Flea Control For Cats, Dogs, And Homes.

Win $100

The idea of flea armies may seem over-the-top to some, but the ability of fleas to win wars has been known for many years. As early as the ancient Philistines we have records of golden images of mice being used to ward off plagues. History records four plague pandemics. The earliest struck Egypt in 542. The next was in Asia Minor in the 14th century killing almost one in four of Europe's population. Again Europe fell foul of the flea in the 15th and 18th centuries, and then China in 1860 (a plague that continued through the Vietnam war).

A student of Louis Pasteur, Alexandre Yersin, is credited with the isolation of Hong Kong plague in patients in 1894. Masanori Ogata of Japan put forth the idea of fleas spreading the plague in 1898 and this was confirmed by Paul-Louis Simond a year later in France. It took until 1911 for the medical entomology to recognize that the rat was vehicle by which the flea spread its disease along easily traceable trade routes.

However, it was the second recorded plague pandemic that attracted the interest of the military. Beginning in Mongolia the plague was transported by the Tartars into Europe. There is evidence to support their attack on the city of Kaffa in 1346 was ended, after a three year long siege, by the Tartar army catapulting their diseased dead over the city walls. Quite possibly it was the fleeing refugees of Kaffa that spread the plague across the sea ports of Europe. But the tactics of the Tartars was to repeated by others. The Russians were to use infected bodies against Swedish armies.

World War II saw biological warfare escalate to new levels. The humble flea was subscripted by the Japanese in the 1930s against the Chinese. This was to lead to the invention of the Uji bomb in 1938. Later versions of this poisoned flea infested bomb were to be deployed against the United States in 1944 but were destroyed in transit. A further attack was cancelled due to the Chief of Staff for the Imperial Japanese Army declaring it ethically unacceptable.

Canada was the leader in the Allied forces when it came to preparing biological weapons. They were intent on breeding a colony of fleas infected with both plague and murine typhus, taking flea warfare to another level. The United States tested its own flea bombs during the Korean War at Dungway in 1954 - with guinea pigs being used as guinea pigs for detecting the flea's presence.

A single bite from an infected flea is enough to deliver the plague to its host. However, the range of a flea is only around 220 yards given that they jump up to a foot at a time, and have a jump rate of around 600 times an hour when hunting a host. Without the aid of rats the flea is not as viral as the mosquito that has a migration range of up to 1.5 miles and such went out of favor in the biological war research.

[Source: Using the Flea as a Weapon By Mr. Reid Kirby]

Given that fleas are capable of decimating up to quarter of the population of a continent it is prudent not to under estimate their might. Taking on an established flea population is a job for the experts.

A better option is to manage fleas through prevention. If your pet care routine includes flea control measures at all times you will avoid plague proportion flea infestations later in the summer months.

There are three main types of flea that attack humans. The human flea and the dog flea are the least common, and by far the most common are cat fleas. In fact it is probable that if your dog has fleas it is the common cat flea!

We have learned that the adult flea spends the majority of its life on a host, namely your pet. It lays eggs on your pet which fall off onto cushions, carpet, and clothes or wherever else your pet spends time. The eggs hatch into larvae, which develop into pupae, and eventually adult fleas that continue the cycle.

A typical life cycle from egg to adult varies from two weeks to eight months depending on the type of flea, the temperature, humidity, and availability of food.

A typical flea population consists of about 50 percent eggs, 35 percent larvae, 10 percent pupae and 5 percent adults. A female flea lays about 15 to 20 eggs per day up to 600 in a lifetime after feeding.

One of the mistakes that people often make is to remove their pets from an infested home in an attempt to control the flea epidemic. Hungry fleas normally prefer to feed on cats and dogs, however, if that food source is removed they do not hesitate to latch onto the next best thing - you!

A far better option is to use pet treatments to destroy the fleas on their preferred host.

Fleas have a four stage life cycle: egg, larval, pupal and adult.

They can progress from egg to adult in as little as two weeks in optimum conditions. However, they can last several months if conditions are not ideal.

Egg Stage
Each female can lay between 4 and 8 eggs after each feeding.

The eggs can easily fall off the host so are scattered around. Highest concentrations will be found where your pet sleeps and grooms.

