Fleas

The Truth About Fleas!

Oklahomans love their pets. There is entirely nothing wrong with this, but as you likely know, pets come with some inherent risks. One of those inherent risks is the potential for fleas. Fleas follow animals and wildlife wherever they go, like a moth to the flame. While many Oklahomans just consider the flea to be nothing more than a nuisance critter, you’d be shocked to learn just how big of a threat it poses. Not only does it pose major health threats to your pet, but it poses them to your family. Fleas are highly known for transmitting diseases like typhus and plague. They do this by vectoring bacteria through their bite.

What Types Of Fleas Are In Oklahoma City?

Oklahoma City provides the perfect environmental conditions for fleas, and this is why they are so prevalent in the area. That being said, there are just one species that you’ll have to worry about. That would be the Cat Flea. And given its name, there are all kinds of misinformation out there surrounding the insect. While the Internet is an awesome source of knowledge, it can also be a good source is misinformation. The Cat Flea would be the perfect example of this, but given its name, this is kind of understood. Most people think that the Cat Flea on pesters cats or felines. Unfortunately, this is not the case at all.

The Cat Flea will latch on to anything from the dog to the cat, raccoon, fox, skunk, opossum, and even human. Being from the Ctenocephalides Felis classification the adults of these species can grow to be as large as 1/8 inch. While not very big, they also have a flat body structure that allows them to easily slip through animal hairs and human fingers. This is just the start of what you need to know about these critters.

Understanding The Flea Bite

Most pet owners already know that the flea bite can be extremely troubling. However, they don’t know just how threatening it can be. It can lead to anemia or death in the severest of cases. There is also the potential for hair loss. This is usually the result of constant scratching or flea allergy dermatitis, which is an allergic reaction to the protein in the flea’s saliva. Another extremely troubling fact is, fleas are hosts of tapeworms, which can both bother the human and animal. Here are some other things you need to know about the flea bite: Knowing this information could make the biggest difference in the world.

• Always think twice about adopting a pet or taking on local wildlife. There will always be a threat of fleas when doing so.
• If you are going to take on a pet, you’ll need to regularly apply anti-parasite medication. Medication that is labeled for prevention and control.
• Maintain a well-manicured lawn. Usually, 3 inches in height is an acceptable level.
• Be careful feeding local wildlife.
• If you have a deck or porch consider installing a barricade or heavy gauge wiring around it to prevent wildlife invasion
• Wash your pet’s bedding on the regular
• Vacuum your pet’s clothes and home regularly
• Do the same with any furniture that they are in constant contact with

Unfortunately, it is entirely impossible to completely 100 percent prevent fleas from invading your property. This doesn’t mean you should try or there aren’t things you can’t do because there are plenty of little things you can do. Those little things will go a huge way. This is something we are always more than willing to help with as well. After helping you eliminate your flea infestation, we’ll sit down with you and devise a preventive plan that’ll help you keep your property flea-free for the foreseeable future.

Maybe you just have a few questions or some concerns. Whatever the situation is, we want you to know that we are here and more than willing to help. All you have to do is reach out to our offices and we’ll get someone out to the property. In most cases, we’ll have someone out there within 24 to 48 hours after you make that initial call, but we do have emergency specialists available if and when they are needed.

If you have any other pest control issues please check out other services.