Fleas – Even your best efforts sometimes cannot prevent you from needing fleas pest control
If you own a pet, you know that keeping fleas out of your house is important for your pet’s health and comfort. However, even your best efforts sometimes cannot prevent you from needing fleas pest control. Cavanuagh’s Termite and Pest Services can help you eliminate fleas from your home in Flanders, NJ or a nearby city. Read the information below to figure out if fleas are your main pest problem.
What They Look Like
Fleas are small, mostly flat pests that appear dark to reddish brown. These creatures are only about 3 mm long as adults, and they don’t have wings. Instead, they use their six legs to jump. Their bodies are also covered with hair that helps them cling to their hosts.
Fleas spend most of their lives as eggs, larvae, and pupae. An adult female flea lays eggs on her host (usually a dog or cat), who then spreads the tiny, white eggs elsewhere. The eggs hatch into translucent larvae that are about 1/4 inch long and have no legs. The larvae get slightly darker as they age.
About 5 to 20 days after becoming larvae, they spin cocoons and enter the pupae stage. A flea remains in its cocoon until it senses the body heat and vibrations of a nearby host.
Where They Live
Fleas can live at various places during their life cycle. Outdoors, they live in cooler, shady places with plenty of moisture. As adults, they thrive as parasites on a warm-blooded host animal. The newly laid eggs drop off the host animal and stay where they landed because flea larvae have limited mobility due to their lack of legs.
Cocooned flea pupae are also largely stationary. The cocoon’s sticky outer shell attaches to the surrounding environment, which could be carpet, upholstery fabric, or another surface in your home.
What Flea Bites Look Like
Adult fleas bite their host to feed. In homes, fleas live mainly on dogs and cats, but they can also bite humans. Their bites appear as small red bumps on the surface of the skin. Most bites are surrounded by a small halo. The bites are also very itchy.
How to Spot an Infestation
Most people realize they have a flea infestation in their home when their dog or cat demonstrates symptoms. The pet will scratch or even bite itself because of the discomfort caused by the fleas living in its fur. Your pet may even lose small patches of hair or red skin. These signs typically appear on a cat’s head or neck or a dog’s hindquarters.
Your pet’s scratching and moving around can leave flea eggs in various areas of your home, and eliminating all the eggs is a difficult job. Partner with Cavanaugh’s and your pet’s veterinarian when you realize you have a flea infestation. We’ll use trusted techniques to banish fleas from your house. Our service areas include Freehold, NJ; Somerville, NJ; and all nearby cities.