Fleas Part 1 – The Facts
Posted on 04 October 2013
Has your loved one ever had a problem with fleas?
The trouble with FLEAS – Part 1 Facts
- The most common flea on your dog and cat is actually the cat flea, Ctenocephalides felis.
- One adult female flea can lay 50 eggs a day and survive for over 3 months. That’s over 4,000 eggs…from one flea!!!. Fleas can jump a distance of up to 1m and the eggs, larvae and pupae can survive in warm, humid, sheltered environments for up to 12 months.
- Fleas feed off the blood of animals including humans and therefore can transfer disease from one host to another including the tapeworm larvae, Dipylidium Caninum. Historically, (although not in Australia), they are most known for transmitting Bubonic plague from wild rodents to humans.
- The full life cycle of the flea takes only a few weeks resulting in large populations very quickly.
- Eggs and larvae are usually found where your pet sleeps and in cracks and crevices in carpet, flooring and bedding.
- Dogs and cats allergic to a protein found in the fleas saliva, often succumb to Flea Allergy Dermatitis – a disease that manifests as generalised itchiness, secondary skin lesions/infections and hair loss, particularly around the tail and hind limbs.
- Only 5% of the flea population lives on your pet, the other 95% live in your pets environment as eggs, larvae and pupae.
