Can Fleas Live in a House Without Pets?

Technically, two weeks is a long time to starve adult fleas and in one way or the other, they will hunt for food even if it means feeding on you.

Fleas will not go away without pets at home because they can live for up to 2 weeks without a host. They will find a way to feed on humans if they lack pets. If you manage to starve them, they will stop spreading because the female will not lay eggs without a blood meal.  

They will start infesting your bedroom if there are no pets and your bed will be their first choice because they can suck on your blood as you sleep.

Can fleas survive without pets?

When fleas do not find pets to host them, your bedroom will provide all the comfort they need. Fleas thrive on warmth and are attracted by the carbon dioxide we breathe out. When sleeping, we make our beds warm and we will also accumulate CO2 in one place.

The next place they will infest and live in is your sitting room couch or seats. If they are made of fabric, this will be a safe hiding place for them. This is because fabrics will tend to be warm as compared to leather seats which become cold at night.

Can fleas survive on humans when there are no pets?

Yes, fleas can live off humans if there are no pets. They will attack when you are seated or sleeping and find a way of sucking your blood before they go away. This is because fleas do not like taking on the human body for long because they are too exposed.

However, if you have a habit of not taking a shower and putting on the same clothes, chances are that fleas will leave on your clothes and bite you. This normally happens during the cold season when some people do not like taking showers.

If you are hairy, fleas can find warmth at the roots of the thick hair you keep. This can be your beards or your head. Fleas can live on people’s hair if they do not find pets. This is why you should always keep them well trimmed and if possible, use the right shampoo.

Thick human hair can provide a good habitat for fleas. However, they will only choose this if there are no pets at all.

It has also been noted that there is only one type of fleas that prefer sucking human blood. This does not however mean that the rest will spare you if they lack their favorite hosts.

This explains why it will not be easy for fleas to go away if there are no pets in your house. However, if you are a clean and tidy person, then fleas will disappear very fast from your house. It will be hard for fleas to survive on humans if cleanliness is observed.

How long can fleas survive without pets?

In most cases, the common fleas found on pets will not survive for more than 14 days without blood from pets.

However, they can jump on humans and bite the skin to get blood before they get off. They do not like staying on human skin because there is no canopy that will hide them.

It has also been observed that fleas preferred hairy pets compared to those that have less hair. There are some cat and dog breeds that are not hairy. As much as fleas will feed on them, they will not stay for long. They will keep looking for comfortable grounds.

Female fleas can never lay eggs until they have food. This means that without pets, fleas will not spread in your home and they will eventually go away. This means that it may take at least 1 month to completely starve fleas out without pets.

Starving fleas out is not really an efficient way of getting rid of them. Many prefer to look for ways of getting them out without waiting for them to eventually die off.

When there are no pets but you still have an infestation at home, you may want to get rid of fleas from your carpet, seats, and your bedroom in general. If you do not have pesticides, you can use essential oils like clove oil to get rid of fleas.

Will fleas go away if there are farm animals with no pets?

Fleas will not go away if there are farm animals with no pets as long as they have fur with warm blood just like your pets.

Examples of farm animals that can easily host fleas when there are no pets are sheep, pigs, goats, and even cattle. AS long as they can get fresh blood, they will keep multiplying and breeding.

They like farm animals that have a lot of furs and are hairy. This is because fleas do not like too much light. UV light can also kill fleas because the light will damage their cells.

In addition, when flea larvae are exposed to direct sunlight, they cannot survive. Direct sunlight will kill them and that is why the female will not lay eggs on animals that stay for long in the sun.

Pets spend a lot of time in the house and their fur makes a good breeding place for fleas. They enjoy a good warm shade with readily available food that is hustle free when they attack your pets. They will even lay eggs and if not controlled, the whole house can be infested.

Reference:

1. City of New York: Fleas, what do they feed on? by NYC
2. Hairfinder, Human hair, and fleas by Stacy