FOUR PAWS VETERINARY HOSPITAL
8401 Ranch Road 12 San Marcos, TX * Phone: (512) 396-7297 * Fax: (512) 392-7297
FLEAS...SMALL, FIERCE, AND SERIOUS.
By Rusty Jenney, Enviroteam Pest Control 281.252.9588
Understanding the life cycle of the cat flea is very important
because without this knowledge insecticides are typically over
used. There are approximately 2,000 species of fleas in the
world, with this most common being the cat flea (Ctenocephalides
felis). The dog, human, and rat fleas are less commonly found on
pets and in homes.

Fleas go through four stages: Eggs, Larva, Pupa, and Adult. The
female fleas will being laying eggs, usually 27 daily, around two
days after having a "blood" meal. Then the eggs hatch in two
days, and the larva feed on the fecal droppings of the adults,
dandruff, and skin flakes. Larva will then spin a cocoon and
eventually hatch as an adult flea to begin this process over and
over again.

In recent years, the controlling fleas has been taken out of the
hands of the pest control companies and shifted to the
veterinarian. This advancement is their control is certainly far
better than pouring insecticides randomly, and will keep most
homes from having to be treated. Additionally, the medicine given
to animals has growth regulators affecting the egg and larva
stage, and the residual product will kill the adult fleas.

Dogs or cats can easily be treated with several products. There
are growth regulators available in spray on applications as well as
taken internally. Program, a product distributed by your
veterinarian, contains the active ingredient, Lufenuron, is given as
a food additive to cats, pill form to dogs, and very successful for
indoor pets.

When problems become excessive, the recommendation is
usually Frontline or Advantage. The active ingredient used for
Advantage is Imidacloprid, and Frontline utilizes Fipronil as the
active ingredient. Frontline provides 1 to 3 months of protection
fleas and one month for ticks.

Using these products to prevent flea infestations will reduce the
insecticide applications required and protect your family and pets
from health issues caused by fleas. Fleas can be a serious
problem, and while it is rare, they can transmit Plague and Murine
Typhus to humans, as well as the tapeworm. As the old saying
goes, "an ounce of prevention is worth a thousand cures".
Remember the adult flea spends most of its life on the host, and
by treating the pet with Frontline or Advantage, this will protect
your home, in most cases, from being invaded and by using a few
drops on your pet, will greatly reduce the amount of insecticide
having to be used in your home to control the problem.

First signs of a flea problem will appear on your pet. The earlier
you stop this, the better for all concerned. Procrastinators will end
up paying a high price, both in discomfort for the family members
and pets, but in dollar costs to eliminate fleas from the house.

When recognized there are fleas on the pet, always treat the pet
and the home at the same time. Information for treating the pet is
mentioned above, so let's begin on how to treat the home.

A thorough vacuuming must be done, UNDER all furniture like
beds, couches, and chairs. The couches and chairs will also need
the cushions removed and vacuumed as well. Yes, you will have to
vacuum under your beds and couches, because every square
inch of carpet needs cleaning. Do not forget to vacuum all hard
surfaces including wood floors, tile, etc., as well as cleaning the
pet's bedding. Why? What you see in adult fleas is about five
percent of the flea population in the house! The other 95% is
eggs, larva, and pupa.

By vacuuming every square inch,  you will be removing the eggs,
larva, and pupa in hopes of breaking the hatching cycle, as well
as removing the larva food source. Please do not forget to
remove the vacuum bag and place it outside immediately.
Thoroughly vacuuming will remove about 30% of the larva and
60% of the eggs.

The treatment inside should be done with a residual insecticide,
as this will kill the adults and has a growth regulator, which will
destroy some of the stages of the flea. There are two growth
regulators used in this process, Methoprene is unstable in
sunlight, and therefore I recommend Pyriproxyfen (Archer). This
product is photo stable and will affect two stages of the fleas
inside, and this product is also labeled for outdoor use as well.

The growth regulator and residual will be mixed together and
applied by fan spraying all your carpet areas and furniture. The
exterior yard should be mowed before applying. Remember to
treat the areas where the pets rest, as well as the doghouse, and
treatment outdoors should include both the growth regulator and
the residual product. Areas outside that are in direct sunlight
typically are not problem areas, but pay special attention to shady
areas and areas under decking.

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT FROM TREATMENT

After cleaning and treating areas, you will see adult  fleas, and
probably will for several months. There is one stage of flea that is
not affected by the products, and that is the pupa. The pupa will
emerge into an adult, and you will see him. The residual product
does take time to kill him. The best way to stimulate the pupa into
hatching is to vacuum as mush as possible, also, as the adults
hatch, vacuum and this will help in the removal of the adults.

The hatch out usually occurs when the home has been empty all
day, then everyone comes home, they stimulate the pupa by
walking, and sitting everywhere, and you see fleas. Remember,
you will continue to see fleas after the treatment, and if everything
is working, the numbers should appear to decrease, and then go
several days without any activity. Eventually, the activity will begin
to decrease noticeably, and the growth regulator applied will
continue working six to seven months. On an additional not, if you
have a vacant home, or go on vacation, to keep up with the
treatment process, you will need to have someone to vacuum it
regularly.

Fleas can become an overwhelming burden to any homeowner in
a very short time. Hopefully, by being more informed on this
subject, the homeowner can tactfully take some steps to prevent
this problem from becoming a never-ending nightmare.

Most importantly, homeowners need to be responsible pet owner
and properly take care of the pets ensuring their health and well
being, after all, taking care of fleas on the pets, is the best
prevention for these pests in the home.

My goal, and should be yours as well, is to use the least amount of
products to control or eliminate pest problems, and the only way
to maintain this goal is to strongly believe and enforce a plan of
prevention before the signs of the problem are out of control.
Being a homeowner, and procrastinating, whether a pest control
problem, or a home repair, can and usually does lead to
unnecessary damage to the home, welfare, and most definitely
the wallet.