Flea Control Facts

Fleas

Fleas can enter your home in many ways, whether or not your pet is rarely allowed outside. Fleas will hop in from your yard, they can be left over from previous inhabitants when you bear in mind that a larvae can remain dormant for extremely long period or a flea can hitch a ride on you.

Fleas can be carriers for diseases and worms, so therefore keeping your pet free from fleas, also means keeping your pet healthy.

To check your pet for fleas, you need to part its hair and look out for signs:

* brown dust type pieces which may be attached to the fur. These can be excreted digested blood from the flea, if the dust dissolves into a red liquid when you put a wet paper towel on it, then chances are fleas are present.,br>
* fleas bite. You pet may show signs of skin irritation, this may because the flea has scratched or bitten your pet leaving red, irritated skin and in some severe cases bald patches may be present.

* Fast moving, small brown shapes ARE FLEAS.

The adult flea will only spend part of their time on your pet, they will leave to lay their eggs elsewhere, therefore households with no pets can still harbor fleas. Fleas usually lay their eggs outdoors, but will sometimes lay them in rugs or your pets bedding etc. In the fight to combat this your pets bedding should be washed weekly. Likewise with regular vacuuming and emptying of the vacuum bag will clear out those unwanted deposited flea eggs. These simple methods of flea control should be carried out regardless of other methods you may also use.

There are also several other flea control products to kill or discourage fleas. Some are synthetic, others are considered as natural, both of which will work to some degree. You will need to read the manufacturers directions to be clear of which product would suit you best.

Always bear in mind the life cycle of the flea. From the egg larvae to adult can be 3 to 6 weeks. To be rid of fleas you need to break this cycle. This means that whatever flea control treatment you choose, you will need to repeat the treatment a few weeks later. By doing this you should be sure to catch the fleas from the larvae that may have been missed first time round. In this way you are addressing the problem of the eggs and larvae as well as the adult flea.

Which ever method of flea control you choose, always remember that the natural methods may only keep fleas away rather than eliminate them altogether. Fleas tend to dislike some natural chemicals, namely; cedar, garlic, brewers yeast and some vegetable oils which contain linatones.

You can readily buy cedar shampoo, cedar oil and cedar filled sleeping mats. Fleas like dry skin, you can help to avoid dry skin by not shampooing often and giving your pet vegetable oils which contain linatones. Brewers yeast and garlic can be put in your pets feed (in small quantities), their resultant body odour could then repel fleas.

You could spray your house. There are many commercial type foggers available as well as other flea control devices which you release within your home. Generally when these type of flea control methods are used, you and your pets needs to vacate the premises for a period of time whilst the active chemicals kill the flea, flea larvae, or both. This method can also be carried out professionally. You need to remember that hand held sprays can be less effective that the foggers because you may not have sprayed into hard to get at places. It's a myth that having your carpets professionally cleaned will get rid of fleas, this will only be the case if certain flea control chemicals are used in the process.

Remember that carpets, upholstery, rugs and mats are prime places for fleas to deposit their eggs. Some people get rid of carpets and rugs etc and replace them with hard wood floor, or lino. Obviously this is not always fleasible option for all of us.

When implementing flea control outdoors remember, fleas will not be found on your driveway, or in places "out in the open". Larvae cannot survive in high temperatures. Fleas will most likely be found in shaded areas, under porches, decks, undergrowth and car ports. Fleas are also likely to be in the shaded areas where your pets lay down.

Flea combs that have fine teeth are commercially available. Have a bowl of ammonia laced water on hand, then as you snag the flea you can kill them in the water. Always try to use a metal comb, the plastic ones that you can buy are too flexible and could allow the fleas to escape.

Using a flea comb will not rid your pet of fleas altogether but it will give you an idea on the flea population within your home. If you estimate that for every flea you find on your pet, there will be another 1000 in your house.

Flea powders can be handy but some can also be poisonous. You must never let your pet ingest flea powder, which can be tricky with pets that groom themselves, especially cats. Flea powders are probably best used in your vacuum cleaner bag, this should then kill any fleas that you may vacuum up.

Flea collars again are widely available but most are not effective and some could even be bad for your pets health.

Flea control and the prevention of flea infestations in your next home - Because flea larvae lay dormant for long periods of time, it is possible for you and your pets to gt fleas when moving house or apartment, if the previous occupants kept pets or had fleas. You can prevent this problem by spraying your home before you and your furniture move in. If the place has been uninhabited for a long while it's possible that all the adult fleas are dead with only the larvae present. If the place has not been uninhabited, then adult fleas could still be present. Whichever the case, it's probably best to treat the whole house with foggers, sprays etc along with a good vacuum a good few days before you intend to inhabit the place. To concluded, a good combination of all the methods mentioned in this article should prevent fleas and pre-emptive strikes.

Ticks.

Ticks are small round arachnids which cling to one spot and tend not to move. They will insert their head under the skin of their host to gorge themselves on blood. Because ticks carry diseases, should you find a tick, both you and your pet should get checked out. Unlike fleas, ticks do not infest houses in the way fleas do, since they remain outside, but they do carry dangerous diseases and can be harder to detect than fleas.

Upon finding a tick, always use tweezers to remove the tick, always place the tweezers as near to the skin (the ticks head) as you can and pull, very slowly and gently, do not "yank", this should release the tick from it's host. Ticks carry rickettsial diseases, the most commonly known is lyme disease. If you should find and remove a tick, always, always wash your hands thoroughly with soap afterwards.

Never touch the tick with a cigarette or the head of a hot match, as this could cause the tick to regurgitate into your bloodstream, which in turn will increase the chance of you catching any diseases the tick may carry. Lyme disease is carried by the tiny deer tick, these are about the size of a pin head, these are very difficult to find, you must look very carefully at both yourself and your pet to detect these ticks, other ticks can be as large as a peppercorn.

Should you remove a tick from your pet but leave the head in it's skin, the chances are there will be an infection or an abscess within a week. Always try to disinfect the area thoroughly using approximately 70% alcohol. It only takes around 5 minutes for alcohol to sterilize an area, any high proof liquor will work, like Vodka, although ethyl alcohol is less toxic than using alcohol. Should you use this method then always apply a combination antibiotic ointment afterwards. Should an infection occur, you will probably need to take your pet to the vet.

After you have removed a tick from your pet, drop it into alcohol to kill it, do not flush them directly down the toilet as this will not kill it.

Adult ticks will remain on deer and other mammals through the fall and winter. Should you spend time outside during these periods you should be sure to check yourself, your family and pets on a daily basis for ticks. If you hunt or trap always check the areas where you catch your game for ticks that may ahve fallen off during handling. Always wear long pants tuck into, preferably white socks, light clothing is preferable, also wear a hat to prevent ticks from falling from trees onto your head. Ticks also like long grass, like you'll find on the edge of woods, especially the deer ticks as the deer are likely to habit these areas also. Ticks can crawl up onto the grass blades and cling to you as you walk past.

Should you find a heavy infestation of ticks in your area, spray your yard, this is a good idea to combat ticks, moreso if your pet goes outdoors into your yard. Another was to combat ticks is to raise guinea hens, these hens actually eat ticks! A vaccination against Lyme disease for dogs is available, the human version will be soon!

Mark Woodcock
1 Flea Control

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