Fleas!

by Patsy McIntire

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Anyone who has ever battled fleas knows how difficult they are to eradicate. Once a home becomes infested, control can be difficult, time-consuming and expensive. A flea-infested dog or cat can introduce hundreds of new flea eggs into the home each day. By mid-to-late summer, pet owners often find themselves fighting a losing battle against established flea populations.

 

Ridding a home of fleas can be a frustrating and costly endeavor, because unlike some pests found in your home, fleas cause discomfort and irritation to both the pets and the home owners and possibily any guest. Fleas account for more than half of all dermatological conditions requiring veterinary assistance, and even a single flea bite to a hypersensitive animal or person may cause intense itching and irritation. Also it should be noted that scratching theses bites could lead to a “staph” infection.

 

Quick Stats about fleas…color-dark to reddish brown; shape-flattened side to side; size 1/2—1/6 inch long; region - found throughout the U.S.; can live for about 100 days; do not fly / they JUMP from one place to another (can jump up to 8 inches high); can produce 400-500 offspring in their lifetime.

 

Fleas are parasites that feed on the blood of ANY warm-blooded host. The most common species is the cat flea, which often feasts on cats, dogs, and humans. Adult fleas (the biting stage seen by pet owners) spend most of their time on the animal and not in the carpet. This is why treatment of the pet in conjunction with the pet’s environment is an essential step in ridding a home of fleas. If you neglect to treat the pet’s environment (the premises…i.e. outside—yard, dog-house; inside-pet, pet bedding, carpet and any furniture the pet may rest on), you will miss more than 90% of the developing flea population

 

   Remember to call BUG EXPRESS PEST CONTROL for your flea “Inspection and Identification” needs as well as any other pest control needs. ”We are the Professionals in Pest Control!”
 653-0069​