If you're a dog or cat owner, once again, it's time to begin fighting fleas in earnest. During warm, humid weather, they are capable of reproducing with amazing speed. Each female lays about 200 eggs. Under ideal conditions of temperature and humidity, those eggs can become adults in as little as three weeks. Thus. within a month, just ten reproducing females can generate a population of over 267,000 offspring in various stages of development.
Sounds like an invasion, doesn’t it? In a manner of speaking, it is. It happens every year about this time, and continues until the cold weather hits. While the weather remains moderate, the problem grows worse and worse — unless you take measures to repel the invasion.
lt helps to approach the problem in the right frame of mind. This is war. Don’t underestimate your enemy, the flea. Having been practicing their act for millions of years, fleas are exceedingly good at what they do. It is possible for you to win this war, but don’t expect victory to be easy. As in any war, start by learning as much as you can about the enemy. Then use your knowledge to develop a suitable strategy which takes full advantage of his weaknesses. Your strategy, and the tactics to implement it, must be tailored to suit your individual circumstances. If you fight with ineffective or inappropriate weapons, or even if you use the right weapons in the wrong way, you’ll lose.
Fleas are wingless, jumping insects which are obligate blood-suckers. In other words, in order to survive and reproduce, they must have blood meals. (Matter of fact, the scientific name of the order of fleas, Siphonaptera, just about says it all. In Greek, it means “wingless siphon.”) Following a blood meal, young adult female fleas mate, then proceed to lay large numbers of fertilized eggs a few at a time.
While there are several species of fleas, almost all of those that plague both our dogs and our cats are actually cat fleas, Ctenocephalides felis.
Flea eggs are normally laid while the flea is aboard your pet, but the smooth, dry eggs do not remain where they are deposited. Like grains of salt, they fall off and land on whatever surface is handy. If conditions are ideal, as, for instance, in your pet’s bed, the eggs will hatch out in as little as one week. Under adverse conditions, they can lie dormant for long periods of time. Their tough shells make them extremely resistant to hostile environments. Even insecticides will not kill them. Outdoors, prolonged spells of extremely hot, dry weather will destroy a lot of them, but indoors, they can survive for at least one or two years.
The larvae which hatch from the flea eggs are tiny, hairy legless white worm-like creatures. They do not normally live on your pet, but remain in nooks and crannies near their birthplace. Within a small area, they wiggle around quite actively in search of food. They especially like carpets, but are equally at home in upholstered furniture, behind baseboards, or even in cracks and crevices in hard-surfaced floors. Outdoors, they are quite comfortable in your lawn.
Their main dietary staple is “flea dirt,” the tiny black specks of (yuck) feces left by the adult fleas. It consists of partially digested blood, thus furnishing the larvae with the blood meals they require to mature. Larvae also eat other small particles of organic debris which they discover In their explorations. A favorite snack is the egg packet of a common dog tapeworm, Dipylidium caninum. Thus, the life cycles of two unwelcome parasites intertwine, with one parasite — the tapeworm — using the other as transportation in return for being used as food by the flea. When a larva which has eaten a tapeworm egg packet later matures Into an adult flea, its body will contain tapeworm larvae called cysticercoids. If that flea is accidentally swallowed by a pet attempting to scratch itself with its teeth, the tapeworm larvae will mature into adult tape-worms. Two or three weeks later, you may notice the little tapeworm segments, resembling moving cucumber seeds, in your pet’s stool, crawling around on its hindquarters, or dried out and stuck to its fur.
Flea larvae pass through three stages, called instars, before spinning debris-covered translucent silk cocoons, thus entering the “pupa” stage. Under ideal conditions. such as in a house with a nice, deep carpet which has not been vacuumed for quite a while, they can spin their cocoons just one week after first hatching from the egg. Under less favorable conditions, such as they might encounter outdoors, they can remain in the larval stage for as long as seven months.
Flea larvae are vulnerable to adverse conditions, such as hot, dry weather. In the controlled environment of our homes. temperature and humidity remain well within the flea’s comfort zone. But they are vulnerable to insecticides. The proper type used at the appropriate time can be one of your most effective weapons against the enemy.
The timing of your application is quite important, because if you wait too long, those vulnerable flea larvae will spin cocoons around themselves and progress to the pupa stage. At that point, any measures you take to kill the pupae within the cocoons will be ineffective. The pupae will continue to develop within their impervious shelters, then emerge as adults as though nothing ever happened. Cocoons are highly resistant to insecticides. Just about the only weapon which will kill them effectively is a flame-thrower — not too practical for use on your living room carpet. At that point in the flea life cycle, all you can do is vacuum thoroughly with a good power brush using a powerful vacuum cleaner with a disposable dustbag, then dispose of the bag immediately after you're finished — by burning if possible.
