John Williams Dog Training asked: Ok so you want to know about dog fleas, what they do, how they do it, and what dangers you should look out for if you’re suspecting fleas on your dog or in your home.
Well let me start of by saying there is over 2000 different varieties of flea in the world today, the female version of these small little pests can reproduce at the alarming rate of 50 eggs a day max and an average egg count is normally around 20- 30 a day. Fleas can start to lay eggs as soon as 48 hours after having their first blood meal which makes getting rid of these fleas early on essential.
Around half of the flea population are eggs, 30% larvae, 15% pupae and only around 5% of the population are biting adults. These larvae take anywhere from a week to a month to become biting fleas and as you can see by the stats, the key to stopping your flea problem and letting your dog get a good night sleep again is through getting rid of the eggs.
Fleas can’t reproduce without a blood meal from your dog or another animal but can survive for long periods of time (2 months to a year) in hibernation without a meal but usually they will die off within one week without hibernation.
They key places to look out for fleas are near your dog’s bed or under bushes outside that your pet sleeps or rests. Anywhere your dog lies for long periods of time are key areas for fleas to live.
To check for fleas on your dog you will first have probably noticed your dog being very restless and uncomfortable, so the next step is to search for flea faeces, this will look like small bits of dirt to the human eye and rubbing it between your fingers with some water will bring out the red colour of blood if it is flea faeces.
Once you have found evidence of flea faeces you are now ready to move on to the next big step and get rid of the pests that are making your dog feel so uncomfortable.
Julio