OurSchnauzers.com

THE LIFE CYCLE OF THE FLEA

- Creepier than most tales told by campfires or on Halloween

EGGS- the beginning of the nightmare. Eggs are white and smooth. They do not attach to anything. Sure they might get caught up in fur but in general they fall anywhere.The flea lays these eggs and they fall off of the pet. They are about 30% of the flea population at any given time. They are found basically anywhere your pet lives. So this means~ in the sofa, carpet,your bed, your car, your yard. The fleas stay in the egss from 2-6 days before they hatch.

LARVAE- the biggest population of your flea infestation. About 60% of your fleas are in this stage.Larvae stage is 5-40 days long. Optimum humidity and temperature direct how long it takes the flea to get through this stage. The main diet in this stage is adult flea poop (gross) which is simply undigested blood (grosser). They avoid light as much as possible in this stage so they snuggle down into the cracks and crevices and the edges of the bed and under sofas. They can't really move very far from where they hatch,however , so the eggs that fall in these dark places have a better chance of survival. This is also a good stage to target for elimination as they're more sensitive.

COCOON/PUPA  about 5-10% of the population. This is the time they transition into evil bloodsucking adult. This stage is the toughest to eradicate. The cocoon is excellent at protecting the flea inside the cocoon's protective shell from the things we humans use to try to kill them like pesticides and such. This stage can last as short as one week BUT the little buggers can stay in there for up tp 2 years waiting for optimum conditions to hatch.YES you read that right~ 2 YEARS! It has even been noted that the vibration of a possible host walking by can be a trigger for the waiting flea to emerge from this protective shell. This stage is why you can come home from a few days away and suddenly be attacked.

 Adults-  This is the stage we allgenerally recognize. They're only a wee portion of the local flea population. What you see is only about 1% of the fleas! The smaller ones are not babies- they simply haven't fed yet.The ones we see hopping about are simply newly hatched and haven't found a host yet. Adult fleas don't usually leave a host once they find one. They move in and stay there churning out up to 50 eggs a day per female flea. This is frightening math,my friends. You can see given the shortness of their life cycle how quickly you can go from one or two to  completely infested!!!Each flea can live from two weeks to 3 months contributing to the horror.

HOW ON EARTH DO WE GET RID OF FLEAS?

As a professional groomer I have to tell you that flea infestations are one of the most difficult problems my clients face. There are lots of options out there for flea control. I am going to go over a few of ones I have used and I believe work. I am a firm believer in trying to use natural control methods first over pesticides. Pesticides can be dangerous and some that have been marketed in the past as safe have been pulled from the market because of their very real and very deadly consequences. Anyone remember ddt? Diazanon causes fluelike symptoms and is thankfully banned for sale since 2004. Though still available for sale, Malathion has been linked to ADHD and Dursban has been linked to neurlogical and autoimmune disorders.

 The important thing I have found about treating for fleas is to do it regularly. I call it flea treatment boot camp. Treat the enviornment AND the pets at regular two week intervals for at least 6-8 weeks. This way any fleas you've missed will hopefully be taken care of. Then do maintentance applications of products as often as their manufacturer suggests.

Ok so what SHOULD we use? It is vital that you treat the enviornment first and foremost. You can get every adult flea you see off of your pets but if you don't take care of the 99% in other life stages you're emptying the ocean with a teaspoon.

Treating for fleas is a big fat pain in the bahookey. Seriously~ a time sucker and quite aggrivating.I am not trying to ruin your weekend or your life. I'm just telling you like it is,my friend. I am sorry. I just am but if you want them really gone you are going to have to use a multiprong approach- pet /yard/house or you'll never get rid of them. Remember what we learned about their life stages?  You may only see them on one pet and not the other but it doesn't matter. You are only seeing the 1%~the few adults who are happily laying those 50 eggs a day and sprinkling their evil spawn all over the place. SO.

Three prong or it's wrong.

Treat your yard. Nematodes are an excellent choice for outdoor control. They are available at most garden centers or online.They're these wee little critters who spend their lives eating preadult fleas. They also attack other nasties in your lawn like grubs~ bonus!!!You spread them in the spring, then again at intervals througout the growing season. They are great for prevention and given time they can be really effective.Perfectly safe  so~yay!

