What do fleas look like on cats

When it comes to raising cats, Mrs. Hu is most afraid of fleas on her cats. Perhaps because of her physical condition, Mrs. Hu is particularly prone to fleas.
In the past, the grandmother on the first floor adopted too many stray cats, and there would be fleas in the corridors. When waiting for the elevator, they might be infected with fleas. They might not be noticed at the time, but after a few days, redness will appear on their bodies. The little bag is extremely itchy.
In the past few days, Sandaimi would scratch her body from time to time, which made Mrs. Hu extremely nervous. Her whole nerves were tense all the time, for fear that Sandaimi would have fleas on her body.

So, is there any way for us to determine whether there are fleas on a cat?
Fleas are one of the most common external parasites on cats. Their growth pattern is that female fleas lay eggs on the host. Since the eggs are not sticky, they will scatter around as the host moves. The eggs hatch into larvae within a few days. The larvae then turn into cocoons and pupate along the way. This process can last up to 140 days, and finally hatch into adults under suitable conditions.
Generally speaking, the population structure of fleas is 50% eggs, 35% larvae, 10% cocoons and pupae, and only 5% adults. Therefore, if we can easily find a large number of adults, it proves The house is already infested with fleas…
In most cases, we can judge by looking at the cat’s abnormal behavior and examining its hair.
Fleas usually like to live in areas with sparse hair on cats, such as the forehead, belly, or thighs. Cats with fleas on their bodies will lick, scratch, or even bite itchy areas more frequently than normal. If you find that your cat has behaved like this recently, your pet care provider should pay attention.
Frequent scratching and biting will cause sparse hair or bald spots on the cat’s body. After being bitten by fleas, small red bumps will be left on the skin, which can be found by opening the hair and observing carefully.
In addition, it is difficult for us to detect living adults, but we can still trace the traces of flea activity.
We can try to look for it on the cat’s body to see if there are small black granular dirts. If so, we can put it on a paper towel and soak it with water to see if there are red rings. If so, it’s basically OK. To determine the presence of fleas, these black dirt are flea feces. When exposed to water, red hemoglobin will appear.
Not to mention the dangers of fleas, which can cause various infectious diseases to humans and cats, leading to skin inflammation or hair loss. The itching after being bitten is enough to make people hate them!

So, if you find fleas in your home, how do you get rid of them?
Every spring is the peak season for fleas, and the source of fleas is not necessarily because of cats at home. We who often go out are also likely to bring insect eggs home, and the bedding, mattresses, and wooden floors at home are Crevices, shoe racks, etc. are excellent hiding places for fleas.
For Lao Hu’s family, the first step is to give the cat a full body wash. Use flea-killing shower gel to soak the cat for a few minutes to let the fleas fall off on their own. You can also use a relatively dense flea comb to assist. After going back and forth a few times, it will basically be gone. You can see fleas floating in the bathtub, but fleas are tenacious and will not die when soaked in water. Therefore, you can use two fingernails to clamp the flea’s belly and press it hard until you hear a “pop” sound. It means it is completely dead…

The cat litter and mats should be exposed to the sun. Dinotefuran-type flea-killing drugs can be sprayed around the cat cage. Of course, deworming once a month should last for at least six months (under normal conditions, indoor cats should be dewormed once every three months). worms are enough).
If you want to completely eliminate fleas, you can’t just focus on cats. You must do household cleaning. This cleaning is not just as simple as cleaning up the garbage. It involves taking out all the sheets, bedding, pillows, and clothes currently used in the home, soaking them, and cleaning them. , add some flea killer medicine when soaking. As for the dosage, just follow the instructions. If it is difficult to clean, spray the medicine on the balcony and expose it to the sun. Furniture, shoe cabinets, and shoes are also sprayed with chemicals and allowed to dry naturally, and the room is kept ventilated.
Since most flea killers only target adult insects, the flea killer project generally needs to last 1 to 2 months until there are no traces of fleas in the home.
When it comes to fleas, prevention is far better than cure. It is important to keep the home clean and hygienic, and develop the habit of regularly deworming cats. After all, fleas are zoonotic diseases. Once cats have them, people in the family will easily suffer. .
Have you ever encountered fleas in your home? How did you deal with it?