Green Daily

Every week we pick a theme to explore in more depth, and this week that theme is eco-friendly pets. To read all our posts related to this theme, click here.

If you have a cat or a dog, chances are you've fought the Battle of the Flea once or twice. Maybe you've used chemical foggers, collars, carpet sprays and powders... but the fleas keep coming back. Well there are a few basic things you need to learn about fleas in general, and just how possible it is to control them with natural alternatives.

The fact is, even if your animal never goes outside, there's always that chance that fleas will come back if not treated regularly. A single flea can lay as many as 60 eggs per day, and the lifespan of a flea is about 90 days. So eliminating and preventing them should be an ongoing project, like feeding them or grooming them.

One of the most popular flea control methods for dogs is garlic. Chop a little up, throw it in their food and they'll never know the difference. Dogs will eat anything. With cats though, it's a very different situation. Some people swear by garlic for their cats, but professionals say it can cause severe liver damage and ultimately death, so it's not worth the chance.

Other alternatives include brewer's yeast, lemon spray and Diatomaceousearth powder. I've personally found that sprinkling salt on your rugs helps tremendously. For much more extensive information on this subject, please check out the other articles I have linked throughout this post.