Fleas – What Houston Residents Need To Know!

Are you a pet owner? If so, you know the threat your pets face every minute of the day. Where do these threats originate from? They come from parasites like flea and tick, which target canines, felines, birds, ferrets, rabbits, and domesticated rats. In addition to these animals, wildlife species like the deer, fox, raccoon, opossum, and squirrel are at risk as well. The most commonly reported flea sighting in Houston, Texas is the cat flea species. Contrary to its name, the cat flea does not discriminate against specific animal species. In fact, fleas target a broad range of mammals, birds, and reptiles.

What Is The Most Common Flea Sighting In Houston TX?

As mentioned previously, Houston’s most common flea sighting is the Ctenocephalides Felis, better known as cat flea. Both the female and male measures approximately one-eighth of an inch in length, with a flat, shell-like body, six legs, and two antennas, one on each side of the head. While the insect is no larger than 1/8 of an inch, its jumping power is superior. In fact, scientists conducted a study to determine exactly how far a flea could jump. The study revealed that two fleas jumped over 6-1/2 inches each. One jump was measured at 6.6 inches (17 centimeters) and the other at 7.9 inches (20 centimeters).

The flea’s jumping extraordinary jumping capability has been contributed to resilin, a flexible protein. Resilin gives the flea’s legs a boost of energy, resulting in a long-distance jump.

Characteristics Of A Flea Bite

A flea is nothing more than an allergic reaction to saliva protein. The onset of symptoms includes a small flat red dot on top of the skin. In many cases, the red dot will become edematous with or without a pustule. Some victims have reported mild itching while others have experienced more severe allergic reactions that warranted a visit to the local emergency room.

Flea bites in animals have been linked to tapeworm infestations that can spread to humans if left untreated.

What Is The Best Flea Prevention Solution?

Comparing flea eradication with flea prevention, it is obvious which tactic is the easiest to accomplish. Preventing flea infestations has proved time and time again to be easier than flea extermination. Now, this is not to say, flea prevention is easy to accomplish. No, it just means it is an easily achievable pest management practice when compared to flea extermination.

Flea prevention begins with a thorough visual assessment of the once-infested home. During the assessment, the assessor is looking for signs that point to vulnerability in the home’s pest barrier. The data gathered from the assessment will be utilized to develop a flea prevention strategy specifically for the impacted home. The following tips will jumpstart your flea prevention effort:

• Do not adopt a pet until you are completely ready to take on the responsibility. Regular grooming, monthly anti-parasitic medicine, and a healthy diet are only to name a few of a pet owner’s responsibilities
• Administer anti-flea medicine at least once a month
• Keep lawn mowed, debris picked up, and grass no higher than three inches above the ground floor
• Install “Do Not Feed Wildlife” signs up on your property to deter neighbors from feeding animal passerby
• Install a fence around the perimeter of your home to keep wildlife out
• Install barriers around lower decks, porches, and other low profile structures
• Develop a skin assessment strategy
• Create a pet bedding cleaning schedule

Unfortunately, no flea prevention strategy is guaranteed to offer 100 percent success. However, with our help, it is possible to avoid future flea infestations. Our pest management solutions can be customized to fit your needs and preferences.