What Do Cat Fleas Look Like To The Human Eye? (And Treatment)
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What do cat fleas look like to the human eye? To deal with fleas, we must first learn how to spot them. Successful flea control requires understanding their life cycle and learning how to detect them in your cat's coat.
The life cycle of a flea
The flea is a tiny insect measuring 2 to 3 millimeters. It lives and reproduces in the coat of animals (cats, dogs, or even rats) and feeds on their blood. In cats, the most common species is Ctenocephalides felis.
The life cycle of the chip takes place in several stages:
First, the cat is infested with an adult flea. Then, it takes its first blood meal on its host.
The flea reproduces 48 hours after its arrival. She lays up to 50 eggs a day for three weeks.
The egg falls and leaves the animal. After 3 to 5 days, it hatches into a larva and moves to dark and humid places (carpets, rugs, etc.) to become an adult. This can last several days to a month, depending on the conditions.
The larva turns into a cocoon and can survive in the environment for 6 to 8 months. Once an adult, she will look for an animal and breed again.
An adult flea cannot survive for long if it does not find a host. To interrupt its biological cycle, you can apply a flea treatment to your cat and treat your habitat. By treating all sources of infestation, you are sure to eradicate the flea problem once and for all.
Animal-to-animal contamination is rare. The latter is generally done when your cat passes through hatching sites, that is, places contaminated by eggs, larvae, or fleas. This concerns both outdoor areas such as the garden or balcony and indoors such as sofas, parquet strips, or mattresses. A cat that does not go out, or only a little, is therefore not immune to an infestation.
What Do Cat Fleas Look Like To The Human Eye? How to detect fleas on a cat?
Let's come to the answer to the question "what do cat fleas look like to the human eye". It is often difficult to detect the presence of fleas with the naked eye. To successfully detect their presence, you have to look for their droppings. For it :
Carefully inspect your cat's coat by parting his hair to find small black specks. Predilection areas are around the head, ears, neck, rump and above the tail.
Brush your animal with a fine comb, then tap it on a white surface to detect flea droppings.
If you suspect a flea infestation, especially if there are signs of allergy, do not hesitate to take your pet to the veterinarian. Since the presence of fleas is not always apparent to the naked eye, only a professional can deliver an accurate diagnosis and offer appropriate treatment.
Why treat a cat against fleas?
Whether it lives outdoors or indoors, no animal is immune to a flea infestation. A scourge that particularly affects cats since 63% of them are infested from April to October (compared to 43% of dogs), and 20% remain so during the winter. Real parasites and fleas cause severe itching, irritate your cat's skin, and lead to more serious illnesses. To protect your pet against fleas and guarantee his well-being, treating it is essential. So what are the consequences of a flea infestation? How to treat your cat?
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Flea infestation: what consequences?
A flea infestation rarely poses a danger to humans, but it is not without consequences for your cat and your environment.
The consequences for the cat
A flea can bite up to 10 times a day. Sometimes it takes one bite to cause flea allergy dermatitis (FPAD), a common skin condition in cats that causes severe scratching and licking. Lesions followed by hair loss can occur on your cat's rump, belly, and flanks.
Complications can also take place inside the organism via internal parasites and bacteria transmitted by the chip. The latter usually carries eggs of worms such as tapeworms. If it is swallowed by your cat, when it bites, for example, it can cause serious digestive problems. The flea can also cause feline infectious anemia by transmitting a bacterium that destroys red blood cells. If so, your pet may show weakness, weight loss, anorexia, or fever. If in doubt, it is recommended to consult your veterinarian.
The consequences for your home
Fleas rarely cause complications for humans, except for severe itching that is sometimes painful. On the other hand, because of their rapid reproduction, they can spread their eggs everywhere in the house, especially in places frequented by your pet, such as cushions and sofas.
When the eggs hatch, the larvae will spread everywhere in the environment and lodge in damp and dark places (carpets, carpets, floorboards, etc.).
5 fleas on your pet equals 95 fleas in your home.
What treatments to treat your cat against fleas?
We learned the answer to the question, "What do cat fleas look like to the human eye" now let's know how to get rid of them. Fleas are often an ordeal to eradicate, do not wait for your cat to be infested. Preventive treatments are possible, depending on the season, especially if your cat goes outside. Choose flea treatments adapted to the age of your animal.
Flea treatments for cats are offered in different forms, to be chosen according to your animal's behavior. There are several options:
The pipette (spot-on): easy to apply, it is applied on the line of the back and allows the content to be applied directly to the skin;
The collar: it eliminates all fleas of the body. After that prevents new infestations for 8 to 10 months. It is used both in curative and preventive treatment;
The spray: can be used very early (from the age of 2 days) and treats adult flea infestations by spraying on the coat;
Tablets: curative and preventive treatment to be swallowed by your cat, without restriction after ingestion (swimming, contact, etc.);
Shampoo: very useful during a massive infestation of fleas.
Flea treatment for cats can only be effective if the fleas are eradicated from your home. Unfortunately, the home is home to almost all (80 to 95%) parasites!
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