Larval Stage
Once hatched the eggs take on a small, hairy, worm-like appearance. They range from 1.5 mm to five mm in length, are blind, and feed on dead skin and the dried blood excreted by adult fleas.

This is probably their most vulnerable stage. They will not survive direct sunlight or major changes in humidity and temperature.

Sand and gravel are ideal habitats for larva which is why they are often mislabelled Sand Fleas.

Flea Larvae will live for up to 200 days if conditions are suitable. They have an ability to coil around carpet fibres and hairs to avoid being sucked up, and will travel up to 30 cm per minute.

Pupal Stage
Like a caterpillar, flea larvae will spin a cocoon to undergo the metamorphosis into their final stage of life. These cocoons are covered in dust, sand, and debris making them well camouflaged.

This is in this stage that most fleas will spend the winter.

Adult Stage
Adult fleas are brilliantly engineered for survival in their environment. Although only 1 - 4 mm in length they can jump up to 200 mm high and 4100 mm in distance.

Their flat bodies allow them to move swiftly between hairs, and they have hooked spiny legs that make them difficult to dislodge. If conditions are not right the flea may remain in the pupal chamber for several months.

Once the right atmospheric conditions exist and the flea senses the vibrations of a near by host, they will emerge with a vengeance.

Which is why an empty house over a summer break is a ticking bomb waiting for the family to return.

Although an adult flea can survive without snacking for several months, they must feed within a week of emerging from the pupae stage.

It is only the female fleas that bite. And they cannot lay eggs without first snacking on blood.

A single puncture wound that develops into a small, hard, red, itchy spot within 30 minutes.

The single puncture wound differentiates the bite from that of ants and spiders leave two marks when they bite. The small welt is different to mosquitoes, bees, wasps and bedbugs that produce a much larger swelling.

The flea injects an anti blood clotting secretion into the host. It is this that produces the intense itchiness as the body's immune system reacts.

Each person reacts differently and it may take 24 hours for the swelling to occur. Carbolated Vaseline, menthol, camphor, ice cubes or calamine lotion can be used to relieve the itching.

Where continued scratching occurs a secondary infection may occur. It is also possible for the fleas to impart plague, typhus, and tularaemia diseases. Accidentally swallowing the flea could result in tapeworms which the flea may host. Pets pick up the tapeworm by consuming fleas while grooming.

Constant scratching is a sign your pet is flea infested. Other signs include a rough coat and infected skin, on sensitive skinned animals flea infestations are often mistaken for mange.

Originally I was going to do a break down of all the different flea killing options, but I have discovered that it really boils down to two main choices - Toxic or Organic.

Unless you are absolutely over run with fleas organic flea control is by far the best option. A good way to establish if you are over run is to walk around wearing white socks ... if they turn black you have a problem!

If you have a serious problem, then call in the experts - or at least seek advice from your vet.

If you just have a minor inconvenience as most flea infestations are, here is how to deal with it.

• Comb your pet daily: get a flea comb and give your pet regular combing sessions - making sure you have a soapy water bath handy to drown the fleas in.



• Vacuum your house daily: Make sure you pick up all objects on the floor and vacuum thoroughly. Pay special attention to areas your pet frequents - and if your pet allows give them a quick vacuum too.
  Note Always securely dispose of vacuum cleaner bags after vacuuming - some moth balls in the bag will help kill fleas sucked up.



• Regularly washing bedding: If regularly wash the pet bedding (and yours unless you want to become a surrogate host) and expose it to direct sunlight it should kill the fleas.



• Diatomaceous Earth: Or fossilized remains of diatoms is your secret weapon if these other methods do not work. This white powder sprinkled around will kill the fleas. It is a substance that is already in a lot of the food you eat and is perfectly safe if you buy the food grade version.
  It kills adult fleas dead but is harmless to animals and humans.


• A light trap: You can either make your own or buy one of these killers. A light set up over a dish of soapy water will attract fleas to their death during the night... they will also save you walking around in white socks to determine if there are any fleas present!

The alternative to natural flea control is toxic chemicals. These fall into two types. Those that externally applied to your home or pet, and those that ingested by your pet.

The result is that you either end up with a house coated in toxins that kills the fleas (and you know it is doing everyone else in the house a lot of good), or you end up pumping your pet full of toxin so that when the fleas bite it they die...

Which is exactly why I recommend you try the healthy alternative before reaching for the chemicals.