Fleas, the worldwide commonly loathed creatures are robust beings that can survive for around 1.5 years. They inhabit places that offer them warmth, such as carpets, furs of the pets as well as your backyards. The worst part is, it’s extremely difficult to get rid of them, much less spot them, owing to their extremely small size.
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These despicable creatures have fat bodies which they sustain by sucking blood from animals and humans leaving behind itchy bites and red spots that are immensely annoying to deal with. Moreover, flea bites are also extremely dangerous, since they introduce tapeworms in animals and diseases like typhus in humans.
[BUTTONS2]It thereby is very important for you to be able to identify these mischievous beings and subsequently get rid of them, fast. Here is how you need to go about it!
Identifying fleas
- Itchy skin
Itchy skin is the first telltale sign of a flea infestation, which causes humans and animals to scratch abnormally to relieve the itch. If you find your pet constantly biting, scratching or licking itself, it’s an indication of a flea attack. Without wasting time, get those fleas removed before your pet causes extra damage to itself.
- Skin allergies
Fleas often cause skin allergies such as the formation of red patches and swollen skin, which is basically a reaction to the flea saliva.
Dermatitis is a disease common in dogs caused as a reaction to the flea saliva, which the antigens in a dog’s body fail to recognize. This causes swelling and red spots which are often warm to touch.
Similarly FAD (Foreign Induced Disease) in a cat causes the formation of bumps and red spots in the groin region, belly and around the base of the tail.
If unchecked, the symptoms can worsen with time.
- Pale gums
Pale gums are a sign of low red blood cells, a situation that can be caused by excessive consumption of blood by the fleas, leaving little behind. Did you know, fleas can consume blood around fifteen times their body weight?
- Hair loss
Fleas often cause hair loss in your pets because of the infections that they transmit, which is why you will see bald patches appearing in your pet’s skin. Pets lose even more hair when they scratch themselves against ground in order to ease the itch caused by flea bite. The good thing is, these bald patches are easily identified since the hair loss is drastic, which means you will be quick to treat your pets against flea infestation.
- Flea dirt
Flea dirt is a mixture of its faeces and dried blood and is truly disgusting, which looks like black pepper. If you suspect your pet of flea infestation, check for flea dirt around its tail, groin region, underside and behind the hind legs.
- Flea eggs
Flea eggs are a little difficult to spot, since they are tiny and white. They look like salt or dandruff and will usually be found on your furniture or carpet if fleas have attacked your home or pet. Flea eggs don’t really stick to pet’s fur and so fall off easily.
Getting rid of fleas
All you need to do is:
- Clean up your home using vacuum cleaner at least twice a week
- Clean up your pet regularly using flea combs and shampoos
- Use hot water to wash the infected clothing
Since fleas can live up to 1.5 years or more, they are only going to increase in numbers with time so you cannot count on them to perish on their own any time sooner. This is why make sure to step up on time and rid your home and pets of these parasites fast.