Learn About Flea Control & Extermination

Fleas are parasites that feed on the blood of any warm-blooded body. Cat fleas are the most common domestic flea, but dog fleas, human fleas and oriental rat fleas can also be found. Fleas do not fly. Instead, they use their powerful legs to jump onto a passing host. Controlling and/or exterminating fleas is necessary in case of an infestation.

Bites from flea are painful, itchy and cause red bumps. Fleas are also the most common transmitter of the rare bubonic plague.

What Do Cat Fleas Look Like?

Adult cat fleas are about 1/8″ in length. Their bodies are laterally flattened and brownish black to black in color. Cat fleas may appear reddish black when full of blood. They are wingless and have six legs with the hind ones capable of helping them jump large distances. Female cat fleas have disproportionately small heads, as they are twice as long as they are high. Cat flea eggs are about 1/64 (0.5 mm) long. They are oval and white.

Signs of an Infestation

Fleas are easily visible to the human eye in their adult stage; therefore, seeing actual fleas is the most obvious sign of an infestation. If your pet is scratching excessively, licking or biting at it’s skin, it could be another sign of a cat flea infestation.

Threats

Cat fleas bite humans if they are tried to remove from their animal host. Their saliva can cause serious flea dermatitis in pets and their debris can cause similar allergic reactions in humans.

Cat fleas have been implicated in the spread of plague and the bacterial disease murine typhus through rats. They can also transfer tapeworms, specifically the dog tapeworm, and the rodent tapeworm. The dog tapeworm infests cats that spend time outdoors. These tapeworms occasionally infest humans, especially very young children.