How to get fleas out of boots and rucksack

[Andy B]

Bit embarrassing, but I seem to have picked up fleas which have now got into my boots and rucksack. Any ideas how to get rid of them ? Thinking of going home as I feel grumpy and pretty p....d off.

 

[HedaP]

Oh that doesn’t sound good. I would be tempted to get a can of insect spray and a plastic bag large enough to put all the gear in. Spray into the bag, seal it and let the spray do its work.
If you want a more natural solution, a quick google search says that putting your gear in a clothes dryer will kill fleas. Sun also kills fleas which may work for your boots.
Best wishes.

 

[t2andreo]

The "sun solution" involves placing the affected items into a large BLACK bin bag, sealing the bag, and setting them to bake in the hot sun for as long as you can. Being in Spain (or where I live in Florida) helps with this. The high temperature is supposed to cook the little buggers and their eggs dead.

Hope this helps.

 

[martin1ws]

...
If you want a more natural solution, a quick google search says that putting your gear in a clothes dryer will kill fleas. Sun also kills fleas which may work for your boots.
Best wishes.

Here are some additional links:
http://fleascience.com/flea-encyclo...emperature-do-fleas-die/does-heat-kill-fleas/
http://fleacures.com/kill-fleas-in-dryer/

 

[Anniesantiago]

I wonder if you have bedbugs, and not fleas?
Have you SEEN fleas?
Please read the threads on bedbugs and consider taking post-bedbug precautions.

 

[Andy B]

I wonder if you have bedbugs, and not fleas?
Have you SEEN fleas?
Please read the threads on bedbugs and consider taking post-bedbug precautions.

Hi Anniesantiago thanks for your reply. I went to the chemist in Najera and he confirmed that they were flea bites and not chinches. I’ve done the heat thing and washed them at high temperature however my lovely rucksack now resembles a bum bag or fanny pack as our American pilgrims say. Hope it works.

 

[SYates]

Hi @Andy B

I would be careful identifying insects only by their bites! They look different on different persons, depending how allergic somebody is. Have you actually seen the little "treasures" jumping around? Or only their bites?

Buen Camino, SY

 

[Andy B]

Hi @Andy B

I would be careful identifying insects only by their bites! They look different on different persons, depending how allergic somebody is. Have you actually seen the little "treasures" jumping around? Or only their bites?

Buen Camino, SY

Just their bites. The chemists stems that they are around the ankles where they tend to bite.. Like I’ve said I done the heat and wash protocol so be it flea or chinch they should hopefully be gone. I’ll do a bedbug routine before going home. Hopes this works as I was really starting to get into the Camino.

 

[Anniesantiago]

Can you post a photo?

 

[SYates]

Bites around the ankles sound indeed more like fleas - Have you had any contact with dogs or cats lately? BC SY

 

[Kelly Krupke]

If you can find diatomaceous earth, a generous sprinkling will get rid off them. All natural, no chemicals, works for any bug.

 

[Former member 49149]

Andy, don't give up! Persevere. It will sort itself out, get as angry as you can, and you will get rid of the ... creatures.

 

[nycwalking]

Unfortunately, the camino comes with both good and bad.

Try and push through.

Prayerfully the little blighters will die off or go away asap.

Buen camino soon.

 

[Nurah]

Please, don't abandon your journey! Just as in all of life, there will be ups and down, and I'm confident you will have many, many more wonderful experiences as your Camino journey continues. Peace, and more peace!

 

[GettingThere]

Just their bites. The chemists stems that they are around the ankles where they tend to bite.. Like I’ve said I done the heat and wash protocol so be it flea or chinch they should hopefully be gone. I’ll do a bedbug routine before going home. Hopes this works as I was really starting to get into the Camino.

Those do sound like flea bites. But you're most likely to have been bitten somewhere they were living in the carpets or furniture (possibly more than one place). If you haven't seen them in your pack or shoes it's quite unlikely you're carrying them with you. Spray if you want to, but don't let this derail your Camino! Flea bites are a nuisance but don't need to be a Camino - ending event. Being all to familiar with the little b****rs I've wondered whether some of the bedbug bites reported by pilgrims have really been flea bites. Use soothing cream, and try to stop your socks rubbing on the bites when possible.

Buen (bite free) Camino!

 

[Andy B]

Please, don't abandon your journey! Just as in all of life, there will be ups and down, and I'm confident you will have many, many more wonderful experiences as your Camino journey continues. Peace, and more peace!

Please, don't abandon your journey! Just as in all of life, there will be ups and down, and I'm confident you will have many, many more wonderful experiences as your Camino journey continues. Peace, and more peace!

Have regrouped in Burgos and will push on tomorrow. Many thanks for your advice.

 

[Anamiri]

The eggs are small and white, make sure you shake them out best you can, as new ones will hatch.

 

[kelleymac]

If you can find diatomaceous earth, a generous sprinkling will get rid off them. All natural, no chemicals, works for any bug.

