Tuesday, September 06, 2011

There is someone new in my life.  Last night I was serenaded and wooed into to the wee hours of the morning and at about 8:00am I had had enough and wanted to kill that damn cricket.  I can’t tell exactly where it is...somewhere between my laundry basket and my dry cleaning pile.  I don’t recall being as annoyed when camping, yet I doubt there was a cricket chirping two feet from my head either.

Now the glass half full side of me is feeling pretty good about herself.  My basement companionship is growing.  I now share my space with two spiders, a mouse and a cricket!  Oh and, maybe fleas….

A couple days ago I noticed mom’s male Miniature Schnauzer, Duke, scratching at his belly.  It wasn’t non-stop but it was regular enough that I told mom to take a look at him.  She didn’t see anything.  Next day Duke was downstairs, outside my bedroom door and I could hear the thump, thump, thump of him scratching so I got up to look at him.  Fleas scurrying everywhere.  Good grief.

I announce to mother that he is infested and showed her.  This time she could see them.  Now what to do?  Mom said she would put more Frontline on him.  I wasn’t sure how that was going to help him now, yet mom assured me that once the medicine soaked into his skin, the fleas would die if they bit him.  Ok, whatever.

Next day, Dukie still scratching, under further review, still infested.  I arm myself with trusty Google and search out homeopathic rid flea methods.  Seems lemon juice has something in it fleas don’t like.  The recipe called for a pot of boiling water, a slice or two of lemons and an overnight steep.  Screw that, we all have the skin crawlies, are scratching everywhere and need relief fast.

I sacrificed the last inch of 409 and rinsed out the spray bottle.  I filled it ½ with bottled lemon juice and added a bit of water.  Mom held Duke and I blasted his belly.  He wasn’t too happy and I guess it was cold.  The black specs fled.

I later read that fleas will scurry to the head area, that we should have put a ring of juice around his neck first to impede their migration.  It’s a day later and Duke won’t let mom or me near him.  We have no idea if it worked, he won’t get close enough to us for us to know if he’s still scratching or not.  I, on the other hand, am itching all over, still.  Dad came home from fishing and after hearing the story asked if perhaps that is why he's been itching for the last few weeks.  I scratched my head, my arm, my face and reached for the wine bottle.