7 Tips to Get Control of Your Pet’s Flea Problem Once and for All
Imagine a flea-free home!
One where you never have to see little annoyances crawling amongst your pet’s fur. Making him itch and uncomfortable.
Imagine no longer worrying if a flea is in your bed.
Or you’ve tried and tried and tried so many different flea treatment products. And all that money you’ve thrown down the drain. None of them ever seem to work.
After a week or two, sure enough, there’s another bloody flea!
When is it ever going to end?
As a veterinarian, I’ve helped many flea-frustrated pet owners like you. The best tips and tricks to ensure pesky flea problems are a thing of the past.
#1 Fleas are prolific like rabbits
While running your hands through your pet’s coat, you may notice a flea or two. It’s easy to think that’s no big deal.
However, it’s all the fleas you can’t see that I want you to be thinking about now. One adult flea can lay 50 eggs per day and hundreds in its life-time.
Fleas are like little tiny rabbits. They spend their adult days eating and reproducing.
#2 Fleas love making your home their home
While you currently see a flea or two on your pet, you now know that 95% of the problem lies somewhere else. That somewhere is your home.
They love warm, dark, damp places the most. Your pet’s bedding, in the carpet, under the couch.
When tackling a big infestation, try washing your pet’s bedding in hot soapy water. Vacuum your house regularly. Consider letting off flea bombs. Regular use of a quality flea product will kill all the fleas in your home over time.
#3 Fleas are cunning and they will get on your pet again
Those fleas not lucky enough to get themselves inside a house will make their home outdoors.
Damp grass, under a log, under a house, or a doormat. It could be at your house, the neighbour’s place, the footpath, or the dog park. Fleas are anywhere and everywhere.
If you fear you have a huge flea problem, you may want to consider treating your external environment. Hardware stores sell external insecticides. Use one that treats fleas, their eggs, and larvae. Apply to the outside locations mentioned above. Quality flea products will kill all the fleas that jump onto your pet, regardless of where they came from.
#4 Fleas are sneaky and will use your other pets
Some pets are luckier than others when it comes to fleas. You may have one pet that often gets fleas, while you’ve never seen a flea on the other pet.
Tempted to treat only your pet with visible fleas? This would be a mistake. Your other pet will be serving as a source of fleas for your unlucky pet by shedding eggs into your home.
Get your flea number down once and for all. Treat all pets in your household with the best possible flea treatment.
#5 Fleas are persistent so choose a treatment that attacks from different angles
There is a dizzying number of flea treatment products on the market. You aren’t alone. How to choose is confusing.
Some products only kill adult fleas. Some products can kill immature life stages. Some only kill today and don’t work for a full month. Some products don’t actually work at all.
The best treatment products kill both adult flea and their other life stages. Seek veterinarian advice. They can recommend the best product that suits the needs of all pets in your household.
#6 Fleas aren’t going to disappear any time soon
Fleas have been around for many millions of years, since the Jurassic period. Hoping we can end fleas forever would be like wishing for a miracle.
Dealing with fleas over and over again means you have a big flea problem on your hands. This can take weeks to months to get under control. It’s frustrating, time-consuming, and costly.
We’ve all heard an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. This adage applies well to controlling fleas. Treating all household pets monthly is the only way to keep flea numbers as small as possible.
#7 Fleas are tough bastards and can take longer to die than you think
Manufacturers overpromise when they promote their product can kill fleas in 20 minutes. It might surprise you to know that fleas can take 24 hours or longer to die.
The ability of a treatment to work for the full month is more important than the speed of initial action. Treated fleas can walk around on your pet for hours. The good news is they won’t be able to produce more eggs.
Patience is the key. New fleas will be popping onto your pet throughout the treatment month. Expect this. Fleas will contact the treatment and die.
Keep using a quality product every month. Keep treating all household pets. And you will win the battle.
Imagine how wonderful life will be for your beloved pet.
No more itching, no more bites, no more wasted time and effort. Your pets and family are counting on you.
You may see the occasional flea and that’s ok. They’ll soon be dead. Long before they can lay an egg that can turn into a hundred.
Go kill those fleas! What are you waiting for?