Fleas have been
around for a long time and feed off of the blood of humans or warm blooded
mammals. However, they do not need to live on a host and can often live within
the carpets and furniture inside of homes as well and can go up to a full year
in some cases without feeding. For this reason, it can be quite hard to get rid
of a flea infestation once it occurs. When a flea infestation occurs, only five
percent of the total flea infestation will be seen on pets with the other 95%
remaining within carpets, bedding and furniture in the form of fleas, larvae
and eggs.
Female fleas are able to lay up to 2,000
eggs within their life span and a single flea is able to quickly turn into a
large problem with females having the ability to lay eggs as soon as 3-4 days
after the initial feeding. When a female lays an egg it then turns into a
larvae that will develop into a Pupae which is then able to hatch when a food
source is present. The pupae are able to detect a food source through heat, and
within three seconds can jump as high as four feet to latch on to the person or
animal and feed for the first time. A flea must feed for the first time within
one week of hatching or it will die; however, after the initial feeding, they
can then go for 100 days or more without food without perishing.
A full grown adult flea is very small and is typically only around 1/8” in size. The body of a flea is flat and they have mouths which are able to pierce the skin of a mammal so that they can feed off of the blood of their host. Although they look similar to lice, ticks and bed bugs you can distinguish fleas by their color which is brown to reddish black with large bodies and six small legs. Although there are many different species of fleas found around the world, only a few species are prevalent within the United States; they are, rat fleas, cat fleas, dog fleas, human fleas, sand fleas, chicken fleas and oriental rat fleas.
The most commonly seen type of flea in the
US is the cat flea. Although many people may assume that these fleas only live
on cats, this is not true. Cat fleas are able to live on cats, dogs and other warm
blooded mammals and are the type of fleas which commonly infest the homes of
pet owners across America. Cat fleas
typically lay their eggs on both animals as well as in carpets and in
furnishings within the home where they are then able to find a food source when
a person or animal sits in the area where the pupae is ready to hatch. While
most other strains of fleas are particular about their host, cat fleas are not
and will feed off of just about any warm blooded food source where they can
pierce the skin and feed off of the blood of a living warm blooded mammal.
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