Keeping pets is one of the sure-shot ways to get a reliable friend around your home. However, fighting pet parasites is the major area of concern you should always be ready to tackle. Fleas, precisely, are troublesome to dogs and cats. Their infestation can cause many diseases, including anemia and tapeworms.
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For whatever reason, you want your dog to stay healthy all the time. You must take precautionary steps to prevent flea invasion. In case your pet has been attacked by these enemies, you have to find a way to eradicate them, and you should do it fast.
These are the six best methods of treating your dog against fleas.
1. Keep Your Dog Clean
Bathing is the fastest way to get rid of the fleas from the dog’s skin. All you need is lukewarm water and mild soap. You can use a flea shampoo instead of soap. However, you first need to be sure that your dog will be okay with your choice. Pets that are allergic to fleas and other skin conditions may be irritated by various soaps when bathing.
The best way to ascertain whether your move will be the correct choice for your dog is to contact the veterinarian. Ask what recommended shampoo will work best for your pup. An examination is also essential to check if there is any skin damage due to fleas before using strong shampoo to wash the dog.
If your dog’s skin is irritated or damaged due to flea infestation, you should avoid this step. Apply another method to get rid of the parasites and focus on treating the dog’s skin first.
2. Use a Flea Comb
Combing your dog’s fur is not only for smoothing it out. There are special combs designed to trap fleas from the pet’s coat. Apart from the fleas, the flea comb teeth also trap and clean flea dirt from the dog’s skin and fur.
Before you try to pick the fleas using a flea comb, make sure that your dog is comfortable and calm. Pay extra attention when combing the areas around the neck, between the legs, and on the tail. These are the places where the fleas attack most, and if your dog has had the parasites for a long time, they may have caused damage to the skin. You should take care not to harm the dog if it has wounds.
After trapping fleas on the comb, you need to kill them. Do not let them go, or they will re-attack the animal and hide around the house. Killing the fleas by hand is the worst idea because they will hop away. Dip the flea comb in hot and soapy water to kill the parasites.
3. Clean the Pet’s Kennel
Fleas love hiding in dusty places with little to no disturbance. Having rags in your dog’s kennel is a no-no. Dog kennels and crates need to be clean and dust-free all the time. Regularly wash the dog’s beddings in hot soapy water to kill fleas that might be hiding in there waiting for the pet to sleep before they attack.
Using insecticide sprays is also essential for dealing with pests. Ensure that you spray every corner and space, crack, and crevice in and around the dog’s home. However, you should avoid spraying your dog with insecticides because it will be harmful if the dog licks itself.
4. Apply Prescription Medication
Sometimes, the easiest way to do away with fleas is to terminate their life cycle. Adult fleas are hard to control because they can hop and hide before you can find them. Medications can help in dealing with both fleas and ticks on pets. You can buy the drugs from a veterinary or animal supplies shop.
Some of the medications are effective almost immediately, while others take some hours. The drug can give your dog protection for several months, inhibiting fleas’ growth and reproduction process. Slowly, the population of fleas will reduce until your pet is free from them.
5. Consider a Flea Collar
Flea collars are a fantastic investment for anyone that owns a dog or a cat. There are two types of collars available on the market. The first one acts as a repellent by emitting a gas that fleas dislike. The other fleas collar provides treatment when these pests have attacked the dog.
Some of the flea collars act as both a repellent and a treatment. Your choice will depend on your needs. You should not worry about various treatment methods with flea collars because these harmful insects do not stand a chance of survival on your pets.
6. Clean Your House
Sometimes, you may not see fleas on your pet even if you notice them scratching or nibbling on their skin. The reason is that the fleas do not live on the dog. The most probable place you can find these annoying insects is on your carpet, couches, or dark areas of your house.
If you do not see any fleas around or on your dog and show signs of flea attacks, you need to call your veterinarian. Let them inspect the dog and advise appropriately. Once you confirm that fleas are eating your dog but cannot find them in the dog’s fur, you need to do an overhaul and thorough cleanup of your home. Remember to employ chemical methods to kill fleas hiding in various places.
In Summary
Fleas can be troublesome for both pets and people. They are one of the things pet owners fear most worldwide. You need to inspect and treat your dog from time to time and ensure that he is healthy and free from these disastrous parasites.
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