The main reason fleas can survive and multiply so successfully is their remarkable flexibility. Most creatures can only complete their life cycles under a certain rather narrow range of conditions. However. fleas have developed the ability to cycle under a surprisingly broad variety of circumstances.
One of their principal strategies is to adjust the length of the various phases of their life cycle to suit the ambient conditions — temperature. humidity, and availability of food. Consider, for instance, how they change from pupa to adult.
Under perfect conditions — temperature between 65° and 80°F, relative humidity between 70 and 85%. and readily available food (such as your dog or cat), a flea can emerge from its cocoon as a hungry adult in as little as one week. But they are quite capable of revising their schedule as needed. If they sense that conditions are not suitable. they can delay their emergence for as long as a year or more. It is not too hard to conceive of a creature enclosed in a cocoon being aware of the surrounding temperature and humidity, but how can it possibly know whether food is available?
The flea has two mechanisms. First, it can sense vibrations. Footfalls — even those of a cat — cause a mature pupa to hatch out immediately into an adult ready to start feeding and breeding. Second, it can actually detect the slight increase of carbon dioxide in the air caused by the exhaled breath of a mammal — which may be either four-legged or two-legged.
Ever had the experience of returning to a closed-up house which has been vacant for a while? For instance, maybe you went on vacation for a week or two and boarded your pet while you were gone. Upon your return, you may have encountered a surprise welcoming committee composed of thousands of freshly-hatched adult fleas ravenously seeking their first blood meal. While they would have preferred your pet, they weren’t that picky. Since dog or cat blood was not available, yours would do just fine. What happened, of course, is that during your absence, a large number of flea pupae matured inside their cocoons, but chose not to emerge because there was nothing around for them to eat. When you entered and walked across the carpet, your footsteps served as a flea dinner bell. Chow time!!
Now, you can understand that the vibrations of your vacuum cleaner will signal mature flea cocoons to hatch out inside the dust bag. If you have a severe flea problem, change bags immediately after you vacuum the first time. Seal the bag with tape, take it right outside. and burn it if possible, or at least dispose of it in an outside receptacle. Otherwise, those hungry, newly-hatched adult fleas will find their way out of the vacuum cleaner bag — back into your home. After that, take measures to kill any live fleas in the bag when you vacuum. Suck a few mothballs or some flea powder into the vacuum before you start. (CAUTION: Mothballs are deadly to cats, and are attractive playthings. Don’t leave them around where pets can get hold of them!) Frequent vacuuming may sound like an unglamorous low-tech suggestion, but it works extremely well, is very inexpensive — and is non-poisonous!
Once they have finished their meal, the fleas’ next order of business Is to mate and begin to lay eggs. The flea need mate only once. Her body contains an organ called a spermatheca which stores sperm and fertilizes all of the eggs she subsequently lays during the remainder of her life. During that time, which may last anywhere from several weeks to a year, she will periodically jump aboard the nearest warm-blooded animal for another all-she-can-eat buffet. Following her meal, she will lay anywhere from 18 to 28 eggs, thus starting the life cycle over again. During her entire lifespan, she will lay anywhere from about 50 to about 600 eggs. with an average total production of about 200.
Whenever you are fighting a war. if you really expect to have a chance of winning, you must develop a suitable strategy and tactics. Flea-fighting strategy, just like our national defense, is based upon a triad. But in this case. Instead of land-based missiles, submarine-based missiles, and manned bombers, it’s “treat the pet, treat the house, and treat the yard.” Only by attacking the flea enemy on all three fronts can you successfully break its life cycle. and thus win the war.
The specific tactics you should use to implement your strategy must be tailored to your individual circumstances. What is appropriate for hunting dogs who live in an outdoor pen and sleep in a doghouse would be totally inappropriate for a poodle who lives in your house and sleeps on your bed. What works fine for fleas on dogs may be lethal to cats as well as to their fleas. Here are a few general suggestions:
START EARLY
Why give the enemy a chance to bring in thousands of reinforcements? That s exactly what you do if you waited until late summer before you begin to fight. This spring. keep in mind that each flea you allow to survive may very well return the favor by producing over 25,000 offspring in just one month. Simple. inexpensive measures taken now will make it unnecessary to mount massive, complex, and costly campaigns later in the season.
