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Is He Chasing His Tail? What You Always Wanted To Know About Fleas


My dog has fleas. That one statement is enough to make any visitor to my house run back down the walk to their car.

If you own a pet it's one of those unwritten facts that they will, at one time or another, have fleas. One of the not-so-fun jobs of pet ownership is dealing with an infestation or working to avoid one.

To cope effectively with fleas you should have an understanding of their habits and life cycles. I realize that doesn't sound like fun, sitting-in-front-of-the-fire reading material, but knowing what you're up against is winning half the battle before it starts. So here's the low down on fleas.

Adult flea - lives on the host animal (dog or cat), where the female lays her eggs.

Egg - flea eggs are laid on the animal but fall off into the bedding, carpeting, and elsewhere in the animal's home and hatch into larvae within a few days (depending on heat & humidity).

Larva - flea larvae feed on organic material in the environment and on the droppings from adult fleas. I know it's gross.

As the larvae feed on adult flea droppings, they are found in highest numbers in areas where flea-infested animals spend much of their time.

Pupa - after 5-11 days, the larvae produce a cocoon in which they complete their development. During this stage of their life cycle, fleas are resistant to flea sprays, shampoos, medications,etc.

In ideal conditions, adult fleas hatch from their cocoon in as little as 5 days, although they can live in the cocoon for up to 5 months.

Hatching is brought on by vibration, physical pressure, heat, and air; in other words, the your dog walks in the room, sits down and BAMM.

After hatching, the adult flea finds an animal and within 2 days the female flea begins producing eggs. Fleas can continue to produce eggs for up to 100 days and believe it or not, a single flea can produce thousands of eggs.

I know the whole concept of fleas and their life cycle is gross and personally if I wasn't confronted with our three dogs in constant agony looking at me with those big, sad eyes .. well I'd probably ignore the whole flea thing.

What you do now that you're armed with all this terrific flea knowledge is:

1. Control the fleas on your pet - keep them groomed and use shampoos made for flea control. There are flea medicines that we use in my house. Personally, I prefer "Frontline" because it is a gel and I just rub a little dab at the nape of their neck (do dogs have a nape?) and the fleas are ousted for thirty days or so. You can also get pills like "Program" that control the fleas by sterilizing any female flea that bites your dog.

2. Keep the pet bedding flea-free. This is probably what I had the most trouble with because I have three dogs and they don't sleep in actual beds. But, if you can keep the fleas off the bedding, blankets, carpeting or whatever area they stake-out as their own space, your battle is much easier. Some people even studied fleas and they decided that only about 5% of the adult flea population actually live on your dog. That means the other 95% plus are living either outdoors or in the bedding, carpeting and such.

Don't give up. If you can keep the fleas off your pet or at least under control AND if you are vigilant with the whole bedding issue then fleas won't control your life or that of your dog.

The author of this article, Joanne Robbins is an internet publisher of many sites including http://www.jrsbigdog.com where you can find more information about fleas, flea control, selecting the proper pet for your household plus additional health topics. Also read her Blog at http://www.jrsmarketplace.blogspot.com


MORE RESOURCES:

Pets - Google News

Fracking's Toll on Pets, Livestock Chills Farmers: Commentary - San Francisco Chronicle


Fracking's Toll on Pets, Livestock Chills Farmers: Commentary
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Tehama County Tobacco program: Love your pet by quitting smoking - Red Bluff Daily News


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February is National Pet Dental Health Month - MarketWatch (press release)


February is National Pet Dental Health Month
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Poor oral hygiene may lead to serious disease in our pets. Given that February is National Pet Dental Health Month, the Pennsylvania Veterinary Medical Association encourages you to better care for your pet's teeth. Just as we can experience plaque and ...

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With a few rules, dogs and offices can mix well - USA TODAY


USA TODAY

With a few rules, dogs and offices can mix well
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Proposed Bill Protects Pets of Domestic Abuse Victims - Patch.com


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Patch.com
Mike Fasano, R-New Port Richey, who's district also falls partly into Clearwater, extends legal protection to pets of an abuse victim and makes beating or abusing the victim's pet grounds for violating a court-ordered domestic violence injunction.

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Pet Obesity Rate Rises - VetPracticeNews.com


VetPracticeNews.com

Pet Obesity Rate Rises
VetPracticeNews.com
The percentage of pet cats and dogs classified as overweight remained relatively constant over the past year, but the rate of obesity increased, especially among cats, according to the fifth annual veterinary survey conducted by the Association for Pet ...
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Pet Photo Friday is almost here - submit your photos now! - AnnArbor.com


Pet Photo Friday is almost here - submit your photos now!
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Knowing that there are many fun-loving pets that live in and around our area, we're anxious to see what you've been up to. Why not submit a favorite photo of your pet? What fun activities did your pets get to enjoy this week - a hike, perhaps or a trip ...
Delta Society(R) Is Now Pet Partners(R)MarketWatch (press release)

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Shelter pets find forever homes - Idaho Mountain Express and Guide


Shelter pets find forever homes
Idaho Mountain Express and Guide
Over the past three decades, the shelter has adopted out more than 11000 pets and has been named one of the top nonprofits in the valley by the readers of the Sun Valley Guide. In addition, a "shelter mutt" was named one of the best breeds to have.
PETS OF THE WEEKClarksville Leaf Chronicle
Adoption screening makes sure pets find 'forever home'Houma Courier
Shelter Exchange and Adopt-a-Pet.com Partner to Help Homeless AnimalsEON: Enhanced Online News (press release)
Patch.com
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Pet oxygen masks can save animals' lives in fires - San Jose Mercury News


Pet oxygen masks can save animals' lives in fires
San Jose Mercury News
23, 2007 file photo, Nancee Schaffner of the Rutland Area Disaster Animal Response Team demonstrates an oxygen mask for pets on Maple, a sheperd mix dog, at the fire station in Clarendon, Vt. While pet oxygen masks have been used for decades by ...

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Meet Your Match boosts puppy love (and kitty love) by matching people and pets ... - Washington Post


The Associated Press

Meet Your Match boosts puppy love (and kitty love) by matching people and pets ...
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The color-coded program evaluates shelter pets and the people looking to adopt them in an effort to match personalities, energy levels and needs. Playing Cupid with Meet Your Match helped workers at the Richmond Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to ...
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