From:
sukiec@optonline.net
Date: 2006-07-18 01:00:10 UTC
Subject: FLEAS: Facts, Trivia, Prevention and Eradication
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
This is carried here with the author's permission:
From: Julie Fossa <julie_fossa@YAHOO.COM>
It's not uncommon for flea populations to explode five to six weeks
after warm weather gets here, and so do the posts from owners faced with
evicting the uninvited guests. While there are over 2000 flea species,
the cat flea 'ctenocephalides felix' is the species we encounter on our
pets, including birds. Rodents have their own species, however, from
what I could find, the standard eradication methods would be effective
for either.
Fleas are flat, side to side, with hair-like bristles on their bodies
and legs that aid in locomotion. They have three pairs of legs to
facilitate jumping and have an exoskeleton, eyes, and mouths equipped to
suck blood. They can jump 150 times their body length and 9-15 inches
high. Adult fleas cannot survive or lay eggs without a blood meal. A
female will eat fifteen times her body weight in blood daily. Fleas
can be carriers of tape worms if your pet ingests them. If you see one
flea, there may be 100 more hiding in furniture or bedding.
Fleas and butterflies have the same life cycle. They have four stages:
Eggs, Larvae (caterpillar), Pupae (cocoon), and Adult. Completion of
the life cycle can range from 2 weeks to 8 months with an average of 3-4
weeks. However it can stall as long as two years.
While sources vary on the percentages, flea populations are comprised of
50% eggs, 30% larvae, 15% pupae and 5% of biting adults. Another source
claims 34% eggs, 57% larvae, 8% pupae, and 1% biting adults. It doesn't
really matter which source is right, you can still have a big problem if
you only see one hardworking female adult.
A happy well fed female can lay as many as 15 to 20 eggs in a day.
Another other source claims she can produce more, 31- 46. She can lay
up to 600 during her lifetime. If your pet has just 10 females for one
month, they can multiply to an army of over one quarter of a million
strong in various life stages.
Once the female finds a host, she will take two to three blood meals so
she will have extra droppings to feed the young larvae. Feeding periods
last from four to seven minutes. She will lay her eggs two days after
taking her first blood meal. This pattern will continue for her lifetime
which can be from 12 up to 113 days.
Flea eggs are not sticky, like many parasite eggs, so after they are
loosely laid on the hair shafts, they will drop off where the pet sleeps,
plays or rests. These eggs will then hatch anywhere from two days to two
weeks, becoming larvae. If the eggs are deposited indoors, the larvae
will reside in cracks and crevices in floors, along baseboards, under
rug edges, in furniture or beds.
If the eggs drop off and hatch outdoors, the larvae will thrive in sand
and gravel, preferring moist sand boxes or under shrubs.
Larvae take anywhere from a week to several months to develop. Their
food consists of digested blood from adult flea feces, dead skin, hair,
and other organic matter. Larvae do not live off of fresh blood from
the animal. The larvae will establish a silky cocoon made of pet hair,
carpet fiber, grass cuttings, dust, or whatever is available, for it's
next stage of development. Once in it's cocoon, the pupae will develop
into the adult flea. Fleas usually survive the winter in the larval or
pupal stage. They grow best during warm, moist, temperate seasons.
Optimal temps for fleas are 70 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit, with 70%
humidity.
Adult fleas can emerge or remain in the cocoon until the environment
is right for their survival. They will emerge at the detection of
vibration -caused by the movement of the host, pressure -such as an
animal laying down on them, or presence of heat, noise or carbon
dioxide -indicating a potential blood source. Adult fleas emerge fully
ready to populate their environment. They can hibernate in the cocoon
from two months to one year without feeding.
Given fleas' ability to multiply and survive, how do you protect your pet
and home? There are several options, beginning with treating your yard
to prevent you or your pets from bringing in a hitch hiker.
Products known as Insect Growth Regulators (IGR) prevent the completion
of the life cycle. This is applied to your yard and is effective for 30
days. There are some links at the end of this post for sites that offer
these products. Also, local pest control companies usually offer this
service.
There are a number of products available to protect your pet. Using
these products will help keep fleas out of your home. These include
Frontline, Frontline Plus, Advantage and Revolution. The Frontline
products and Advantage work on the surface of the skin and oil layer
and are NOT absorbed into the skin. Revolution and Program are absorbed
into the bloodstream. These products not only eliminate fleas but will
eliminate ear mites and skin mites. Revolution will protect against
heart worm and Program is also used to treat ringworm, a fungal
infection. We will look at them individually.
Advantage: Benefits include stops fleas from biting in 3-5 minutes and
starts killing fleas within the hour. The fleas stop laying eggs, so
no eggs means no larvae, no pupae and so no new fleas. The literature
claims 98-100% of adult fleas are dead within 12 hours. New exposures
die within 2 hours and 99% of the larvae are killed within 20 minutes.
Per the FHL archives, the dose is one whole tube of the 'less than 9
pound' cat dose. It is off-label use for ferrets, but safe and
effective.
