Think your dog can only get fleas in the summer? Think again

Itch-Festation – The Gruesome Truth About Fleas

Blood-sucking fleas breed like crazy when the temperature rises in your home. And new research from dog food company tails.com reveals that after 55 days, your home could be crawling with over 5 million unwelcome visitors.

Key Findings: 

• After 55 days without action, your home could be crawling with over 5 million fleas
• 95% of fleas don’t live on animals, but remain alive in wood floor crevices, carpets and soft furnishings for up to two years
• Only one in 100 fleas is seen by a pet owner and could lay up to 2000 eggs
• The total of blood sucked by this number of fleas amounts to 516ml which is just over the average size of a bottle of pop
• The full Itch-Festation Report can be found here: https://tails.com/blog/2020/01/03/gruesome-truth-about-fleas/ 

Lockdown was the perfect breeding ground for fleas. We enjoyed longer ­periods of time outdoors with our pets, and vets across the nation were understandably prioritising emergency service treatments over routine flea and worming appointments.

The risk of flea eggs being carried into our homes was very high. And once hatched, those fleas get busy laying up to 50 eggs every single day.

After just 38 days there could be 74,132 fleas living in your home. The total of blood sucked by this number of fleas amounts to 516ml just over the average size of a bottle of pop.

And in just 43 days over seven pints of blood will be sucked by 514,332 fleas. Fast forward to 55 days an astonishing 5,412,732 fleas could be living in your home, slurping 37.7 litres of blood.

The flea population has spiked in ­recent years, with warm weather creating the ­perfect breeding ground. The warmer the weather, the faster flea eggs develop into adults. The report found that at 13C it could take a flea egg 140 days to hatch, but when temperatures hit the mid-twenties (or when we turn the central heating on), it can take as little as 22 days.

Tails.com Head Vet Sean McCormack warns that missed flea treatments in lockdown could be leading to a bigger problem and has the following advice for pet owners suffering:

“There are many products on the market for treating fleas, some more effective than others. Some products only kill or repel fully-grown adult fleas, whereas others are also effective against flea eggs too. The best advice is to speak to your vet who will be able to suggest a product suited to your dogs needs.

“Fleas can also transmit tapeworm so it is important to use an effective prescription wormer against tapeworms at the same time as your flea treatment”.

“Vacuuming the entire household, discarding the contents of the vacuum cleaner immediately in a sealed plastic bag, washing bedding on a high heat, and using a spray in the home are vital to prevent reoccurrence. If your pet spends a lot of time in your car, it’s also worth giving that a good clean too”.