Greetings from your friendly rather outdated Camino Toxicologist:

Diatomacaous Earth will definitely kill them fast. Just make sure you don't breathe it in. After use, wash and/or vacuum out your pack and boots. Diatomaceous Earth is very fine fossilized diatoms with sharp corners and it cuts up the breathing apparatus of insects. It can also get by our mammalian lung defenses. Just treat the stuff with caution and respect even though it's non-chemical.

 

[t2andreo]

According to my Bing Translator, better IMHO than Google, the Spanish for "Diatomaceous Earth" is:

"Tierra de diatomeas"

Just sayin... Try a farmacia first, then maybe a ferrateria, florist, or garden store.

Hope this helps.

 

[SYates]

According to my Bing Translator, better IMHO than Google, the Spanish for "Diatomaceous Earth" is:

"Tierra de diatomeas"

...

In cases like this Wikipedia is the better option, go to the respective Wiki article in English https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diatomaceous_earth
Scroll down until you see in the left sidebar the different languages and click on español and you arrive at this article https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diatomita

Diatomaceous Earth = diatomita ;-)

Hope that helps, BC sin bichos, SY

 

[naplesdon]

I would be interested to hear where/how this happened.
After returning from a long summer away from my house many years ago, I found it full of fleas. I never saw a flea on my dog but obviously that was not the case because their eggs hatched and re hatched ad infinitum in my carpet. So my question is: was this a place with animals that had been closed for the winter and then reopened recently without an opportunity for the fleas to be reunite with their cousins on either the cat(s) or the dog(s)?

 

[Andy B]

I would be interested to hear where/how this happened.
After returning from a long summer away from my house many years ago, I found it full of fleas. I never saw a flea on my dog but obviously that was not the case because their eggs hatched and re hatched ad infinitum in my carpet. So my question is: was this a place with animals that had been closed for the winter and then reopened recently without an opportunity for the fleas to be reunite with their cousins on either the cat(s) or the dog(s)?

Hi Biarritzdon. I’ve no idea how or where it happened. I started on Thursday 26th April and started noticing the bites on the Monday. I’ve ditched the rucksack and nuked everything else in the tumble dryer so here’s hoping.

 

[t2andreo]

If you live in South Florida, and I know you do, carpet is verboten! Your experience is one of the reasons.

Clearly, the fleas came in on some warm blooded mammal. They deposited their eggs in the nice warm and cozy carpet. It only takes a couple...

Flea eggs can lay dormant until they sense a blood source nearby. Nature is weird like that.

So, when you returned, they sensed "MEAL" and hatched en masse. I recall that fleas are most resilient when in the egg stage.

Hope you got rid of the carpet, and brought in an exterminator.

 

[naplesdon]

If you live in South Florida, and I know you do, carpet is verboten! Your experience is one of the reasons.

This happened years ago before I move to Florida, but I could imagine if one had a cat that lounged in chairs, beds and on throw rugs this would create the same problem. That's why I opined that the pilg must have stayed in a place that had been closed up during winter and recently opened for the season. From his response, I don't think we will ever know.
BTW, how's it going in SdC? I start walking next Sunday from Laredo after attending the European Rugby Cup in Bilbao over the weekend.

 

[t2andreo]

I returned home last Saturday, arriving at 0100 on Sunday, after some 25 hours of travel and airport layovers. The next time, July - August, I am flying direct MIA - MAD - SCQ and reverse. I am DONE trying to save a dollar...

At 65, time is precious...too precious to spend in an airport, or doodling around in the skies to suit the airlines hub and spoke system. Nope, Iberia direct and non-stop flights for me...

Things in SdC were fine when I was there. All the gang is well and healthy. Sybil has her hands full with the emerging Anglican Chaplaincy. She is doing a fabulous job of it. In addition, she is getting support from the network of expat Camino addicts living there (wish I were), as well as from the Archbishop's office (yes, in the Cathedral).

Daily arrivals at the Pilgrim Office are increasing to about 1,500 daily now. BY the time I return to work as a volunteer in mid=July, the numbers will very likely be over 2,000 daily. They are thinking that it will start hitting 3,000 daily in the weeks surrounding the Feast of Santiago on 25 July. It is going to be a busy, yet fulfilling summer I think.

Where is Laredo, on which Camino route? Enjoy the Rugby Championships. Europeans love to decry our American rules football for its violence. But, if you want to to see violence, watch a Rugby championship match... I do not know WHERE the players find the energy (must be all that beer). Personally, I agree with them. I much prefer football (soccer) to US rules football.

Buen Camino, my friend.

 

[JCarpenter]

Just their bites. The chemists stems that they are around the ankles where they tend to bite.. Like I’ve said I done the heat and wash protocol so be it flea or chinch they should hopefully be gone. I’ll do a bedbug routine before going home. Hopes this works as I was really starting to get into the Camino.

Similar problem, but with my car. My vet suggested applying the liquid flea meds to my dog and letting the dog sleep in my car for a night. It worked. I wonder if you can get flea meds for dogs in Spain?