It’s mid-November and colder months are upon us! For Southern Californians this means pumpkin spice lattes, peppermint hot cocoa, and having to wear a jacket on your way to work in the morning. For our pets, this means a lot of them will get to skip the flea and tick prevention until June.
In places like the Midwest and northeastern United States this method works great. Fleas simply cannot survive those freezing temperatures! California on the other hand does not really have seasons. Even in December, we have days where it can become extremely hot! Fleas can definitely be more active during summer months, but even in our coldest temperatures they have no problem surviving. For these reasons we recommend our fur babies be protected all year.
Many times we may not even see a flea on our pets. The reason for this is that only about 20% of a flea’s life cycle is actually spent on your pets. The other 80% of the flea’s life cycle is spent in our environment. This means carpets, crevices in hardwood floors, or couches in our homes. For every one flea that we find on our pets (if we can find them) there could be 1,000 more eggs either on our pet or in our home.
Some pets can be allergic to flea saliva and this can cause severe itching and secondary skin infections. Fleas can also be infected with tapeworm larva. When a pet ingests a flea, tapeworms can grow inside of your pet and lead to weight loss or an itchy rear end.
For our young or small animals like puppies and kittens, fleas can cause them to develop a condition called flea bite anemia. The fleas feed so much on these animals that their red blood cell count decreases. Flea bite anemia can be a medical emergency and can be fatal in some cases if left untreated.
Fortunately, prevention is readily available in several options, such as chewable tablets or topical products that are applied to the skin. Talk to your veterinarian about which option is best for your pet to fight fleas all year round.
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