A flea's revenge

April 22, 2008 5:04 AM

We've had a sudden attack of fleas on our pets. That's been dealt with (with liberal doses of Frontline), but it's left me with a huge number of flea bites on my legs. Any suggestions for calming and healing them?

My wife is not bothered by flea bites, but I see to be somewhat allergic. My legs are covered in red blotches that itch like crazy. Although the fleas themselves are gone, their bites remain, and they are driving me mad. Anybody got any suggestions for calming the bites and quickly healing the scars from the ones I've scratched at already?

posted by anonymous to health (16 comments total)

I was in the same situation, so my dear friend I emphasize with you. There is no need for shame, rest assured.

I found that the itchiness went down fairly quickly, but my ankles and feet where speckled with little red dots for a little while. They didn't hurt, but they where aesthetically annoying.

Swing by the pharmacist and get a nice vitamin e moisturizer cream, maybe with some calming aloe in it. If they are really bad, antihistamines will help with the scratchiness and, I should think, any lingering reaction itself.

But its mostly a matter of time, waiting for them to heal naturally will take a little bit of time. If you wear socks and long pants people won't know, and plus you won't be easily able to get at it to scratch.

P.S Sometimes you'll experience a secondary attack in ~6 weeks when the eggs hatch and the cycle begins again. It's frustrating, but you sound like you have a handle on flea-management strategies. Vacuuming helps!
posted by oxford blue at 5:20 AM on April 22

Give Calamine Lotion a try. It's made to remove itching.
posted by PowerCat at 5:46 AM on April 22

Did you do 3-4 months of Frontline? The only way to use Frontline to successfully get rid of fleas is to use it once a month for 3-4 months (4 to be sure), it can only kill certain life stages of the fleas, so you need to use it monthly to kill off each successive wave of maturing fleas (and I'm hoping "liberal doses" is just there for dramatic effect, and that you used the correct dose for the size/species of pet you have), the pets basically act as exterminators with Frontline, walking around picking up the fleas, who then bite the pet and get Frontlined. People often think that one treatment is enough, and that is not the way the product is designed to work.

Antihistamines if you're allergic, plus topical creams like calamine/caladryl should help your bites.
posted by biscotti at 5:55 AM on April 22

Keep an eye on the house as sometimes weeks later you will get a little mini, or even not so mini, flea reinvasion when the eggs hatch. If the cats are treated they will be looking for new hosts.
posted by caddis at 6:02 AM on April 22

As someone has suffered through both chicken pox and flea infestations I must testify that calamine helps not one wit, not one. The notion that it is useful sadly lives on, defying all empirical knowledge.

To wit, from the wikipedia article on same: "In 1992 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration asserted that there was no proof the main ingredients in calamine (zinc oxide and ferric oxide) had any real therapeutic effect on rashes and itching.[8]"
posted by oxford blue at 6:25 AM on April 22

Try sitting in an oatmeal bath. You can make your own or just buy the stuff at the drugstore. It seems to help itching more than anything else. Other than that, just wait it out. The marks should be gone within the next week; flea bites heal at about the same rate as mosquito bites, so, probably 5 - 7 days max.
posted by mygothlaundry at 9:08 AM on April 22

My husband shares your sensitivity to flea bites. We've found that using a mix of benadryl ointment and a triple antibiotic ointment worked to calm things down. Flea bites are dirty and often slightly infected hence the antibiotic. You can also try a hydrocortisone ointment but it's better to not mix it with antibiotic.
posted by leslies at 9:40 AM on April 22

Fleas and mosquitoes seem to love me and, like you, I react strongly to their bites.

The thing that makes the biggest difference to how long the bites last on me is whether or not I scratch them. Leaving them alone will reduce the duration your suffering considerably.

Beyond that, I have found that very hot water applied to the bites with a washcloth for a few seconds can provide some significant relief. It helps take the edge off the itch for a while, which really helps me to leave them alone. I recommended it here, where others have provided some additional ideas. In that thread, I also mentioned some research that is skeptical about the usual recommendations for topical vitamin E, in case it is applicable.
posted by nobodyyouknow at 9:51 AM on April 22

I am very sensitive to mosquito bites, and my dermatologist prescribed me DesOwen (Desonide 5%) Cream. It's the only thing that works for me. You may be able to just call your doc and explain your problems and ask him to rx something - explain that you know it's flea bites, not hives or anything else, and you probably won't even have to go in for an appointment.

Also, make sure you follow Biscotti's advice on the Frontline - it does need to be done every month! There is also a pill that you doc can give your pet called CapStar that kills all the fleas immediately - Frontline is meant to be a long-term solution.
posted by radioamy at 10:35 AM on April 22

Itching is a low level pain response. Basic OTC pain are often helpful, try your prefered pain med - aspirin, Aleve, Tylenol or other.
posted by X4ster at 11:05 AM on April 22

For calming the irritation from insect bites this little device is incredible. It sends a tiny electric shock through the affected area which (for me, at least) totally relieves the itching. Only costs about £5, no batteries needed.
posted by boosh at 1:21 PM on April 22

Johnson & Johnson anti-itch spray gel (can be applied as often as necessary)
posted by mmf at 2:22 PM on April 22

Hot water.
posted by mingshan at 2:23 PM on April 22

I've got crazy itchy skin due to allergies. It comes and goes. Amlactin AP works well and Aveeno's anti-itch creams also work well. You may have to experiment to find what works for you.
posted by chairface at 5:19 PM on April 22

There with you on the sensitivity. Some people are just so attractive to bugs ... :-) I found that liquid Benadryl is the best fix for the itch. The red lumps, you just have to live with for a week or two.
Fog the house. Now. Most fleas live in the rugs and soft furnishings, not on the dog. They hop on and off as they feed. So eventually, they will all be affected, but a good few will survive and feed off you for the next week or two. If you fog, leave the house to air for several hours afterwards (we just spent the afternoon in the yard). Then, when the next set of eggs hatch out in 4-6 weeks, fog again. It is really not a big deal and you only need to worry about the main living area (unless the dogs sleep on your bed). Despite all the warnings about covering furniture, our fogging had no impact on the wood furniture. Just get all the food in cupboards or in the frig.
posted by Susurration at 8:23 PM on April 22

I used Benadryl Anti-Itch Cream. It was time-consuming to put it all on, and it may just have been psychological, but I found it helpful.

Also, resist the urge to scratch. If you catch yourself scratching, stop! My boyfriend and I were covered in flea bites last summer. He scratched, I (mostly) didn't. His looked much worse than mine.
posted by Locative at 11:02 PM on April 22