Fleas are the most clinically-important ectoparasite of dogs worldwide and their pervasiveness varies depending on the dog’s health status, nutrition, environment, and preventatives used. In a study performed in the United Kingdom, 14.4% of dogs were considered flea infested and about 11 percent of these fleas were infected with potentially pathogenic bacteria. This makes it a serious problem if our dogs and house become infested. So, not only is a flea infestation really annoying to deal with, it’s also a health concern.

Clinical signs vary depending on flea burden and if your dog has any pre-existing diseases. In dogs that are not hypersensitive to fleas you may not notice any symptoms. The first awareness of an infestation may come from you receiving a flea bite or noticing one crawling on your dog’s skin.

In hypersensitive dogs, dermatologic signs may include severe itchiness, hair loss, and changes in the skin including redness, papules, crusts, and excoriations. Lesions are usually located on the back half of the body, such as the rump, tail, abdomen, perineal area, and on the inside of the hind limbs. Dogs will also commonly develop lesions on the head or neck this is the area they can reach by scratching..

Dogs with high flea burdens may have systemic signs, such as lethargy, pale mucous membranes, and pale skin. In puppies and tiny dogs hospitalization and blood transfusions can become necessary.

Let’s learn a bit about these awful bugs so we know how to get rid of them…

According to the Centers for Disease Control, the life cycle of the flea depends a lot on environmental conditions. Fleas multiply in warm climates and usually (but not always) die in the winter season.

Flea eggs are tiny but can be seen with the naked eye. They are smooth and light in color. A single adult female flea can produce up to 2,000 eggs in her lifetime…impressive but gross. These eggs may be laid in your dog’s fur, carpet, or in tall grass.

In ideal conditions, fleas will evolve from egg to adult within 2 to 3 weeks. Adult fleas can live up to 100 days. Fleas are ready to feed within a day of hatching and begin to suck blood within 10 seconds of landing on a host.

If the weather isn’t ideal and there isn’t a host to feed on, flea larvae may remain dormant for months while waiting for better conditions to develop. This is a key reason dealing with infestations can be so difficult and seem to be recurring.

Fleas live in the environment and jump onto nearby hosts. Fleas do not usually leave one host for another host. Transmission is more common in warm, humid environments optimal for flea reproduction. Transmission occurs most often in the warm months of the year like spring and fall. Cats can bring fleas home after hunting rodents that carry fleas or hunting in tall grasses where fleas are living. Some fleas (e.g., shrew fleas and rabbit fleas) are highly host-specific, whereas other species parasitize an array of mammals. The cat flea infects not only the domestic cat but dogs, foxes, civets, mongooses, opossums, leopards, and other mammals, including humans if its regular hosts are not available. The silver lining here is that fleas do not stay on humans for long because of lack of substantial hair like animals, and it’s very difficult to reproduce without the protection of fur or feathers. One lab study observed that a flea would have to feed on a human for 12 straight hours to have the chance to lay viable eggs. I think we would notice a flea on us well before the 12-hour mark.

Fleas and the infectious organisms they carry (e.g. plague, bartonellosis) have the potential to spread to us humans. Flea bites cause reddened skin and itchy papules on the skin of people, especially the extremities (usually the ankles). Bites on humans indicate a severe infestation of fleas. Bites are often from newly-emerged adults. Tapeworm (Dipylidium caninum) infections are possible because fleas serve as the intermediate host. People and dogs become infected when they ingest an infected flea. So gross…

The length of time required to get rid of a flea infestation depends on your environment and how long the fleas have been there. If you have carpets it will be more difficult.

Prompt cleaning and using topical flea medications for your dog may get rid of the majority of fleas within a day or two. However, it can take days to weeks for all the fleas present in an environment to die, even with the most diligent approach.

Fleas lay a lot of eggs very quickly, and some fleas have developed resistance to medications and insecticides. If you have a large property or multiple pets with fleas, it may take longer to get rid of the problem. The key to handling fleas is persistence.

If your pet is a walking carrier of mature fleas, your home can become the nursery.

Since the flea has multiple life stages (egg, larvae, cocoon, adult), when adult fleas are present, it is assumed all of these stages are also present throughout your house. This means that you have to tackle the problem from all angles in order to truly eradicate the infestation.

To do this, you must treat your pet and its living environment at the same time. Depending on your pet’s boundaries, this may include your whole house or yard.

