Fleas and Ticks

     Dogs can get fleas and ticks from a stray dog, stray cat or a neighbors’ dog or cat.  They can also get it from going outside at a park, just running around. Once a dog picks up a flea or tick, when more ticks and or fleas hatches, tons would be crawling all over. This causes a huge problem and can be difficult to control.

     When fleas are feeding on your dog, they inject saliva into the skin. These salivary proteins can be allergenic and your dog can end up with an allergy.

 (regular sized tick and a mama tick)

     One of the most common skin diseases that dogs can get is called the flea allergy dermatitis. This problem can only take a few fleas to cause it and the effect is where they bite, scratch and end up loosing their hair. Fleas also contain the ability to transmit tapeworms to dogs.

     If your dog ever has a lot of fleas, they can become anemic and lead to death with heavy infestations.

     There are at least a dozen or more tick-transmitted diseases. There are the Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, tularemia, ehrlichiosis and more, which can all kill a dog.

     The Lyme disease is the most common tick- illness found in North America and Europe, which is caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi. A dog can get it if a tick that was carrying a Lyme organism bit it. The majority of dogs that contains this disease tend to show no symptoms. The small portion of dogs that do show symptoms may show a weakness in their joints weeks or months later. Many dogs that got this disease show signs of depression. When going on walks they may yelp when their joins are pressed. When one of their legs is affected, the lymph node on the shoulder of that leg may be enlarged.

     The Rocky Mountain spotted fever and is caused by the organism, Rickettsia Rickettsii. Ticks are found to be the vectors of the Rocky Mountain spotted fever and may acquire this organism when they feed on parasitemic small mammals, like chipmunks or squirrels. When a tick is infected, it may spread the Rocky Mountain spotted fever among his or her own population. This can be done through the transfer of bodily fluids during mating or the spread of the organism from the pregnant female tick to her offspring. A red rash may develop, but may not show in dogs, although it shows in humans. This may lead to death.

     Vacuuming the carpet, cushioned furniture, cracks and crevices on floors on a daily basis can help reduce tick and flea infestations. Also, washing all the beddings (pet and family beddings) in warm, soapy water every couple weeks would help reduce the amount of ticks and fleas that could be in your home. If an infestation is too severe, it is best to discard the bedding and replace it with a fresh, new one. Steam cleaning the carpets can kill fleas in all stages of the life cycle with the hot steam and soap. There are also flea combs, which allow hair of the dog’s coat to pass through, taking out all the fleas and dried blood. You would usually focus combing around the neck or tail area, where most fleas are. When the fleas are caught, you would soak them in hot soapy water, which kills them.

     Frontline and tick collars help to decrease the amount of ticks and fleas. There is also sprays that works well with both ticks and fleas.

* Frontline is even safe enough to put on young puppies and pregnant mothers*
There is also frontline for cats.