The Hack
Your pet is the one who brought the fleas in, so it's only natural to think that evicting your pet will be a part of the solution.
This can mean banishing your pet to the outdoors, sending the pet away temporarily, or even giving away your pet completely. Unfortunately, this is likely to do more harm than good!
This can mean banishing your pet to the outdoors, sending the pet away temporarily, or even giving away your pet completely. Unfortunately, this is likely to do more harm than good!
Limitations
Fleas prefer cats, dogs, and people, in that order. If a cat is present, nearly all of the fleas in the house will focus on the cat, unless the infestation has gotten very extreme.
By removing the cat, you have removed the fleas' preferred host, forcing them to seek out a less desirable host out of desperation: you.
The result will be a huge increase in the number of flea bites that humans in the house receive. And it won't get rid of an infestation either since there are already eggs, larvae, and pupae all over the place, which will continually be transitioning into the adult stage where they will seek you out and bite you. A flea pupa can survive in hibernation for a year, so even if no new eggs are laid it can take over a year to fully eliminate the infestation after removing the cat. But removing the cat does nothing to stop fleas from obtaining a blood meal from humans, laying eggs, and perpetuating the infestation indefinitely.
By removing the cat, you have removed the fleas' preferred host, forcing them to seek out a less desirable host out of desperation: you.
The result will be a huge increase in the number of flea bites that humans in the house receive. And it won't get rid of an infestation either since there are already eggs, larvae, and pupae all over the place, which will continually be transitioning into the adult stage where they will seek you out and bite you. A flea pupa can survive in hibernation for a year, so even if no new eggs are laid it can take over a year to fully eliminate the infestation after removing the cat. But removing the cat does nothing to stop fleas from obtaining a blood meal from humans, laying eggs, and perpetuating the infestation indefinitely.
A better alternative
Instead of removing pets from the area, it's much better to treat the pet with an oral flea medication (or topical if pills are not an option). This is incredibly effective and will provide immediate relief.