Many times clients will tell us that their dog has fleas even though they use a topical or oral flea treatment every month. Often, owners don’t realize that the treatment is most likely working, just not the way they thought it would.
There are several different types of flea products available including collars, oral treatments and topical treatments. Each type provides some sort of flea control but not all cover all the bases. The topical and oral treatments don’t prevent dogs from getting fleas but only kills the fleas after coming into contact with the dog’s dander or actually bite the dog. Then, the flea treatment will take up to 12 hours to kill the flea. Some treatments only repel fleas, some only kill the adult fleas but there are others that will kill adult fleas, prevent the pupa from emerging from the eggs and will also kill larvae. There are also some topical flea treatments that will do all that and also kill lice as well as repel and kill mosquitos.
Dog owners need to decide what amount of treatment they need for their dog. If you live in an area where ticks are prevalent then a product that will kill them is what is needed. If you have mosquitos where you live or you are going to be travelling to where they are, then a product that will repel and kill mosquitos is required. Mosquitos can carry and spread heartworm. They also carry West Nile disease which is spreading quite rapidly.
Fleas can be picked up in your yard, on a walk, in parks and from other dogs. If a heavy flea infestation on your dog is not being controlled by the flea treatments, then possibly your yard will need to be fumigated by a professional. This will require several treatments in order to catch the
fleas in the environment in all of their growth stages.
Regular treatment with a flea control product will help to keep your dog flea free. Don’t worry if you see 2-3 fleas on your dog at any time even though he is being treated. These can jump onto your dog from many places and it takes 12 hours for the flea treatment to kill the flea. The best method of control is to keep your dog on a strict regimen of treatment to keep the fleas off of your pet.