Fleas

Fleas are extremely common parasites of cats and dogs. They can cause nasty skin problems and also transmit tape worms. No one wants a flea ridden pet, yet controlling these parasites is more difficult than you might think.

Flea Life Cycle

There are flea eggs and larvae in the dirt of your garden, or carpet in the house. When your pet lies in these areas, the larvae hatch into fleas and jump onto your pet. Fleas feed off your pets blood and then lay eggs that fall off to re-contaminate the house or yard. In order to eradicate fleas you will need to break the cycle.

Treatment/Prevention

The first line of defence is to kill any fleas that are on your pet, but in heavy infestations you may need to treat the environment as well. Remember, the fleas that are on your pet are only 5-10% of the population you have in your garden.

There are many products on the market that work differently for different situations. Choosing the right product can be confusing and we are happy to help you with this.

• 'Spot on' type products can be used once a month to kill fleas. Many include wormers, heartworm prevention, and tick control as well.
  
• Some tablets don't actually kill the fleas but work by breaking the breeding cycle, others kill them.

Ask us for advice on which product or combination would be best for you or your pet. There are also some web sites that deal with fleas and solutions such as www.petcare.umn.edu/Health/Fleas.html