Cat & Dog Fleas:
The Summer Holidays are a time when at PEST UK we start to get an increase in flea call outs. It is towards the end of the Summer holidays when the calls peak. There are several reasons for this.
The first is that the flea population starts to increase as the weather warms and fleas are now active in outside areas as well as in houses. Cats (and dogs) are creatures of habit and will lie up in certain areas. Fleas may be present in these areas and go onto the animal to feed. The fleas then may hitch a ride and find themselves living in a carpet.
Another reason is that when the weather is warmer, the fleas will be more active but this may coincide with the cat spending more time outside, this leads to the fleas being hungry and as the cat is not in the house they resort to feeding on people. They will also be more active, moving around looking for the cat. These two actions make a flea infestation get noticed. If a flea population in a house builds up this may lead to the cat staying away from the house as it is uncomfortable with the attention it is getting from the fleas. This will mean that the fleas in the house turn their attention to people in the house.
The main reason for call outs for fleas is holidays. The family go on holiday, the cat or dog goes into the cattery or kennels and the house is empty. The weather is warm and the fleas are active and hungry but there is no food, no cat or dog nor people. As soon as the family return the fleas go on a feeding frenzy and we start getting calls. In these circumstances the best course of action is to vacuum all floor areas (including under standing furniture) treat the animal, get the house treated by a professional pest control company then after treatment keep the cat INSIDE for as long as possible. The flea infestation will take several weeks to die off after a spray so you want the fleas to feed on the cat or dog and not people.
To book a pest control treatment or free advice then please call us at PEST UK: 0330 100 2811 (local rate) or 0800 026 0308 (free from land lines & some mobiles).
