Do Pellets Harbor Fleas?

[Toolman]

Hi everyone,

We took my nine year old son to his doctor for what looked like an allergic reaction to some meds. The PNP said that they looked like bites, almost like flea bites. She asked if he had been handling wood, and he said, "only wood pellets." She said, "There you have it!"

It seemed a little strange that none of the rest of us have these same "bite marks" from handling the pellets. We have mainly carried them into the basement.

I did not make it to the appointment to argue the point, but when my wife told me, I told her that I would think that the heat process used to dry the sawdust should kill any fleas.

Does anyone know... do wood pellets harbor fleas?

 

[HarryBack]

I agree with Dylan. While Im not a doctor, I think I would look a bit more into this before you say theres flea bites on him because of the pellets. My guess is the doctor wouldnt know a wood pellet from a Holz Hausen! What about dust mites? They can certainly cause allergic reactions which may appear as bites. Allergies to fabric softener of detergent? Spider bites? Its EXCEEDINGLY odd that only he would have these bites. Fleas are invasive...irregardless of how they got there, everyone would be getting bites. Oh, and Ive never heard of fleas in pellets, but did see a post awhile ago about fleas in the woodpile.....

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Maybe the pellet bit him.

Hey, it's just as probable as what the Dr suggested. I don't see why any animal would hang around where there wasn't a food source. The pellet bag doesn't have too many hosts...

 

[Corey]

I think you are correct by thinking that the pellet manufacturing process would kill any fleas present at that time. However, if a bag was exposed to fleas at some later point, they might take up refuge. It wouldn't seem that the pellets would offer anything other than a place to shelter for the fleas...ie ..no nutritional value.

I can relate somewhat, though...this past spring, I was checking out an old storage building with a concrete floor. After a few minutes in the building, I felt something on my legs and a few bites. I looked down to see hundreds of little black specs all over my shoes and pants (and inside!). I cant imagine that anything in that building would have actually been food for the fleas, but they had taken up refugeand were just sitting there waiting for something with body heat to walk by, then they attacked in mass.

If you think there might be fleas in the pellets, you might try to expose your forearm or hand in the area of an open bag for a few seconds. If there is any in there, they will probably be hungry and looking for a meal. You will know pretty quick. If nothing starts to feed, it may be time to look at other possibilities.

Corey

 

[Eric Johnson]

The only species of wood that harbors fleas, I believe, is dogwood.

 

[moralleper]

Where are the bites located? Generally Fleas only bite humans on the neck and the soft patches of skin behind the knees and on the inside of the arm, like the arm pit and the inside of the elbow. I think the dr used the pellets as an easy out. we have pellets and a dog and do not have fleas.

 

[Corey]

The only species of wood that harbors fleas, I believe, is dogwood.

Bwa Haa Haa Haa

 

[Toolman]

Thanks for the replies...

My son saw the PNP (Pediatric Nurse Practitioner.) His next visit will be to the pediatrician. He is very qualified, does not have issues with wood (that I know of... I don't know of many people here in Maine that have issues with wood, given all that we have up here.), and is very attentive to details (without boring you with a story, he found a malignant tumor in my son's belly twelve hours after he was born with his exam.)

My first question to my wife was, why do none of the rest of us have the bites, as I have carried every bag of pellets down into the basement!

We definitely have some more investigation to do here, but I did not think that fleas are the answer. Thanks for the input.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Might want to spread some boric acid around. Check out the MSDS.

(broken link removed to http://physchem.ox.ac.uk/MSDS/BO/boric_acid.html)

It's considered harmless and works darn well against anything with an exoskelaton. It's not exciting enough to find in BORGs, but you can still find it at your trusty hardware store.

Matt

 

[begreen]

Do you have pets and carpets? Does he lie on the floor alot?

It's unlikely that fleas have taken up refuge in the pellets. That sounds like a real stretch. Almost all of the bags I've handled are sealed tight unless they've been manhandled. I think it's good to keep investigating. Good luck finding the source of the issue. But I think the pellets theory is barking up the wrong tree.

Bed mites?

 

[dbchris]

I was told the same ting by my daughters doctor. Perhaps she has flea bites. The DR. asked if we had pets. Yes we have 2 dogs. He thought it was flea bites on my daughters legs. I thought how odd, if she has bites wouldn't the rest of us? It turned out to be poison ivy. We have a lot of it around here. Good luck.

 

[begreen]

That and your fine pheromones friend. ;-)