COVER ALL THE BASES
Early in World War II, France placed its reliance upon an elaborate system of fixed fortifications known as the Maginot Line. When the Germans attacked, though. they used a highly mobile, flexible force of tanks to out-flank the Maginot Line by going where it wasn’t. They simply ignored the neutral status of Belgium and The Netherlands and drove their armored columns right through those defenseless countries into the heart of France. Before they could react, the French were overrun and occupied.
Don’t be like the French and expect the fleas to be polite enough to attack only by the route you have chosen to defend. Fleas fight dirty. They will find the chinks in your armor and overrun your house before you know it. Keep in mind that all three possible routes of attack need to be covered — the pet. the house. and the yard — and take effective measures to defend all of them.
STAY ALERT
Fleas are masters of camouflage and sneak attacks. It is amazing how hard they can be to see on your pet, particularly if it has a thick coat. Fleas can even hide on a short-haired white cat. If your pet has a long, dense coat about the same color as a flea. it may be harboring thousands of fleas before you notice their presence — unless you make the time to look for them. Every so often, get your pet into a well-lighted area and over a light-covered surface, such as an old white sheet. Using fingers or a comb, look through the fur all the way down to the skin. Concentrate especially on the rump, the head and neck, and the underside of the abdomen. If he has fleas, you should be able to see them scooting away from you, trying to get under cover. Then check out that light-colored surface. See any black specks that look sort of like pepper? That’s flea dirt, or more specifically, flea manure. Its presence is conclusive evidence that fleas have recently been on your pet, even though you might not find any at that time. If you’re not sure whether or not some black specks you found are flea dirt, wet them with a small drop of water. If they dissolve into what looks like blood, they were flea dirt. all right.
USE EFFECTIVE WEAPONS
Since fleas are such a universal problem, scores of companies have come out with hundreds of products which they claim are The Big Breakthrough for fighting fleas. Sad experience has probably taught you that most of these products are worthless or close to it. Obviously, you cannot win your war against fleas if you try to fight them with weapons that don’t work. While cost is always a consideration, performance must take priority. Have you really saved any money when you decided to use a less expensive product that didn’t get the job done?
USE SAFE WEAPONS
With just a few exceptions, all of the weapons available to us in the flea war are poisons. So use ONLY flea-killers which are labeled as being safe for your intended purpose. NEVER treat a cat with any flea preparation which is not specifically labeled as being safe for use on cats. The consequences of using a “dogs-only” preparation on a cat can be tragic. Don’t use a chemical intended for outdoor use only when you spray your house. Don’t use a premises treatment on your pet. Read and follow label directions. If you’re not sure how to use something, don’t guess — ask someone who knows what he’s talking about. After all, you don't want any "friendly fire" casualties in the flea war.
BE REALISTIC
If you have a flea problem of truly monumental proportions, don’t expect to solve it overnight. If your initial attack has been properly executed, you will make a huge dent In the flea population. That’s great, but it’s not time to hold the victory celebration just yet. In any massive infestation. some fleas will manage to survive even the most vigorous attack. If you don’t conduct mopping-up operations at the proper intervals, those few survivors will quickly multiply to tens of thousands. That doesn’t mean that your initial efforts failed — only that you weren’t persistent or consistent enough. If you look for the “magic bullet” which will somehow kill off all the fleas with no effort on your part, you’re going to be disappointed. Those who believe the exaggerated claims in the television and magazine ads only end up helping to enrich the peddlers of useless junk. But the good news is that it is possible to control even the worst flea invasion. All you have to do is get some good advice on what to use and how to use it, then follow that advice to the letter. Victory will not come instantaneously, but it will come.
Effective Weapons
OUTDOOR PREMISES
There is, in my opinion, only one product worth using to control fleas on your lawn. It is so much better than anything else available that there is simply no comparison. That's Diazinon Liquid, which you can find at any garden supply department or farm store. Apply it using a sprayer of some kind. A simple hose-end sprayer, which you can pick up at the same place you buy the Diazinon, works fine. If you’ve got a more elaborate sprayer, so much the better. Carefully read the directions on the can and add the right amount of concentrate to the sprayer. Then spray your entire yard. Do that three times at 10-day intervals, and the problem will be under control. In very wet weather, you may have to repeat the treatment once a month. Of course, while you're spraying, and for 20-30 minutes afterwards, keep your children and pets out of the yard. Once the diazinon spray has dried, your yard will be safe and flea-free. (I do not believe Diazinon Granules work nearly as well against fleas as does the spray, although they are excellent for tick infestations.)