Frontline and Frontline Plus: Comes in a spot-on and spray. Dose for
the spot-on is one tube of the 5-15 pound cat dose which will provide
relief for 4-5 weeks. Frontline spray is the most economical choice. It
has no expiration date, and the dose is 1 spray per pound of body weight.
Frontline kills fleas, eggs and larvae for an entire month. It also
kills ticks. It is waterproof even after swimming or bathing. It is
safe to use on puppies and kittens (and ferrets). The Frontline Plus is
gentle enough to use on pregnant or nursing dogs and cats. Frontline is
not absorbed into the bloodstream and is off-label use for ferrets, but
is safe and effective.
Revolution: This product not only deals with the fleas, but will prevent
heart worm when 1 tube of the '5-15 pound' cat dose is used once a month.
Lower doses did not protect against heart worm. This is a safe and
effective dose for ferrets. For ear mites, the dose needs to be applied
on the back of the head, between the ears, and needs to be repeated after
3 weeks. Revolution is absorbed into the bloodstream, which is how it is
able to protect against heart worms. Revolution is safe to use at the
age of 6 weeks. Pfizer actually tested this product for effectiveness
on ferrets.
Program: Available in pill form, Program works when the flea bites your
pet. The flea then lays eggs that cannot hatch. The negative with this
product, in my opinion, is that it doesn't give your pet relief from the
fleas very quickly and it takes longer to break the cycle. However,
Program is safe and effective, and is even an effective treatment for
ringworm. It is considered off-label use.
Advantix: This product is NOT safe for ferrets nor cats. Nix the
AdvanTix!
How do you get rid of the fleas you already have in your home? Vacuum
all carpet, floors and furniture. Put a flea collar in the bag or tank
and destroy the contents after each use. This will remove as many fleas
and eggs as possible but it will also stimulate the fleas in the cocoons
that are ready to hatch to emerge due to the heat and vibration. Vacuum
prior to the treatment then again 24 hours afterward. Treat with a
product that is safe for pets. Your vet should be able to recommend a
good product. There are also links below with products that treat fleas.
One website recommended vacuuming every day for 2-3 weeks to expedite the
removal of fleas. Remember to empty the bag so they can't jump back out!
You need to wash your ferret's bedding, after treatment, before placing
them back into their cage/area. Don't forget to wash toys and other out
of cage bedding or places fleas might hide.
For hardwood floors, vacuum floors and baseboard then spray floor making
sure to reach all cracks and crevices. Make sure the product you select
for treatment is acceptable for use on hard surface flooring.
Preferred products have Permethrin with an IGR such as Flea Fix. Another
excellent product, Knockout E.S., is available through veterinarians or
by Internet, and has a pyrethrin base. This product kills active flea
infestations and keeps infestations from developing. It prevents flea
re-infestation for 7 months.
Carefully follow all safety precautions for protecting all pets during
any chemical treatments. Pyrethrins are natural insecticides produced
by certain species of the Chrysanthemum plant. Other chemicals are added
in to make the pyrethrins more effective.
All information with exception to personal experiences were taken from
the following websites. There are other pertinent posts on the FHL for
those who are interested. Also, purchasing the larger doses of Frontline
and Advantage and using measured drops for the ferrets is an accepted,
vet approved, means of protecting our ferrets from fleas.
References:
Flea info
http://www.fleasmart.com/life.htm
IGRs
http://www.fleasmart.com/igr.htm
Advantage
http://www.nofleas.com/Flea-Life-Cycle.asp
Flea Facts
http://www.nofleas.com/Flea-Facts.asp
General information
http://vetmedicine.about.com/od/parasites/f/FAQ_fleacycle.htm
Flea info
http://vetmedicine.about.com/cs/diseasesall/a/befreeoffleas.htm
Flea biology
http://vetmedicine.about.com/cs/diseasesall/a/befreeoffleas.htm
Flea Info
http://www.pest-control-supplies.com/flea_life_cycle.htm
Flea control supplies
http://www.pest-control-supplies.com/permitherin.htm
Frontline
http://frontline.us.merial.com/products/index.asp
Flea elimination from your property
http://frontline.us.merial.com/products/index.asp
K9-Advantix
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/browse.php?msg=SG14345
FHL archives search for safe flea products
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/browse.php?msg=SG14337
Advantage dose size
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/browse.php?msg=SG9830
Frontline spray dose
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/browse.php?msg=SG6677
Revolution dose and benefits
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/browse.php?msg=SG13107
Revolution for ear mites
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/browse.php?msg=SG6676
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/browse.php?msg=SG13009
Program information
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/browse.php?msg=YG2413
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/browse.php?msg=YG1516
Pyrethrins -definition and additives
<http://pmep.cce.cornell.edu/profiles/extoxnet/pyrethrins-ziram/
pyrethrins-ext.html>
Knockout E.S.
http://www.entirelypets.com/knockoutes16oz.html
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