You can also use cedar spray. It works well at repelling fleas and destroying their exoskeleton. GreenMonsterPet.com sells one I have used in the past and have liked. It also helps repel mosquitos very well.  I also have used Mosquito Barrier's garlic spray for this.

Neem oil is great too. It is generally applied in a spray. It works to get the pests out of your trees as well.

I love love love Diatomacious Earth for all of the problems it solves. It is a very fine powder. It is fossilized diatomes.They are microfine crystals and when the fleas come in contact with them in punctures their exoskeleton and dehydrates them. Does the same to the larvae.

You MUST use food grade DE- never pool grade. Pool grade is heat treated and will KILL YOUR PETS.Don't use it for this.Ever.Never.

DE can be fed to everything from chickens to dogs to HUMANS to help with intestinal parasites and digestive issues. You can spread it in your yard for flea control and even sprinkle it directly on your pets.  It can be very drying so if you choose to use it on your pets watch them carefully to see if it makes them uncomfortable. I have used it on all 5 of our dogs and not seen a problem at all. I also sprinkle it all over the floor in my grooming room in case a pet I bring in for grooming happens to have fleas. Just  make sure you wear goggles and a mask  when applying it because the dust can be irritating.I know it can also be used in carpeting but be aware that it is a realllllly fine dust so if you think it could kill our vacuum...it could. You can use it in pet bedding too.

Here is a great site for more information on DE and it's use. I suggest you do lots of research yourself before using it and anything else I am writing about here,ok?

http://wolfcreekranch1.tripod.com/diatomaceous_earth_fleas.html

Fleabusters.com has a borate based flea treatment that also works very well. They even offer professional application services in some areas which is convenient and they guarantee results. Their biobusters treatment application is apparently nematode application.Nematodes. Which I mentioned earlier. SO there you go.

None of this work for you? There are pyrethrin and synthetic pyrethroids that are effective and quite powerful. Pyrethrins come from the African Chrysantimum and are natural...but they have been linked to neurological issues and are not to be used on cats.There are many synthetic pyrethroids as well which, again, are effective but do your research of the risks in their use.

I don't suggest bombs or foggers. These products spray up and out like a waterfountain in a pond. They have limited range. They don't direct the product under the sofa,under the table or in the corners..remeber the larva like dark hideaways. So if you choose chemical control get products called premise sprays. Look for products that have insect growth regulators in them. They prevent any larva who survive from becoming fertile adults. IGRs are generally photdegradeable so be aware that if you spray them in your very sunny yard you're likely wasting your money.

 The other important key to treatment inside the house is to wash the bedding at least every 5 days during the "bootcamp" period and vacuum as often as possible. How often? Can you do it daily? PERFECTION! If not- just like I wrote- as often as you can. Every bit helps.Vacuum the carpets, the sofa under the bed.Vacuum out the car. Fleas don't attach to anything. They are easy to suck up and then be taken out of the cycyle. BUT you really need to empty your vacuum cup into a sealed bag or throw the disposable bag away or they could escape.

Ok now for your pets. There are about 8 gazillion different flea shampoos available. I suggest getting a professional formula. My favorite online professional retailer is Petedge.com.The stuff you get in department or big box stores is not as powerful as the stuff marketed for professionals. The biggest secret I have learned about bathing is to first dilute some of your shampoo in a gallon of warm water. Use this water to wet down your pet. If you wet your pet with plain water first the fleas can use the plain water like armor- the meniscus covers the flea and protects it from the shampoo. Start at the head and work back. Use ear cleaner to flush the ears- don't just wipe a cotton ball in there- get the ear wet. Fleas will run for the safety of the ear canal to hide.Lather your pet completely.Make sure you get soap directly on your pet's bum because that's another favorite hidey place. I'm sorry. I know I have skeeved you out but I am trying to help you,ok?  Then after you have lathered your pet all over- ATTENTION !!!Avoid the eyes and in the mouth for goodness sake!! Then whilst still soapy wrap him in a warm towel and let the shampoo sit in the coat for 10 minutes. Seems like a short time but it's forever when they're looking at you with those sad pitiful eyes. Ok time's up! Rinse. Rinse like mad. Then when you think you're done rinse again. Then wrap them up in a NEW warm towel and proceed to apologize and grovel for torturing them. Treats are likely to be involved.

