If you're a pet owner, you either know it's flea season or you've been on Mars. Grandpup Bonnie is about the sweetest, most even-tempered little thing. But lately, she's been absolutely bedeviled and whiney and scratching like crazy.

Her Dog Mom, my daughter, assured me from long distance that it must be allergies and so to try half a kiddie Benadryl to relieve her itch.

After medicating the poor dog all weekend long, it became clear to me that something else was going on.

Beside the mounds of white puppy hair all over the house, I could see poor Bonnie was in much discomfort.

Hold on until Monday, I told her, and I promise to get you to the veterinarian to see what's bothering you so much.

We did, and a few hours later, Dr. Steve called to say, as kindly as he could, "Lady, you've got fleas!"

My heart just dropped. Poor puppy. Then I thought, oh, poor me.

Yep, Lady, this means you've got lots of fleas in your house and nothing I can do to kill them on Bonnie is going to fight them where they live.

Bonnie's anti-flea regime had failed.

So, enters Bug Man.

Mind you, some people have regular Bug Man visits. Until the constancy of the grandpuppy, I could take care of this sort of thing myself.

But now with her more permanent residency, we have a colony which needs shipping to flea heaven.

And so I met Bug Man at the house on Tuesday. Frankly, it's in the nick of time for my sister and her husband, and their Boston terrier Winnie, who will visit this weekend.

I have scary visions of dead fleas all over the house as I welcome my relatives.

Well, dead is better than the alternative.

So, Bug Man and I will become a regular thing for as long as necessary.

Add that to Bonnie's day care and my pup-lowered thermostat. This pet thing is expensive.

I knew that a long time ago, which is evidenced by the fact that I have not had a dog since 1989.

Actually, in the deep recesses of my brain, I recall our going on vacation years ago and taking the dog with us. We had a marvelous time at the beach and returned home, refreshed and rejuvenated, only to be attacked by the hordes of fleas we'd left behind when we took their furry friend away for a week.

From their aggressive behavior toward us, you gotta figure they were fairly starving for our attention. I may be paying now for all the Sevin dust I scattered throughout the house.

And so, friends, if your beloved pet is whimpering and whining and scratching, there's only one thing to do. Bug Man.

With my 401(k) going in the tank as the markets shiver about the fluctuating economy, I need to find a sure thing to bet my retirement on.

It looks like Bug Man Inc. is trending upward.

I should invest.

Contact Patsy R. Brumfield at (662) 678-1596 or patsy.brumfield@journalinc.com.