The Known Facts About fleas

Things to know about fleas.

Fleas are tiny little bugs that really prove to be a big pain.
Not just animals suffer from this, humans do as well.
Fleas can be quite a problem to rid from your houses.

These are a few facts about fleas to consider.

Blood is necessary for fleas to continue living and gives them the ability to reduce.

Over 140,000 fleas can come from a single female through three months of reproducing.

Both humans and animals can contract diseases from fleas.

A lot of itching and discomfort can come from a flea bite. Allergies may be stirred up from this as well. Capable of leaping over 70 times their own height fleas can travel great distances. There are two stages within their life cycle that fleas are protected from pesticides.

• The egg
• the pupa

Cycle of a Flea's Life

Ranging between a few weeks to a couple of years, the life cycle of a flea can take a while. During the egg and pupa stages the flea is protected from pesticides.

Stage 1, Egg: The eggs are laid directly on the animal, they can fall off into your home.

Stage 2, Larva: This worm like form enjoy getting into your bedding as well as carpet. It looks for moist areas away from the sunlight. This larva can survive off dried blood, loose hairs, and old skin.

Stage 3, Pupa: In this stage they take a cocoon form which is well protected for around a year.

Stage 4, Adult: Upon hatching the adult looks for blood. The adult form is capable of surviving for many months without having to eat.

However, the issue is the fact that you don't even need pets to get fleas in your home. Without pets for the fleas to suck blood from they go after humans. They can travel through the use of your clothing to reach new areas.
Flea bites on humans is common.

They can be transplanted from other infested lawns as well. All of these facts about fleas are good to keep in mind. Through the knowledge of how fleas live you can know just what to do in order to remove them.

Flea Bites

Ever had a flea bite? If so, then you know how painful they can be. The problem with a flea bite is they don’t really start itching until later on and usually when you’re sleeping, then they just seem to go crazy. Fleas are a parasite and feed off blood. The problem is, when they bite you there is usually some blood left over from the last warm blooded host. So now you can be getting something else’s blood on you.

Fleas like many parasites carry diseases, because they can jump a good length, they can move from host to host, and if that host travels any distance at all then the flea can also travel that far. The best remedy for flea bites is to simply eliminate them as soon as you know you have a flea infestation.

Many people confuse a fire ant bite with a flea bite. The fire ant bite will be red and soon have a puss head to it. A flea bite is usually red and runs in a line with a few more bites and will last up to about two weeks.

Some people have a allergic reaction to flea bites, if you are one of those that do and you get bit, be sure and keep a watch on the bite and your health. If necessary get professional medical care. To see pictures of flea bites go here. To get some relief from a bite and help to keep the itching down try using Calahist lotion

As I mentioned earlier the best remedy is elimination, when you first see or feel a flea bite then take action and get rid of the fleas or learn how to kill
fleas

How To Get Rid Of fleas

Below is some questions I ran into on How to get rid of fleas

Question:

My house is infested with fleas! I have never had fleas before I moved into this house. I bought flea collars for the dogs and flea spray made especially for cats, and some spray for the carpet, but what else can I do? I need all the help I can get! Thanks.

Answers by various people about how to get rid of fleas:

If you don't want to use frontline or that other chemical they have (can't think of the name right now) you might try setting off a bug bomb (get everyone including pets, out of the house first), give dogs baths (with flea shampoo),then start feeding them small amounts of garlic, and that ought to solve the problem.

When my house was infested (many years ago) I got some bombs, spray, and shampoo from the vet. I bombed the house and the inside of my car because the dog was in there a lot. Worked great, and I have been using frontline type flea control ever since. Only have to go through it once to learn...what a royal pain! The vacuum is your friend right now too. Get every nook and cranny.

Flea collars are a scam. Get the between the shoulder flea drops and put on the pets or animals and start vacuuming every day for a month, and that should get rid of the problem.

All the above answers are very good to some degree when it comes knowing how to get rid fleas; the one thing that is missing is the follow up. You must repeat the process in 2-3 weeks to be successful. You really only need to vacuum a couple of times, more important is to get the bag out of cleaner or dump contents outside in a plastic bag and throw into garbage. Fleas will escape out of a vacuum cleaner.
Remember this if you cannot get rid of the problem please call a professional exterminator, so that the animals will not be miserable.

Good luck to you!

How To Kill Fleas, Contiuned

There are various ways on how to kill fleas. You need to know the pro's and cons. of what your facing. A lot of people would like to be able to be flea free. That is a reality and a possibility.

One thing I would like most of you who read this article to know is, if you can come up with any planned way or method to get rid of fleas without the use of Chemicals. Then please post it here on this article. I know there are things like dish detergent, Garlic and flea collars to use on your pets , but when you have a bad flea infestation, just washing your pet doesn't do the trick, unless you have caught the flea and he is the only flea your pet has on him.

The question we should ask is where and how do we get fleas that fast? Fleas invade our area by many different ways,below are some examples.

Pest from the community comes through our yard.
People who visit a flea infested area (the flea will jump on that person and ride into your area).
Women hosiery will actually be the vehicle for fleas to ride in on, fleas are designed to go one way, and that is forward, so when they jump on a womans hosiery they get caught in the webbing and can't get out for a few hours, by that time they are at your house, you now have fleas.
I would suggest if you feel you have been in an area where there is a flea infestation, carefully check your self over before you return back into your residence.

As I have stated in a few of my other reports on how to kill fleas, that patience and follow up is the key.

There are many products on the market that can contribute to the eradication or control of fleas, a little research and common sense should help you decide on the best method to use,

One thing to consider, do the flea bites have a impact on my pets health? If so, maybe the chemical will bring much needed relief, allergic reactions of certain chemicals could happen. If you see your pet reacting strangely, a small number of pets who have allergic reactions, consider taking the pet to the VET. I believe the risks are fairly low.

In how to kill fleas, here are Some Flea medicine you might want to consider , frontline, Advantage.
If you want a Pest Control Company to help you, then consider Terminex, Orkin, Truly Nolen, There are many local companies that can be of service to you.
John Shelton

Text copyright 2005-2006 How To Kill Fleas may not be reproduced in anyway without consent. This is not the official web page. of any of the products listed on this site, this is a article blog page created by an individual. This is to be an informative article and not a substitute for a Licensed pest operator or a Vet. Always consult your local pest control company or a vet if you suspect a problem.

Disclaimer: I Am A Certified pest Control Operator and in the pest control business for 30 years, I have treated many a flea infested areas with great success, I have never had a pet get sick or die, If you decide to do your own pest control then please read the label and treat accordingly, the responsibility will be yours. If you are not sure then call a Vet or a Certified Pest Control Operator.
If you want to ask me a question feel free to post here.

Fleas in the home

Most people Don't understand the life cycle of fleas.
If you have pets in your house, sooner or later you'll get fleas in your house. You can vacuum fleas up but you need to remember that they'll continue to live and multiply in your dust bag. To avoid this, put either a flea collar or mothballs in your dust bag. there is more to knowing how to kill fleas than meets the eye

Related Tags: Fleas, Pest, bites, Flea bites, animals, pets