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Can I Use Diatomaceous Earth Around The Guinea Pigs?

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Sian25

Sian25

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This morning we have spotted a flea on our dog :( We do everything naturally and have never used chemicals on him. We use natural flea repellents on his fur and it's always worked but obviously not this time!

I have rubbed diatomaceous earth into his fur and I'm just leaving it to do it's magic now but I also want to treat the house. Ideally, I would sprinkle diatomaceous earth into the carpets- I know it's not supposed to be breathed in but I would be extra careful of this. Just wondering if this is a silly idea because guinea pigs respiratory systems are obviously a lot more sensitive. If you disagree with the use of diatomaceous earth around pigs, do you have any other suggestions please?
 
Perhaps you could put the guinea pigs in the bathroom for some floor time (pop a blanket down, add some hideys, add the pigs, close the door) while you sprinkle the DE into the carpet. Once it's sprinkled and settled I dont think it would be problematic (based on my logic, not research), it's more when it's being sprinkled and therefore in the air that it would get breathed in.
[I currently have sime sprinkled around my cats' food bowls as the ants keep going there. its working a charm!]
 
GPcrazy said:
Perhaps you could put the guinea pigs in the bathroom for some floor time (pop a blanket down, add some hideys, add the pigs, close the door) while you sprinkle the DE into the carpet. Once it's sprinkled and settled I dont think it would be problematic (based on my logic, not research), it's more when it's being sprinkled and therefore in the air that it would get breathed in.
[I currently have sime sprinkled around my cats' food bowls as the ants keep going there. its working a charm!]
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If it's only problematic while it's being sprinkled then that's fab! That would make sense because I covered the dogs face while it was being applied but it's not supposed to cause him any problems now that it's settled on his coat. I will move the pigs to the bathroom while I do it, thanks for the tip!
 
The guinea pigs have their own bedroom which is carpeted. It has a baby gate on the door and the dog doesn't go in their room.. Do I still need to treat their room? I've never dealt with fleas before you see. I've not seen any in the house and only found 1 on the dog, been right through his fur although I understand that they are good at hiding and don't want to take any chances with not treating the house too
 
I would set your piggies up in the bathroom for a good few hours (make sure they have hay and some water) and treat the carpet in their room. Leave it for a few hours then vacuum it up. Maybe repeat in a week (since ideally you'd probably leave it on the carpet for longer than just a few hours).
 
Thank you. I will definitely be doing this as a precaution. Will have to do it tomorrow though as I'm in work at 2pm today.

Sorry to sound such a cheap skate but does anyone know whether you can use plastic bags in a Henry Hoover? Or is this unsafe? I normally use the proper bags but I will be hoovering twice a day for a while to ensure there are no fleas in the house after applying the diatomaceous earth. I will throw the Hoover bag away after each use so will be pretty costly to use the Henry bags
 
GPcrazy said:
Perhaps you could put the guinea pigs in the bathroom for some floor time (pop a blanket down, add some hideys, add the pigs, close the door) while you sprinkle the DE into the carpet. Once it's sprinkled and settled I dont think it would be problematic (based on my logic, not research), it's more when it's being sprinkled and therefore in the air that it would get breathed in.
[I currently have sime sprinkled around my cats' food bowls as the ants keep going there. its working a charm!]
Click to expand...
Is it a good ant repellant ? If so.. i want some !
 
artcasper said:
Is it a good ant repellant ? If so.. i want some !
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I know that it kills all parasites, I've not heard of it being used for ants until now GPcrazy uses it. Make sure you get food grade diatomaceous earth though and not the type that is used for cleaning pools.

It is fabulous stuff! All natural and it's like a powder which is the fossils of diatoms. It works by slicing the parasite/insect and dehydrating them and kills them within 4 hours I think. The food grade one can also be taken orally by humans or pets- I give my dog 1/2 teaspoon each day in his evening meal to kill any internal parasites like worms. I've never used any commercial wormers for him. I send his poo sample off to wormcount every 6 months and he's never had any worms. This will be due to the diatomaceous earth as he acts as though eating mud is a delicacy! He eats all sorts of gross things and is also on a raw meat/bone/organ diet. So it does it's job very well! And no need for nasty chemicals
 
artcasper said:
Is it a good ant repellant ? If so.. i want some !
Click to expand...

It has been working fantastically. We've had quite a problem lately with the cats' bowls getting full of ants. We wipe down often but can't seem to keep them away. I don't want to use poison on the surface their food bowls are on.
As Sian25 mentioned though be sure to use good grade DE. That way if they lick some or ingest it in any way it's actually beneficial rather than harmful. Havent had any ants in or around their bowls since I sprinkled it there.
 
GPcrazy said:
It has been working fantastically. We've had quite a problem lately with the cats' bowls getting full of ants. We wipe down often but can't seem to keep them away. I don't want to use poison on the surface their food bowls are on.
As Sian25 mentioned though be sure to use good grade DE. That way if they lick some or ingest it in any way it's actually beneficial rather than harmful. Havent had any ants in or around their bowls since I sprinkled it there.
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Thank you.. can you suggest where i buy it from? X
 
artcasper said:
Thank you.. can you suggest where i buy it from? X
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I get it from my local dog raw/natural food supplier but I'm guessing you can get it online. It has a lot of more benefits than just killing parasites etc if taken orally it has loads of benefits for us and dogs
 
Sian25 said:
Just found some on ebay. You just have to be careful that you don't breath the powder in- that's why I was a bit worried about using it on the carpets in the guinea pigs room but once it's down, it's completely harmless
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I would still recommend vacuuming it up before putting the piggies back on the carpet because their noses are so close to the carpet.
 
GPcrazy said:
I would still recommend vacuuming it up before putting the piggies back on the carpet because their noses are so close to the carpet.
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Oh yes sorry. I wouldn't be putting them on the carpet with the DE down. But they're allowed back in their cage once it's settled right?
 
Yes, as long as you've vacummed it up off their carpet and there's no more floating around your house (I'd say at least 15 min after you've last sprinkled) then it should be fine in my.opinion.
 
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