|
The Puggy Page
Pictures
Meet the Pug
Buying Puppies
Setting Up House
Training and Care
General Care
Nutrition
Pug Problems 1
Pug Problems 2
Pug Clubs
Breeding 1
Breeding 2
|
Fleas and ticks are dangerous pests that live part of their lives in your pet's fur and feed on its blood. In addition to irritating your pet, they can cause serious allergies and transmit disease. If your pet becomes allergic to the flea, he will scratch incessantly even if he has few or no fleas on him at that particular moment. Since fleas spend 90% of their time off the dog, you may not actually see them on your pet when you examine him. The flea will however, have left its calling card, in the form of exereta. These specs of brownish, black debris are undeniable evidence that your dog has a flea problem. Out of doors, fleas and ticks are less of a problem in the winter, but in the home, where the temperature is controlled, or in the south where it is warm all year long, these pests are active all year. While fleas are wingless, they have an enormous capacity to jump. This gives the adult flea the ability to jump on a pet very quickly as it moves through an area of infestation. The flea has four basic stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult. Depending on the temperature and humidity, and whether these stages occur in an indoor environment, the complete life cycle can take as little as three weeks or as much as a year. Only the adult flea bites your pet. Once this insect lays its eggs, there is enough food with the egg to allow it to hatch and bring it through the larva stage. The larva will spend up to eight days feeding on debris until it spins a cocoon, bringing it to the pupal stage. The pupal period may last between a week and a year before changing into an adult flea. At that point, the adult develops and the cycle starts all over again. Ticks differ substantially from fleas. These insects get around by crawling; they go through four life stages; egg,larva,nymph (juvenile stage), and adult. Ticks differ from fleas in all stages except the egg, they require a host animal to feed on in order to develop into the next stage. This means that the tin, almost invisible early stages, as well as the larger, easy to spot, adult can infest the pet. Depending upon environmental conditions, the life cycle of a tick can be anywhere from one month to two years. They usually hide in shrubbery or concealed places in the home, waiting for their next meal from your pet.
Solutions Effective flea control requires a dual attack - the animal and your home. Anything less than this is doomed. If your animal has an allergic reaction, veterinarian intervention is required, then the following must be adhered to. THE DOG: Bathe your dog in an approved shampoo or have him professionally dipped. When dry, apply a barrier type product that will help keep the fleas at bay. Depending on the type of product chosen, it will have to be reapplied every 3 - 7 days. Flea collars and oral preparations can be used as an extra precaution.
The household Destroy or thoroughly clean all your dog's bedding. Thoroughly vacuum and clean your home and immediately dispose of File vacuum bag. (Eggs can hatch in the bag. Remove pets and children from the home and spray with an immediate action type spray - wait an hour and vacuum again. Spray your home with a long acting product such as Sectrol. This should be repeated at 21 day intervals. Remember, both your pet and your home must be effectively treated at the same time, otherwise, you are just wasting your time!!! |