Fleas will suck blood from both you (the pet owner) and your pet. These wingless bugs do not discriminate and will feed off anything that has blood flowing in them. Aside from the painful bites and the allergic reactions they cause, flea bites have the potential to spread diseases to pets and humans alike. One such disease is the rare Bubonic plague.
Fleas can also transmit diseases from one host to another as they feed.
(Source: http://www.pestworld.org/pest-guide/stingingbiting-insects/flea/)
Table of Contents
Introduction
Fleas are not limited to homes which have pets. They can also be introduced into no-pet homes by haired pests such as racoons, possums and rodents among others. Fleas have long hind legs that enable them to jump up to 7” high and 13” horizontally enabling them to switch hosts easily. It might not seem much to you but relative to its size, 7” is about 150 times the height of a flea.
Imagine if you could jump 150 times your height: that’s impressive.
The Life Cycle Of A Flea
Fleas – like most insects—go through four stages in their lifecycle. These stages are egg, larva, pupa and adult. An adult flea will live for about 100 days provided there is ample food supply.
The flea’s life cycle begins after the female has laid her eggs – usually on the host’s body. She can lay batches of up to 20 eggs at a time. Since the eggs are laid on the host’s body and not anchored in any way, they might roll off and spread all over your house as your pet or the intruding pest moves around. The eggs will hatch in about 2-14 days.
The eggs hatch into blind, sunlight-avoiding larvae that limit their movement to dark places such as bedding, cracks and crevices, and sand. The larvae feed on any available organic materials such as faeces, vegetable matter and dead insects.
With enough food, flea larvae will pupate weaving itself into silken cocoons in about 1-2 weeks.
The developing flea will stay in this “resting” phase until it fully develops into an adult after which it will be ready to emerge. Fleas will usually stay in rest until they detect a host nearby.
(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flea)
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Signs Of A Flea Infestation:
If you have several of the following then you may be facing a flea infestation:
- live fleas (will be seen jumping about)
- flea larvae which are dirty white in colour and are no larger than 3mm in length
- pets constantly scratching or biting their skin or you pet may have red skin or losing their hair
- bite marks on your own skin
- ground up pepper-like poop
Once a flea enters your home, infestations can quickly become out of control. Fleas are a major problem for cats, dogs and the people that are living in the home. Fleas aren’t just pests without any dangers; they can also carry major health risks for your family and pets. The sooner they are dealt with, the better it is for the people and furry friends living in your home. If you have an infestation you and your pet can be hosts and you can pass fleas to one another. Pestrol provides a wide range of flea control products.View our environmentally safe products to make your home a flea-free space once more!
Do you have a flea infestation? View Pestrol’s range of flea control products here.
Controlling Fleas
Controlling fleas can be a bit difficult and requires several measures for success to be realised. As they say; prevention is better than cure. It is, therefore, wise to prevent the introduction of fleas into your home by taking the following measures:
- Cover potential pest entry points in your house to ensure that no haired pest gets into your home.
- Vacuum your carpets, upholstered furniture, furnishings and cracks in your floorboards regularly to get rid of eggs, larvae and adult fleas.
- Wash your pet regularly with flea soap.
Even with these measures, fleas might still find their way into your home.
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