Don’t you dread the sound of a fly…or ten…buzzing around in your house? Yuck! Flies are a common pest we deal with here in Arkansas during the spring and summer months, but you don’t have to live in discomfort in your own home.
Flies like to lay eggs in the same places where they feed. Any organic matter you have in your garbage cans, such as fruit, vegetables, or even meat, can provide the perfect environment for a fly to lay its eggs. Maggots hatch out of those eggs and eventually grow into adult houseflies. Female flies can lay about 500 to 600 eggs in their lifetime. Once a maggot turns into an adult housefly, it has a lifetime of about 21 days.
Prevention
Being proactive is one of the best ways you can help keep those pesky house flies out of your home. If you’re throwing away expired chicken, rotting fruit, sweets, or brown bananas, be sure to seal your garbage bags as tight as you can, and get them out of your house as soon as possible. These kinds of garbage are a mecca for flies looking for a place to lay their eggs.
Along with keeping rotting garbage out of your house, seal all open cracks and crevices around your home. Not only will this keep flies out, but it’ll also prevent other unwelcome pests such as ants, spiders, and cockroaches from coming in. If you need some fresh air, make sure you’re opening a window or door with a mesh screen to keep bugs out.
Risks
Not only are flies just plain gross, but they can pose a health hazard if they hang around your house long enough. Some of the most common bacterial diseases that house flies can carry are diarrhea, dysentery, salmonella, and E. coli.
Flies spread these diseases through their bodies, vomit, and feces. A fly feeds on pretty much anything humans would eat, along with other organic matter. The fly’s diseases and germs are then passed to any food that the fly eats or lands on. When a fly lands on your food, it spits up enzymes onto the food to dissolve it, to eat it in liquid form. Ewww, right?
Treatment
Sticky fly traps and homemade sprays just don’t cut it sometimes, especially if there are several flies in and around your house. If house flies or other gross critters make their way into your home, give Clark Exterminating a call. Whether it’s flying, spiders, cockroaches, or termites, our pest control experts are happy to visit and give you a free in-home estimate. Also, we offer yard services to keep fleas and ticks away from your furry friends. Give us a call today, and remember…The Bug Stops Here!