Summer is upon us, and that means the prime time for flea and tick prevention is upon us! If you aren’t treating your dog for fleas and ticks, you are opening him up to a world of itchiness and possible disease. Not to mention that fleas are darn hard to get rid of once they take hold in the house. The best cure for fleas, ticks, and other ugly bugs is to use preventative medicines with your pets, and to avoid the usual hiding places for these critters.
Colorado in the summertime is a gorgeous place, but it does have its fair share of bugs, pests, and other annoyances that can cause you and your furry friends some distress. One easy-to-prevent problem is that of fleas and ticks. These small critters suck the blood from your pets, and you, leaving itchy welts and possibly exposing you and your dog to a variety of preventable transmittable diseases.
Diseases Like What?
Ticks are the larger spreader of disease of the two, carrying 15+ diseases that can affect humans and pets in different ways. From Bourbon virus and Colorado tick fever to Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, a potentially fatal disease, there are a variety of viruses, diseases, and infections which can be passed from the tick’s system to you or your pet’s bloodstream.
Fleas can carry diseases as well, including the Bubonic Plague – yes, THAT plague – which can be life threatening. Fleas also carry Murine typhus – a potentially devastating disease which can linger for months – as well as the bacterium bartonella henselae which causes “cat scratch fever” and even in some cases, tapeworm eggs! This can cause a variety of nasty problems for pets, but also presents a danger to humans, who can also be affected by flea-borne illness.
It’s imperative to always check your pets for ticks after ANY outdoor exercise time, even in your own yard. Ticks can come into the house on your pet and then proceed to bite you or your family, passing diseases from one to another. Ticks bury their whole head into their bite, which paints a nice picture of how they transmit diseases. Fleas defecate when they bite, which is their main way of spreading disease. Flea eggs and dead bodies being swallowed by your pet during grooming may also transmit their diseases to your pet.
How Can They Be Treated?
Prevention, prevention, prevention! There are many diseases which can be transmitted, and the easiest way of avoiding those diseases is to avoid having Fido bitten in the first place. For dogs and cats who go outside, it’s imperative to ask your veterinarian for their recommended flea and tick product. Most products are a monthly dosage, either in a pill or a topical form. These medicines kill the mature adults, but also prohibit eggs and larvae from developing. To keep your pet as protected as possible, try to avoid missing any doses, and try to keep dosing to the same time of month each month. The fewer gaps you have, the less chance of an infestation of fleas or a serious tick related illness.
The flea and tick prevention should be given alongside heartworm prevention, for your dog or cat’s best health. These medicines also help keep out some other ugly bugs, such as roundworm, hookworm, and even tapeworms! There are a great deal of worms in this world, and not a one of them is healthy to have in your pet. As we learned in our heartworm post, even a small number of worms can threaten your pet’s life, permanently disabling or even killing your pet.
How to Get Rid of Ticks and Fleas Once They Get In
There are a lot of products out there to help you remove ticks and fleas once they do occur, but always ask you vet’s advice about what to use, and what is safe to use around your pets and your family.
For Ticks, make a search of your dog or cat a priority every time they come inside. Ticks hide in tall grasses and heavily wooded areas. Their modus operandi is to jump onto their next meal, drawn by the blood under the skin, usually where the skin is thinnest. Check your dog around his eyes, in and around ears, under the collar, at the base of the tail, and especially between toes and between his legs. If you do find a tick, you can either take fido to the vet or remove the tick yourself. Be very careful with removal, as every time you squish the body of the tick, you force it to regurgitate possibly diseased blood. Follow these guidelines from the CDC. For best results, grab the tick just under the head with tweezers and pull sharply. If the head remains buried after removal, save the tick and take your pet to the vet for a checkup.
For Fleas, make sure to take a flea comb to your pet at least once a month. Check the base of their tail, under their collar, and between the shoulderblades. If you find live adult fleas, it’s time to go talk to the vet about what products to use. Your pet will need a course of treatment, and of course preventatives from then on out. Fleas are extremely hard to get rid of once they take hold in a household. They hide in bedding, pillows, towels, and travel both by transference (from the towel or bed to you) and by jumping. Fleas can jump upwards about 7 inches, and forward about 13 inches, giving it the greatest range for its size in the animal kingdom.
Fleas lay eggs, and those eggs hatch into larvae, which feed on your pet and you, then grow to do the same cycle again: egg, larvae, adult. You must use products which target the eggs first and foremost, to break this cycle. To treat an infestation, vacuum the whole house thoroughly, and wash all your pet’s bedding. Wash yours, too, if the pet sleeps with you at all. Treat all bedding your pets use with a flea treatment product your vet approves of, and keep up the vacuum-wash-repeat cycle until you’re free of the pests.
An Important Note
Cats and dogs are different animals. A cat is not a small dog, and a small dog is not the same as a cat. Never, ever, use canine flea and tick products on a feline, and vice versa. Always consult your vet for your specific pet and condition. Your vet is the best place to get the knowledge you need. The web has a lot of good advice, but it also has some contradictory or just plain wrong advice, which can hurt you and your pet. Please ask your vet any questions you have about the necessary preventatives for your particular area.
Beware of pet stores selling preventatives, as those can contain toxic elements for your pet. Always buy from a licensed veterinarian, and check the expiration dates.
Off Road Paws takes all sorts of dogs on adventures all around Louisville, Lafayette, Broomfield and South Boulder. We see a lot of the outdoors, and we take good care to avoid as many tick and flea hiding places as possible. Out staff are trained to look for ticks and to report anything unusual immediately- both for you to know and for our own records. We take pet health seriously, and want to make sure that every pet we see is living their best life.
To learn more about our dog walking, dog running, and trail running services for dogs, please check out our information page for your area! For more information about our pet sitting services, check out our information page for your area as well. We would love to answer any questions you have regarding our services, so call or click today to let us know what you think!