Every year more and more people adopt fur babies into their homes. Dogs and cats are great pets and can be wonderful companions for children and people who know live alone. The elderly love them and so do the young. Pets need to have certain things to keep them going. One of the problems that you can run into with pets is fleas. These tiny insect prey upon the pets that we love and make them itch and scratch. They can cause dermatitis problems and even in some cases spread diseases. In this article, let’s explore fleas, their lifecycle and how we can get rid of them to protect our loved ones and our pets.
IDENTIFYING FLEAS
Fleas are a tiny insect. These insects look like small little dots found on your pet’s skin. But under a microscope these parasites are uniquely equipped to attack your dog or cat and prey upon them. Their mouth parts are sucking mouth parts. They work like a hypodermic needle to inject their needle like mouth into the animal, and draw blood. This blood provides sustenance, not only to survive, but also to move through their life cycle. Fleas not only can draw blood from our pets, but they also can bite us and use our blood for nutrients. This is yet another reason why it’s important to keep fleas out of your home.
These insects also have very powerful back legs. Scientists have looked deeply into the rear legs of fleas because of their ability to jump. These insects can jump many times their own height. In fact the flea was the size of a human, it would easily jump over a 100 story building. The reason that these legs work so well, is the fact that they are actually geared to one another. When this much power is being used by any organism, the hardest part is making sure that it is synced so that the insect can propel itself in the direction it wants to. This gearing system found within the biology of the flea give it the ability to sync both legs together. Inside, its muscle structure works much like a spring. It crouches down and builds up a large amount of potential energy in the spring of the muscles inside it, and then explodes with force, causing it to fly through the air. Doing this, fleas can jump on passing animals that are much larger than they are.
FLEAS LIFECYCLE
Fleas develop using a complete lifecycle. This kind of a metamorphosis is much like the butterfly. I use this example because many people are familiar with it. The flea starts in an egg. Once this egg hatches, a larva is emerges. This is much like the caterpillar of the butterfly. The larva will actually feed on the droppings of adults nearby. These insects need blood to build up enough energy to move through each segment of their lifecycle. Of course, a small worm does not have the ability to draw blood from a large animal, so the larva will wait for the droppings of adults to fall to the ground. These droppings will have bits of dried blood in them, nourishing the larva. I know, it’s really gross. Call the best Broken Arrow pest control company for more information.
Once the larva has grown to a certain size, it will start to gather hair and dust and other objects around it creates sort of cocoon. This stage is called the pupa stage. It is much like the butterflies cocoon. It wraps self up in these protective materials as it starts to develop into the adult it will soon become. Once it’s fully developed and finished with a pupa stage, it will emerge from the pupa as a full grown adult. At this stage it will use its powerful jumping ability that it has developed in order to jump on a passing animal. Once it finds a host, it will stay on that host as long as it possibly can. It will feed upon this animal and lay eggs in its fur. These eggs will fall off the animal and wherever they land, they will start the lifecycle all over again. Often you can find eggs, larva and pupa around the sleeping areas of your pets.
OVERWINTERING
When fleas are in their egg and pupa form, they have a little connection to the outside world. These two forms are also where the insect will over winter. The cold temperatures will easily end the life of a larva or adult that’s not on a host, but an egg or a pupa can survive the cold temperatures and emerge again the next spring. The way to the insect knows when it’s time to emerge from an egg or pupa, is based on heat and vibration. Even in cold weather if an animal comes near, the vibration of that animal will awaken a nearby pupa. This is because the adult flea can most likely jump upon the animal and use it’s body heat to survive through the winter. Not only that, but it will use that animal as a host and feed off its blood.
TREATING YOUR HOME FOR FLEAS
Dealing with these insects can be difficult. It’s a battle fought on three different fronts. First of all, the animal must be treated for fleas. This is something that you should consult your veterinarian for the best possible solution. There are many dips, baths, collars, pills and shots that can help to eliminate fleas on your animal. But just because there are no fleas on your animal, does that mean that your house does not have to deal with this pest. Once they are in your home, they can survive in the carpeting and around animals bedding. They prefer these kinds of areas with cloth and carpet in order to hide from view. The best solution to dealing with them in your home is to call your tour Tulsa pest control company. During the treatment, it is recommended that you vacuum often. Vacuuming creates heat and vibration that can convince eggs and pupa to open and allow undeveloped insects to come in contact with pesticide treatments that have been applied. Lastly, if you have them outside of your home in your yard, there are treatments that your favorite Broken Arrow exterminator can help you with as well.
If you’re having an issue with fleas or any other pests, it’s a good time to call the best Tulsa exterminator in the business. TermMax Pest Control prides itself and how well we take care of our customers. We service the greater Tulsa area including Tulsa, Broken Arrow, Sand Springs, Sapulpa, Coweta, Prattville, Jenks, Owasso, Bixby, Turley, Claremore, Catoosa and much more. Call today for a free estimate. We’re here to help!