Our House Was Infested with Fleas and Ticks - What We Did to Eliminate Them for Good

2 years ago, we suddenly had a flea and tick infestation here in our home. It started when we fostered a weak dog full of these parasites all over his body. Since he couldn't walk then, the ticks from his body began to crawl at the walls of our garage.



We tried all the natural ways we could find online - apple cider vinegar + baking soda, citronella, cooking oil, etc. Unfortunately, none of them worked. Despite our efforts to eliminate it, the infestation worsened for months, and we could already see them crawling inside our room. Insect bites and rashes wouldn't stop bugging my then 1-year-old son. There were even a few times that I would catch a tick attached to my son's armpit or the opening of his ear. It was horrifying that I spent a lot of sleepless nights watching him sleep while catching every single crawler trying to make its way inside our room and to our bed. I wasn't a fan of any skin creams or baby lotions since he has sensitive skin, but for the first time in his life, I applied Off Lotion for Kids to his entire body, praying that this would help repel these little monsters trying to feed from my son.

I almost gave up the battle against these parasites, thinking that our only solution was to buy a new house and burn the whole thing down (I know!). One day, my husband decided to take us to our family house and spend a few weeks there while he tried more aggressively to eliminate these ticks already lurking inside our home. This would also help us monitor my son for any possible side effects from getting bitten by these annoying ticks since my sister is a pediatrician.

How He Eliminated the Fleas and Ticks From Our Dogs

Because the infestation was worse than anyone could imagine, the most popular flea and tick spot-on brands and sprays no longer worked for our dogs. My husband sought advice from a pet shop owner, a dog breeder, and a veterinarian.

The first thing he did was he took all our dogs to the Veterinary Clinic. They received shots of Ivermectin. According to the vet, this would only kill the ectoparasites attached to their bodies.

After having their shots, my husband carefully sprayed Amitraz solution all over their bodies while wearing dog cones (also known as E-Collars, Cone Collars, or Recovery Collars).

He waited for at least a week and gave them a bath using an organic soap made of Madre de Cacao. According to studies, the leaves of this plant can be beneficial in treating various skin diseases and soothing severe itching.

Upon the advice of the dog breeder, he diluted a single sachet of Sevin powder in a bucket of water. After giving them the most severe baths they got in their lives that lasted more than 12 hours, he soaked a towel in the bucket and rubbed it to their bodies. After drying, their dog cones were put on again and placed inside their "Sevin-treated" cages.

How He Eliminated the Ticks Inside Our Home

This was the most challenging part for him since he had to move all our appliances and kitchen wares all by himself.
Using a power spray and a whole drum of water treated with a weaker dosage of Sevin, he first treated the exterior walls of our room (I had given an explicit order not to spray inside our room). Next was the bathroom, the living room, and the kitchen. He said he could see the dying ticks getting out of their hide-outs.

Next was the garage and the whole yard. He added two or more sachets to the water drum and sprayed at the garage walls and floor. He also treated the garden.

Lastly, the dog cages. He washed these with a lemon-scented dishwashing soap first. When everything was clean, he sprayed every single cage and matting. He made sure that every corner was treated. After drying, he moved the dog cages from their usual place, beside a wall and above a cemented floor, to the middle of the garden, now planted with Bermuda grass. After a few hours, he placed the dogs inside again.

Because one-year-old babies tend to lick everything, treating our room was more complicated since we couldn't use any dangerous product and risk our baby's health. Since we heard that lemon-scented products tend to repel ticks, he used dishwashing soap for our room's walls and floor. He cleaned the walls using a hard-bristled brush to penetrate the tiny holes where the ticks could hide. After washing, he sprayed water with a bit of Clorox to disinfect.

He did this whole process every other day for two weeks. After a month or two, we finally went home.

The Last Crawlers

I could still see a few survivors crawling on the floor inside our bedroom. According to my husband, maybe they were newly hatched. Already tired of dealing with these ticks, I removed everything from our room, single-handedly caught every tick I saw, and drowned them in a bowl of rubbing alcohol.

After a few days of spending some good hours doing this routine, we could no longer see any crawlers inside and outside our bedroom. To make sure, I spent a few more days vacuuming the walls, floor, bed, and everything. Although we had already claimed our victory, we still took some preventive measures. We brushed the whole bedroom again with Joy Lemon, leaving it for at least 30 minutes before rinsing it with water. After drying, we sprayed it with Organic Citronella.


After months of battling these ectoparasites, our house and dogs became again free from annoying fleas and ticks. As maintenance and prevention, we bought medicated dog collars/tick collars for dogs. Yes, they're effective for our dogs so far. Just don't let them get wet.

That was one of the most challenging problems we had as a family, and indeed, a big lesson was learned...

Never underestimate fleas and ticks since they can invade anything quickly. Prevention is always easier than cure.

Special Note to Readers

You may have landed on this blog because you have the same situation as we did before. I created this post to share our own experiences. The products my husband used are strong enough to endanger both humans and animals. If you plan to do the same, seek a professional's assistance and ensure that the rest of your family (especially your kids) isn't present during the process.

While spraying the exterior part of your house, make sure that you put your dogs somewhere safe where they can't inhale or ingest the insecticide. Lastly, use e-collars or dog cones to avoid poisoning when applying solid chemicals to your pets.

Some of the links within this article are Amazon affiliate links. If you directly buy these products through these links, I will get a small commission that will help me keep this blog running. Whether you buy these products through these links or directly from Amazon, the selling price will be the same.