I believe that all cat parents know that fleas are very harmful to cats. The most important thing is that fleas can be transmitted to the owners of the home, because many times we cannot see the existence of fleas, so we can only prevent them. Yu Weiran, what should I do if my cat has fleas? Let’s follow the editor of MengPet.com to find out.

1. How do we know there are fleas on cats?

You can look with your eyes, paying special attention to the area above the waist and hips. However, fleas are very good at hiding. Just because they can't be found doesn't mean they aren't there. Also use a flea comb. A flea comb can effectively help clean fleas and other parasites and dander on cats. It can also be used to treat hair in details such as eyebrows. The teeth of a flea comb are very dense and fleas cannot pass through freely. Looking for flea poop is also a good way to spot fleas. Poop is black in the shape of a comma and turns red when exposed to water. This is the best way to tell the difference between flea poop and dirt. Any time there is poop there are definitely fleas.

2. The life cycle of fleas

Under the right conditions, a flea's life cycle can be completed in 15 days. Homes with heating and carpeting are suitable for fleas to grow year-round. A single adult flea can produce thousands of eggs, larvae, and adults waiting to hatch in your home.

Each adult flea lays 40-50 eggs per day. Eggs fall from pets onto carpets, yards, and cars. The eggs turn into larvae in 1-10 days. The larvae turn into pupae in 5-11 days. The pupa takes 7-174 days to become an adult.

3. The season of fleas

Due to the different distribution areas of the same flea species (especially widespread species), the peak seasons of their occurrence are not completely consistent. For example, the Indian rat flea is most abundant in August to September in Northeast China, and in Fujian in June. The peak period is from August to August, and the peak period is from April to June in Leizhou Peninsula, Guangdong. The main reason that affects the seasonal growth and decline of fleas is the number of hosts. In addition, it is also affected by environmental meteorological factors (temperature and humidity, soil moisture content, etc.) and various human activities (such as rodent control, grazing, reclamation of wasteland, etc.). Generally speaking, hot summer is the peak period for flea breeding activity, and it is especially active in August and September.

4. How cats are infected with fleas

Cats naturally like to smell and lick everywhere, and can easily swallow insect eggs into their bodies; when they are born, cats may have been infected through the placenta; before they are weaned, they are infected by the eggs in their mother's milk; When eating home-cooked food, you were infected by eggs in undercooked meat; you hunted on your own and became infected after eating prey such as mice.

5. The problem of using medication for cats infected with fleas

1. The flea medicine will kill all fleas immediately, and your pet will be flea-free from now on.

Wrong! It takes weeks or even months for the eggs and larvae in the environment to turn into adults and jump to pets. At this point, the last flea medicine you used may no longer be effective.

2. You can stop flea preventatives as long as you can’t see fleas.

Wrong! All the adult worms on your pet may have been killed, but the eggs and larvae in the environment may still be developing and turning into new adults. Because of the growth cycle of fleas, it takes at least 3 months of continuous use of flea medication to kill all stages of fleas.

3. Flea baths and sprays are very effective.

It depends on how effective is defined. The immediate effect of killing fleas may be very good, but the most important thing is that there is no delay at all! After two days, new fleas begin to enjoy food and reproduce again, and everything is back to square one. Be sure to use a flea product once a month to ensure that new fleas are also killed.

4. Just use flea medicine on small pets that have fleas or itching on their bodies.

Wrong! A family’s small pets must also use flea medicine. Otherwise, other small pets will serve as food for fleas, allowing fleas to continue to thrive in your home.

6. How to get rid of fleas?

1. Fulien

Fulian is currently the most advanced flea-killing product, available in two forms: drops and sprays. The drops are for adult cats, and the spray is for all cats over one month old. Sprays can be used as drops (use a syringe to draw out the medicine, and drop it on the skin of the cat’s spine according to the dosage. However, since the concentration of sprays is much smaller than drops, the dosage for kittens is generally 0.3-0.5ml/ (for adult cats, the dosage is generally 1-1.5ml/cat), and its potency is maintained for 2 months. Do not bathe your cat within two days before and three days after taking Fulin.

2. Take a medicated bath with insecticide shampoo or special insecticide liquid.

Bathing is also a way to remove fleas, especially after washing with special medicine, almost all the fleas that can be seen on the cat will be killed. However, the effect of this method can only last for a short period of time, which means that it can only kill the adult worms on the cat and has no effect on the flea eggs. It should be noted that cats that are too young and have not been vaccinated are best not to take a bath to get rid of fleas. It is recommended to use a safer way to prevent unexpected events.

　3. Other methods

Take 250 grams of fresh citrus peel, cut into pieces, squeeze the juice, dilute the juice with 500 grams of boiling water and mix well, spray it on the cat after cooling, or soak the cat with a towel in the juice and wrap it around the cat After 1 hour, all the fleas on the cat can be killed. ​​​​​​

7. Why are there still fleas after using flea medicine?

It may be that fleas have just developed into adults and have not been killed by the drug. Or the fleas just brought in from the outside world have not been killed by the drug.

If flea medication has just been applied, it may take 24 hours to kill all adult fleas.

Some flea medicines may be less effective later in a month (such as the last week) when there are very many fleas. If there are very many fleas, you may need to apply medication every 3 weeks.

It may also be that you are using it incorrectly. For example, some medicines need to be taken orally with food to help absorption, and some external medicines should not be bathed or exposed to water for 48 hours before and after use, etc.

The wrong dosage may also have an impact. Be sure to use the corresponding product according to the weight of the baby. Some owners divide a tube of medicine among several pets in order to save money, which may affect the effectiveness of the medicine. At the same time, it cannot be ruled out that fleas are resistant to this drug.