Fleas and Pets in Cambria

The cat flea, which infests both dogs and cats throughout the world, can inflict repeated painful bites and cause allergic skin disease in both pets and humans. If you have an allergic pet, just ONE flea bite can cause weeks of itchin! In addition to creating itchy pets, fleas can also transmit several different diseases, and tapeworms as well. So controlling fleas not only minimizes an itch, but can actually help to prevent disease and parasitism for your pet.

Most prescription insecticides do an excellent job of eliminating existing fleas from a pet after the initial administration. This is the first step in flea control, and the most important because this will stop your pet’s discomfort. However, the more difficult part of flea control is providing continued relief from fleas emerging from the infested premises, or wherever your pet’s path might intersect with the path of other domestic pets and wild mammals ranging from rodents to deer. As an example, if your pet is kept in an enclosed home or yard without other pets wandering through, your flea control project will be easier than if your pet spends time wandering outside (like the typical cat) or goes to a park where other dogs have been. Not to mention, much of the mammalian wildlife in Cambria are infested with fleas as they wander through our yards and outdoor areas. As is probably apparent VERY FEW pets live in a closed environment, meaning they may be continually being exposed to fleas.

Fleas and their eggs are killed by 3 things.

1. Extreme heat
2. Extreme cold
3. Extreme dryness

In Cambria, we have none of these, which means fleas can live here YEAR ROUND. To make matters worse, the entire flea lifecycle (from the time an egg is laid to it becoming an adult flea) can last up to 3 months, meaning that if you only apply a single flea preventative (1 month treatment), re-infection is likely to occur for your pet. And last but certainly not least, Cambria is blessed with what we call, for lack of a better term, SUPER FLEAS! These fleas are resistant to some of the over the counter topical flea treatments, including Hartz, Frontline and even Advantage. For all of the above reasons, the doctors at CVC recommend year round prescription flea preventative for all dogs and indoor/outdoor pets. Because, believe us when we say, it’s easier to prevent fleas (and ticks) than to have to deal with an infestation in your pets and your home