Fleas, fleas, go away! Natural flea remedy

Scratch, scratch, scratch...that's my two lab mixes right now. The lack of a good, cold winter and snow has brought an abundance of fleas to the our yard. My hubs, being the good man that he is, treated the yard in early February with the usual yard insect killer, but with neighbors all around us having one or more outside pets, the scratching has begun and I found a couple inside!

After researching on various websites on natural remedies to stop the "scratch, scratch, scratching," I came up with my own creation for helping stop the fleas from biting my two pets.  

4-5 Tbsp. dried lavender buds

4-5 Tbsp. dried spearmint leaves

2 bay leaves

3 Tbsp. dried tarragon leaves

2 Tbsp. dried sage

1/8 tsp. cinnamon

2 used Lipton tea bags

Put all of the above in a large plastic pitcher or bowl. Boil 4 cups of water (I used my tea kettle) and pour over the herbs and bags. Allow to steep and cool down.  You may dilute this a bit when rinsing your pet during their bath. 

*I also plan to use the steeped herbs with their shampoo to add to the flea fighting benefits. Leave the herbal shampoo on your pet for about 5 minutes before you begin rinsing with plain water. Final rinse with the herbal mix. 

Now I have read as well that a shampoo with a high concentration of a citrus essential oil would also help relieve the "itchy-scratchy" feeling our pets get. 

In the past, I have used Tea Tree oil ( I used Paul Mitchell's Tea Tree Shampoo, yes it was for me originally, but I wanted to try it). This did work for my pets and gave them a wonderful smell as well. 

I do not recommend using Borax, as some blogs, as it can be toxic to pets and children. 

Next thing on my list to try for flea fighting: steeping sliced lemons in hot water and using it as a spray.