Ok now let's repel any survivors!

There lots of nice natural flea sprays out there. My favorite is Natural Chemistry's natural flea spray or Top Performance flea spray(Petedge.com) They both smell really nice to me- the dogs don't like it but they don't like being sprayed with water either so their opinions are of little value here.I am personally not a fan of the heavy scent of citronella and these don't have that scent. I love citronella and all that it does but I just personally don't like the scent. I even grow it in my garden and by my front steps to repel mosquitos I just don't like putting my face in  my doggie's fur for a hug and smelling it. These two I have mentioned smell more minty than anything else.

Frontline also has a flea spray.(petedge.com again) It has the same chemical ingredient,Fipronyl, as the spot treatment but in less concentrated form.

What about spot treatments? They have their place. I have just had a lot of experience in my grooming work in the past few years with animals whose owners have faithfully applied the treatments monthly yet they're still covered in fleas. It is possible that by our constant use of these products the fleas are becoming resistant to them. They also offer some risk in their use like nerological effects and illness. So research them as much as possible before deciding if their use is neccessary for your household.

 Ok that's it. That is all I can think to share about fleas and how to get rid of them. This whole page is based on my experience as a professional groomer for over 20 years(how can that be I am not possibly a day over 30) and my constant need to research and keep updated on this stuff. Until this summer I have never personally had flea problems at our house. Call it luck. I never used anything beyond the cedar spray and the garlic in the yard.We took care of a dog who had fleas and I didn't know about it and within a few weeks I found a handful on ours. I am hyper vigilant about watching for them now. I treat everywhere possible with DE regularly and plan to use nematodes again as soon as possible in the spring.

After spending all of this time thinking and writing this I seriously need to go shower. Ok,Maybe I already needed a shower but this hasn't helped. I hope,however, that it does help you. Do your own research,please, before using any flea control product. There is lots of information out there and many choices. I wish you much luck in your eradication. I mean it.

PROBLEMS CAUSED BY FLEAS

The obvious one is that they're itchy and uncomfortable for your pets. Itchy is no fun but they can be downright deadly as well. Young animals and elderly ones especially can quickly be taken over by fleas and develop something called flea anemia. It is when the fleas suck so much blood from the animal that it literally weakens or even kills them.

Animals can also develop flea allergies. When they are allergic to fleas it is the saliva of the flea that causes the reaction. One bite from one flea can cause a rash I describe to look and feel poisin ivy-ish. It can last for up to 2 weeks after the exposure. So animals who are allergic really do suffer quite a bit from fleas. Then what often happens is they scratch and bite themselves and develop secondary bacterial skin infections.So unfun!  There are soothing shampoos and sprays you can use to help your pet feel better. My favorite right now is ZYMOX. I discovered it at a grooming trade show and I find it to work wonders at helping to heal this and other skin issues in dogs ,cat and we have even used it on horses! I also love VETRICYN as it speeds healing and seems to work really well.

Fleas are the hosts for the intestinal parasite known as the tapeworm. Tapeworms attach to the small intestine and can be a few inches to -seriously- a few feet long.  They can cause your pet to have a reduced ability to retain nutrients in their food. The worms are segmented. The segments break off and can be found around your dog or cat's bum. GAH! They look like tiny wiggling grains of rice. The only way YOU can catch tapeworms from your dog or cat is if you ingest these. So, uh, don't do that,ok?

If you see tapeworms your veterinarian can prescribe tapeworm specific medications such as droncit. The thing most people don't realize about wormers like this is that if you feed your pet the medication on Monday and your pet ingests a tapeworm infected flea on Friday, your pet is going to once again have tapeworms.You can also discuss with your veterinarian if feeding  natural food grade diatomacious earth would be beneficial. We LOVE DE and consider it to be a very important part of our parasitic control program.