I had to spray some bug spray along the base of a wall in a room that Rufus often has free roam in. The spray will be all dry by tomorrow but do I have to worry about Rufus coming into contact with the area I sprayed even after it is dry?
The can says that the spray can continue to kill bugs for 12 weeks so I don't know if that means I should keep Rufus away from that area for 12 weeks? I can keep him away from there but it will be a pain in my butt.
*Perhaps I should have posted this in the health forum? Mods please move if necessary.
Don't let your dragon lick any surfaces in the sprayed room for at least 6 months ( the time mentioned on the can is only effective against insect period , the residue remains active and toxic for a lot longer ).
Don't let the dragon eat any insects it finds on the floor anywhere in the house for the next 6 months. The reason for this is roaches are very mobile and will forage in every room in the house.
I'd rather put up a few spiders and roaches than risk poisoning my pet skinks and dragons . So I don't use surface sprays or flying insect sprays or bombs , and I'm very careful with baits and only use them in winter.
+1, except that personally, I'd do some digging into the ingredients (active and inactive) in the roach spray, as researchers keep finding that some of these chemicals can & do remain in the environment for years, decades, or longer.
While there are some alleged "organic" pesticides, it still comes down to the ingredients; some are/can be as bad or worse than conventional pesticides.
I guess my question is, did you spray to create a perimeter to prevent bugs from coming in, or did you spray to simply kill current intruders. If the latter, you can always clean up the residue with some soapy water and it should be safe again. But if you sprayed for perimeter defense, I would look into the active ingredients to make a more informed decision.
I never let Rufus eat wild bugs so not worried about that. But how on earth can I prevent him from licking any surface in the entire room other than by keeping him out of the room? Do I really need to go to that extent?
As for looking into the active ingredients, what is the objective there? Are there some bug spray ingredients that are OK if contact is made while other ingredients it is not OK? I have no idea what to look for but would be good to be prepared for the future. I'm not a fan of bug spray, this is the first time I've used it in the house. Usually the only thing I use it for is black widows outside.
Hopefully I can wash the bug spray in a few days. I had a crazy infestation of gnats (or what looks like gnats) a few days ago outside my house. No idea what caused that gnat swarm but bunch of them found a previously unknown small gap at a door and got in. Then all of a sudden I had a bunch of ants coming in through that gap too, and they've been going back and forth along that wall. I'll get that gap sealed then clean up the bug spray.
The type of active ingredient will play a large role in what steps you need to do to make it safe. Some chemicals leave a residue for months. Others decompose quicker than others. And some are water and weather resistant. If you want we could do the research for you but we'd need to know what product you used.