Pets and Flea Prevention

Fleas are small, wingless insects with mouth parts that are specifically adapted to piercing the skin and sucking blood. There are greater than 1,600 species of fleas present worldwide. Roughly 95% of flea species will live on mammals and about 50% will live on birds. Most flea infections in the US are due to Ctenocephalides felis which is more commonly known as the cat flea. C. felis affect more than 50 different mammalian and avian hosts throughout the world. In the U.S., the most common hosts are domestic and wild mammals including cats, dogs, cattle, and man.

Did you know that vacuuming can be detrimental to the fleas in your pet’s environment? Cleaning the house may actually help you destroy pests. Ohio State University has studied the effects of vacuuming on the most common flea plaguing pets, the cat flea. Their study revealed that 96 percent of adult fleas and 100 % of younger fleas (pupae and larvae stages) were destroyed after passing through a vacuum cleaner.

Two types of tapeworm affect dogs, Dipylidium caninum and Taenia species. Dipylidium caninum is the more common type of tapeworm found in dogs and cats. Adult tapeworms are found in the small intestine of their host. These worms shed small segments, called proglottids (packets of 20 to 40 eggs) in the stool. Once in the environment, proglottids of the Dipylidium tapeworm are consumed by flea larvae. As the flea larva matures, the egg of the tapeworm eventually develops into its infective form called a cysticercoid. The dog or cat ingests the flea while grooming itself.

Cat scratch fever or disease (CSD) is a bacterial infection caused by Bartonella henselae. Bartonella are a group of gram-negative bacteria that parasitize erythrocytes (red blood cells or RBCs) of the host and are transmitted by arthropods. Most people infected with cat scratch fever have been previously bitten or scratched by a cat. Cat bites are less frequently implemented in transmission than are scratches.

The canine roundworm or Toxocara canis is the most common parasite seen throughout the U.S. Roundworms are a spaghetti-type worm that are passed out in the stool. The occurrence of roundworms is especially common in young puppies and their nursing mothers.

Symptoms of infection include mucoid diarrhea, stunted growth, and an unthrifty coat. The most characteristic symptom is that of a pot-bellied appearance. Less commonly pneumonia, intestinal obstruction and even death may occur. Pneumonia may result from the third stage larva that migrates through the lungs.