INDOOR PREMISES
Inside your house, be sure to use a preparation containing an insect growth regulator, such as methoprene. By itself, it is not the entire solution, so it should be applied along with an effective insecticide. The contact spray form is a bit more work to apply than the foggers, but it is far more effective against fleas, which, after all, are not flying insects. With a contact spray, you can direct the active ingredients into the areas where the fleas hide — carpets, upholstery, cracks and crevices around baseboards, floors beneath beds and overstuffed furniture, etc. Thus, you can use a smaller amount of active ingredient, and do a far more effective job by placing it precisely where it will do the most good. You will not have to abandon your house for 3 hours, you will not have to open all your windows and doors to air the place out for 30 minutes upon your return, and you will get better results at lower cost.
Methoprene and other insect growth regulators work primarily by stopping the pupae from ever developing into adult fleas, thus effectively breaking their life cycle. They remain active, although odorless and invisible, for long periods of time — up to 30 weeks (210 days). Flea larvae encountering an insect growth regulator when they hatch out of the egg will grow and develop normally until they reach the pupa stage. Once they have spun their cocoons, though, further development ceases. It is as though they think they’ve grown up when they haven’t. After a while, they will dry out and die inside their cocoons.
Methoprene (and possibly other insect growth regulators) has another interesting effect: it causes adult fleas to lay deformed, non-viable eggs. In my opinion, though, this phenomenon is oversold in flea product advertising. While it's certainly interesting, and may even be peripherally useful, I think it's far more effective to kill the adult fleas. That way, they lay no eggs at all.
If you used only methoprene in your house, an acceptable level of flea control would take many months to achieve. That's why it should be used In combination with conventional insecticides in order to kill as many larvae and adults outright as possible.
Incidentally, methoprene is not for outdoor use. Sunlight breaks it down very quickly, so it would be wasted.
In conjunction with spraying, plan on thorough vacuum cleaning twice a week until your flea problem is under control. Not only will you remove large numbers of eggs, larvae, cocoons. and adults from your carpets, you will also remove the food supply which flea larvae require to survive and develop. By thoroughly vacuuming, preferably with a cleaner equipped with a power rug-cleaning brush, you will remove tremendous amounts of flea dirt from your carpets.
Depending upon your circumstances. you may also be able to use another simple. cheap. safe low-tech method: a flea trap. You can buy a commercial one — a gizmo with a built-in light and a tray holding a sheet of flypaper. But you can easily make a very effective one out of a couple of items that most people already have around the house. All you need is a wide, shallow pan, such as an old cookie sheet, and a small light capable of throwing a directional spot. A high-intensity reading light is perfect. Set it up at night, just before everyone goes to bed. Set the pan on the floor in the middle of a flea-infested, carpeted room and fill it about half-full with water containing a little hand dishwashing detergent (so the fleas will drown instead of hopping out). Then set up the lamp so that it shines on the water in the pan and nowhere else. Shut off the room lights so that everything is pitch black except for the pan. and you’re all set. The light attracts the fleas, who jump into the soapy water. If you can. you may wish to close the room off for the night, so that your pet can’t get in and play with the trap. In the morning, carry a bucket to the tray and dump the contents right in, rather than trying to carry the tray and sloshing soapy water and drowned fleas all over your carpet.
PET TREATMENT
Many people think that all they have to do to control fleas is to find that one special magic bullet to use on their pet. That strategy will be just about as successful as the Maginot Line was against Hitler's Panzer divisions — it’s an excellent way to be outflanked and overrun before you know what's hit you. If you have a flea problem, regardless of what you use on your pet, if that's all you do, it won't work. The obvious reason is that fleas are so good at reproducing. For every flea you manage to kill on your pet, there will be hundreds more to take its place — unless you eliminate them from the premises.
Pet treatment is the most variable and complex of the three areas of flea control. What you use and how you use it depends upon many factors, including the species of your pet, the severity of your flea problem, your chosen means of housing the pet. the presence of children, and your personal preference. Potential problems such as a pet’s allergy to fleas or an owner‘s allergy to pyrethrins must also be taken into account.
Light flea infestations should not be taken lightly. Before you know it, they turn into severe problems. Take effective measures at the earliest sign that your pet has picked up fleas. At that stage you may only need to treat the pet in order to end the problem. However, once a flea infestation has become established in your home, you'll need to do more. If you don't, you'll be fighting an enemy which has an endless supply of fresh, hungry reinforcements — and your pet will be miserable.
I could tell you what my favorite pet flea treatment is, but I won't, because my recommendations might very well not be appropriate for your situation. By all means, consult local veterinarians for advice on which specific products and procedures they recommend. They know what works best in their areas, and are the best-qualified people to prescribe exactly what your pet needs.
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