Here are the approaches that I recommend:

1. Hire an exterminator. I find that getting a professional to treat your house will get this problem solved much more quickly and safely than you playing around with flea bombs to try to save money. In the end, you end up spending more money and getting fewer results.
2. Use a powerful vacuum on any floors, upholstery, and mattresses. Spaces without traffic are hot zones like behind couches, closets, etc. These are usually good hiding places for fleas and their cohort of eggs, larvae, and cocoons. If you can, use a vacuum with a bag you can dispose of without coming into contact with its contents.
3. Employ a steam cleaner for carpets and upholstery, including pet beds. The combination of high heat and soap is the enemy of fleas in all stages of life. Pay special attention to any spots where your pet usually lies down or spends a lot of time.
4. Wash all bedding, including your pet’s, in hot water and detergent. Dry it at the highest heat setting. If the infestation is severe, consider getting rid of old bedding and starting new.
5. Use a diatomaceous earth carpet treatment or two. This helps keep fleas from multiplying
6. Burn the house down and find a new one… just kidding. Although when I realized I had moved into a flea-infested house many years ago the thought did cross my mind…

If you aim to use an insecticide or other chemical cleaning treatment instead of hiring an organic, natural exterminator, please proceed cautiously. Many are toxic to humans, pets, and the environment.

Here are some tips:

• Aerosol sprays are recommended over foggers, as you can direct the spray under beds or other places that the foggers may be unable to reach.
• People and pets shouldn’t come into contact with an insecticide or chemical treatment until it has dried. Be sure to wear gloves when you apply the spray, and only do it when everyone is out of the room or house.

1. Bathe your dog with a natural flea and tick shampoo. Let the shampoo stay on your dog for 15 minutes before rinsing. While your dog is lathered up, take a flea comb and try to comb through the coat if possible. This is of course easier in our short-haired breeds. Here is a shampoo option I use. You can also use citrus Castile soap followed by a final rinse with apple cider vinegar. For this rinse, use 1 part vinegar to 10 parts water. You may have to do this daily until the infestation is under control then once weekly for a few weeks as a precaution.
   
2. Place a topical spot on the treatment. I recommend these natural products for dogs:
   1. https://www.wondercide.com/products/flea-tick-spot-on-for-dogs-cats-with-natural-essential-oils
   2. https://earthanimal.com/product/natures-protection-flea-tick-herbal-spot-on-for-dogs/
3. Place a natural flea collar. These are my top picks
   1. https://www.onlynaturalpet.com/products/only-natural-pet-easydefense-non-toxic-flea-tick-collar-for-dogs?variant=29918847893568
   2. https://www.wondercide.com/products/flea-tick-collar-for-dogs-cats-with-natural-essential-oils
4. Use natural Sprays daily until the fleas are gone. These are my favs:
   1. Cedarcide
   2. Wondercide
   3. Truly Sensible
   4. Sit. Stay. Forever. Organic Neem Oil Dog Tick and Flea Spray
   5. Kin+Kind Maximum Flea and Tick Protection Set
5. Chemical Free Tags- The device emits ultrasonic pulses that are imperceptible to humans and pets, but interfere with the ability of the parasites to orient themselves, thus keeping them away from your pet. The device is primarily intended for preventive purposes. I have used Tickless and have found it to work great on my dogs.
6. Essential oil bandanas –Flea Free Essential Oil Blend

• 1 ½ oz base oil such as hazelnut or sweet almond

• 4 drops clary sage essential oil

• 1 drop citronella essential oil
• 7 drops peppermint essential oil
• 3 drops lemon essential oil

I make this spray and spray it on my dog’s banana when we are going for walks.

7. Use a flea comb. Flea combs are special combs fine enough to catch fleas while also allowing your pet’s fur to pass through. Have a bowl of warm, soapy water handy to dunk the critters in once you comb them out. Fleas typically reside around the neck and tail areas. Continue to use the comb your pet daily to ensure fleas you got all the fleas and that they aren’t reoccurring.

8. Repeat. The flea’s entire life cycle can be as long as several months … so you’ll need to repeat these steps to make sure the flea infestation is completely gone.

Now… If the flea infestation is absolutely out of control then you may want to use a commercial product. I know… I know… I’m shocking you right now because I usually strongly advise against these toxic products. But there are two unique scenarios when I will personally resort to using or recommending them:

1. You have tried all of the natural solutions on your pets, had an exterminator treat your house and yard, and still cannot get the flea infestation under control. In these instances, the flea infestation can become more dangerous to the pets and humans than the toxins.
2. If I have a client with an outdoor cat colony who is suffering from fleas and/or it is a source of fleas for their household dogs then I will advise them to apply one of these products, just once, to each cat to get it under control quickly. For outdoor cats, I recommend Revolution or Advantage. There is some risk involved because these are very strong pesticides so I would not use them on kittens, geriatric cats, or cats with chronic illness.

If you are having to resort to a commercial product instead of a safer, natural solution, then I recommend a spot-on treatment rather than collars or oral pills.

The good news is that you may not need the full dose. You can give your dog or cat just a drop or two. Start with a little to see if you are getting results. You can always increase the dosage.

