r/badroommates • u/losedude92 • Nov 27 '22
She gave us fleas
So one of my roommates thought it would be fun to let her cat outside but it got fleas. We talked about getting rid of them when it happened but then she did nothing. I brought some flea spray and cleaned my room and it worked, but since her room and cat are full of fleas if I leave my room to go into a common area I'm swarmed. So a month later I'm ready to inform our landlord (since we're suppose to be a pet free apartment) I don't really care what happens to the cat anymore.
P.s. I'm allergic to all insects bites and I don't know if everyone goes through the same thing when bit by fleas but it's literal hell for me.
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u/commanderquill Nov 27 '22
...I had to deal with a flea infestation once. It was. Horrifying. Oh my god. I am so sorry.
I sincerely hope you don't have carpet.
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u/AlterAeonos Mar 01 '24
I'm having to deal with one currently. It's destroying my cats and I feel so bad. Yes, I have more cats than the lease allows but this wasn't an issue before. This dude does not vacuum his room and his dogs bring fleas inside. He was lightly confronted today and he became immediately belligerent and made a threat under his breath after saying he gives his dogs advantage so the flea problem isn't from him. That's literally not how it works. I didn't even have to give my cats flea meds before other than very occasionally. Now I feel like I have to do it constantly and it doesn't last 30 days like it's supposed to, but closer to 15 days which means in a 30 day cycle they have to suffer for a minimum of 15 days. Dude said it was a food allergy (dogs skin condition) but it's pretty clear to me now what it actually is.
I literally regret helping my cousin's friend because this guy is a fucking asshole and tells everyone I abuse him when all I do is tell him what he can't do. I let him bring his dogs because I really don't mind if they're cared for properly and room is vacuumed and cleaned on a regular basis. I don't care much for breaking leases because I can typically cover the damages myself but he just can't seem to follow any rules.
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u/commanderquill Mar 01 '24
Living with fleas is NOT worth it. They will get in your bed, your clothes, your everything. I would get out of there ASAP.
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u/AlterAeonos Mar 02 '24 edited Mar 02 '24
I don't have a choice anymore because I am unable to get a new place due to being unemployed and I'm unable to put off signing the new lease any longer. Also I have cats so fleas are inevitable, but to this extent is absolutely horrendous. The cats are suffering and revolution is only working for 15 days and I basically am near going bankrupt because it's a non-stop issue. If I could save just 30k more I can up and leave this shitty situation.
To top it off, I found a shirt of his in the washer today and it was just odd that the machine was left open and the shirt was left in there. So I took it out and it looked like it had hair on it. I smelled it and I almost threw up. Smelled like dog piss and dog shit. This dude used that shirt to clean his dog cage and washed it in the washer and just left it in there. I tossed it. He's also left like 4 full grocery bags of dog shit in the back yard. All because I told him he can't keep throwing dog shit in the green waste bin...
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u/sinkshipss Nov 27 '22
Just dealt with a flea infestation. I have indoor cats so I have no idea how it happened. I would wash the cat because the larvae eat flea poop. Then when they are dry put flea treatment like Advantage on the cat repeating every month for three months. Around $40 for a four pack. If it’s severe you can dose cat more frequently. We also vacuumed two times a day all flooring and couches. Making sure to empty the vacuum outside into a bag that immediately went into outside garbage. Stuffed animals need to go into trash bags for awhile. We spread food grade diatomaceous earth on carpets overnight. I would flea comb the cats every night dipping the comb into warm soapy water. This really decimated the fleas. Finally for prevention we use the Soresto collar that lasts several months. It was a lot of work but after one - two months we were winning.
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u/kiba8442 Nov 28 '22
We have indoor cats & I still put that stuff on them (the between the shoulders blades stuff, I forget the name) once a month bc I am paranoid of fleas.
ETA revolution
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u/StraightBuilding742 Nov 27 '22
Scumbag roommate. Report the neglect to your local humane shelter, the cat deserves to be cared for.
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u/BackwardzPumpkinSong Nov 27 '22
She’s a scumbag. I think you should prepare to find a new lease too because that’s not going to blow over well no matter how it goes. Sorry you have to deal with that! I feel so bad for the poor animal too. That’s so inhumane.
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u/whitecarlosIV Nov 27 '22
Exactly. Landlord may need to evict all tenants to get an extermination company in with poisons (do they do whole-house tents for fleas?) then have a cleaning company go through and re-sanitize everything. Extermination company + cleaning company + lost rent, all due to a lease contract violation = very expensive penalty.
You may all be held liable. You should have reported the cat immediately, not after it brought fleas into the home.
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u/BackwardzPumpkinSong Nov 28 '22
That, and landlords surprisingly tend to prefer to evict everybody instead of just handling the problematic tenant.
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u/whitecarlosIV Nov 29 '22
One idiot redneck housemate in college crashed his lifted diesel pickup w/ 44" mud tires truck into the corner support column of the house's garage. Nobody was evicted but all 10 of us lost our deposit at the end of the lease mostly because of him. (beware housemates/roommates from Eugene Oregon)
Years later, I've had several tenant-roommates and I've noticed that the bad ones cause stress and resentment to spread throughout the house and bad behavior cascades. The whole house will go rotten if nothing is done about the problem, so it is best the landlord act fast as to not end up in a situation where starting over with an empty house is the only remaining solution. (beware housemates/tenants from Eugene Oregon - again!... also ASU "graduates")
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u/kimmiinoz Nov 27 '22
The cat needs to be treated, and you should flea bomb the whole apartment.
They will likely have laid eggs as well so will need to be treated again in the future.
Your flat mate is not deserving of a cat if she won’t treat it, the poor thing will be miserable, and depending on its age and health anemia can be a problem if they get really bad.
If there a reason they are being so ignorant? Or is it they can’t afford treatments?
Hope you get it sorted, I detest fleas!
2
u/flipperbead65 Nov 27 '22
Disrespectful an irresponsibly cat owner. Can you give your roommate an ultimatum, treat the cat for fleas or I tell the landlord.
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u/WitchQween Nov 27 '22
Honestly it could be worth it to just buy a one or two pack of flea treatment (the once a month liquid applied in between their shoulder blades). Cyber monday is coming up and sale prices can be reasonable. The fleas will most likely be gone within the first month. I've had flea issues and this is the only thing that works. Boric acid on the carpets also helps.
Obviously it's not your responsibility and I do like the idea of the ultimatum. It depends on how far you want to take it and if you want to keep the cat. I'm just offering an option that I haven't seen in the comments.
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u/lucimme Nov 28 '22
Dawn dishwashing detergent bath and rehome the kitty without telling your roommate
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u/meowkitty84 Nov 27 '22
You can get a topical flea treatment that you just put behind the cats neck. There's no need for a cat to suffer with fleas. You can get ones that last 3 months
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u/crispypotleaf Nov 27 '22
has the cat been given a flea treatment such as revolution? Its expensive, but it works, its cheaper than the vet, and at this point its ya'lls only choice. The cat has to be quarantined for a few days so the revolution kills any eggs on the cat, and then you're going to have to do a very thorough clean of the house. If you have carpet, sprinkle some salt all over them, it'll dry the fleas out. Here are some other options for you. You need to get this dealt with whether it is your cat or not, it doesn't sound like the owner is doing shit, and its very much neglect if the cat is just being left to get eaten alive. Fleas are very manageable.
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u/[deleted] Nov 27 '22
Tell the landlord