use a dish washing liquid or specialized flea control solution to further kill any surviving flea. Wipe the areas that are very likely hiding places for fleas as well. You may also use a Lysol to spray around your house. This disinfectant spray has antiseptic that will surely kill the fleas.

These are inexpensive and practical tips that you can bear in mind when dealing with flea problems inside your home during winter. But most importantly, you have to follow these procedures and keep doing them until you have completely rid your house of fleas. If not, they are very likely to survive and start laying eggs again.

Aside from cleaning your house, you must also de-flea your pets to make sure that they do not carry any more fleas within their body and spread it around the house. There are several pet flea control products available in the market today that you can choose from to effectively eliminate this problem. It is no time to question whether does winter cold kill fleas – you have to do something about flea control no matter what time of the year.