Detox when using these commercial products. I recommend giving a week’s worth of daily Denamarin 40mg/kg daily and Milk Thistle to help support the liver and scavenge free radicals. Check out my blog on Milk Thistle here.

Check out my blog on Flea & Tick Products to learn about the potential dangers of using these before you make your decision.

Most animals require no supportive therapy unless they are experiencing side effects of a severe flea burden, such as blood loss anemia, flea-induced infection or flea allergy dermatitis (FAD).

If small, flat light-colored grains of rice are found around the rectum or in the stool then your dog likely has tapeworm and will require treatment. If your dog is anemia then other tests may need to be run to rule out infections that could be contributing to the anemia. If severe anemia is present then hospitalization for fluid therapy and/or blood replacement products may be necessary.

Flea Allergy Dermatitis. The most recognized clinical presentation is the development of an itchy, rash localized to the rump, across the back, flanks, tail, and perineal area. These lesions may become generalized over time. A secondary pyoderma (skin infection) or yeast dermatitis may also develop.

Patients may exhibit “corn cob” chewing of the front limbs. Acute moist dermatitis (i.e. “hotspot”) lesions on the rump or face are also commonly associated with FAD. With disease progression, chronic lesions develop, such as alopecia, lichenification, and hyperpigmentation of the skin.

Treatment involves a multimodal approach that focuses on eliminating exposure to fleas in the environment and breaking the itch cycle that the allergy created. The length of the flea life cycle means that it can take up to three months to achieve significant improvement in patients with FAD once treatment is initiated.

The best way to eliminate fleas from your yard is to think about where they’re most like to hide.

Fleas love places that are:

• shaded
• humid
• warm

Direct sun-exposed areas can get too hot, so you probably won’t find many fleas there. Problem areas will likely be found by observing where your pet likes to lie down.

Once you have your target zones, here’s what you can do to eliminate the fleas:

1. Mow your lawn regularly and rake the exposed surfaces thoroughly. Fleas like to hide in tall grass. Make sure to bag the contents rather than add them to your compost pile.
2. Remove debris, such as dead leaves and twigs, from flower beds and from under any bushes. Expose as much of the shady areas to sunlight as you can.
3. Spread cedar chips on the areas where your pet likes to lie down, under the bushes, and on flower beds. Fleas hate the smell! Sulphur (powder or liquid) is also known to repel fleas and prevent hatching.
4. Avoid overwatering. This can create the exact humid conditions for fleas to thrive in.
5. Evict wildlife. Animals like opossums, mice, and squirrels can all carry fleas. It’s possible to repel these animals from your yard without trapping or killing them. This can include setting up barriers in the yard, putting up bright lights, playing loud music, and leaving rags soaked in cider vinegar.
6. Beneficial nematodes can be used to kill flea larvae in your yard. Ask your local gardening center about adding nematodes to your yard. Nematodes will not survive in hot, sunny areas of the lawn, but the fleas and ticks do not like those areas either. So spread these little guys in the shady, moist areas where the fleas and ticks are most likely to be found.

If you know there is a flea infestation on your property, it may be wise to limit your pet’s time playing on the lawn until the problem is under control. For some pets, like cats, it may be advisable to keep them indoors only.

• Nutrition- Feed a high- quality species appropriate whole food diet. Fleas are parasites and parasites seek out the weak and unhealthy. Good nutrition is the foundation of your dog’s health and vitality.
• Use a flea comb to check your dog regularly, especially around areas such as in and behind ears, between toes, undercarriage, and tail base.
• Use a lint roller or baby wipe over your dog’s coat after walks.
• More frequent baths during warm months using natural flea and tick shampoos. Ectoparasites prefer dirty hair coats.
• Once a week, wash all of your dog’s bedding in hot water with a natural, unscented detergent. If your dog sleeps with you, throw your own bedding in the washer once a week, too.
• Vacuuming is a key strategy, especially against fleas. Pay extra attention to “hot spots” with less foot traffic, like behind doors and couches.
• Use a diatomaceous earth carpet treatment or two. This helps keep fleas from multiplying.

Fleas suck. Flea infestations that affect your family and your dogs suck even more.

Going up against a flea infestation can seem overwhelming, but there are plenty of tools at your disposal. You will get through it and you can implement ways to help ensure it doesn’t happen again.

You have to act fast. The longer this problem lingers = the greater the population of fleas = the harder it is to resolve it.

The most important thing to remember is that you must treat your home, yard, and pet at the same time. A combination approach works best to eradicate fleas and prevent future infestations.

Get into the habit of checking your dog for ectoparasites like fleas and ticks daily. Get on the floor with them, roll them over, and check behind their ears, bellies, rump, and tail. Spotting the first flea and treating immediately will save you the expense and stress of an infestation.

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