What is a Flea?
The flea most commonly found on cats and dogs in this country is the Ctenocephalides felis (the cat flea to you or me).

The flea is small at around 2 mm long, reddish brown in colour and is flattened laterally, a feature which enables it to move easily amongst the hair of its host, normally cats and dogs.
The most distinctive features of the flea are the large jumping legs and the row of black non-sensory spines on the front margin of the head and on the rear of the first thoracic segment.
The eyes are apparent as are the antennae, and the mouthparts, adapted for piercing and sucking, are typically seen projecting downwards from the head.

Did you know?
In our own homes, the theoretical number of flea eggs left around your house after three days of an infestation of 500 fleas is 20,000

Why are they a pest?
In the past the flea has been the cause of the spread of different plagues around the world.  Today the flea does not pose such a problem but left untreated they could spread to neighbouring properties.  It is very easy to transport fleas via human beings and this is another way infestation is spread. A flea bite can leave uncomfortable marks all over the body and some people have extreme allergies and need medical treatment.

How do you know you have them?
Although the cat and the dog are the preferred hosts for fleas - they are capable of feeding on humans, and frequently do. The distress caused by the bites can be considerable in cats and humans. The flea is an intermediate host for the tapeworm, which normally develops in the digestive tract of the dogs, cats and some wild carnivores, but also occurs in man and particularly young children.

Vibration as a trigger for the adults to emerge from the pupa, mentioned above, frequently means that humans who go into empty premises where cats or dogs had previously been "in residence" suffer a high level of attack.

Why do we need to control them?
In the past the flea has been the cause of the spread of different plagues around the world.  Today the flea does not pose such a problem but left untreated they could spread to neighbouring properties.  It is very easy to transport fleas via human beings and this is another way infestation is spread. A flea bite can leave uncomfortable marks all over the body and some people have extreme allergies and need medical treatment.

How do we control fleas?
Our treatment consists of identifying the source of the infestation, i.e. the host animal(s), and if appropriate treating it with a suitable veterinary product. Such a treatment should not be carried out by a pest control technician but by the owner of the animal or a veterinarian.
A residual insecticide should then be applied to areas frequented by the animal. Normally this would consist of spraying carpeted areas. This treatment is completely safe, however you will have to vacate the premises for at least three hours to allow the insecticide to settle and dry. Once the first visit is complete our technician would complete a detailed inspection report explaining what he has done.

We would normally carry out two visits against fleas but a third visit maybe necessary if there is a serious infestation.

The follow up
We would need to carry out a follow up for fleas two weeks after the initial inspection and the premises are treated in exactly the same way as the initial visit. Once our work is completed our technician will complete a detailed inspection report and discuss ways of preventing re-infestation with you.