Fleas are can be a household issue no matter the time of year and where or what you house looks like, and it’s essential to take action immediately with them, whether that’s treatment, grooming or combing, they need to be gone as they are harmful to your animals.
Summer
During the summer this is when fleas multiply the fastest and are the worst overall because the weather increase speeds up the life cycle causing them to be hard to handle in the warmer month. Another contribution to the increase of fleas in the summer months is the wildlife coming out and exposing your pets to outdoors increase the risk of developing a flea infestation. They genuinely thrive in the warm and humid environments and it is noticeable to pet owners.
‘Hitch-hiker’ fleas are a huge threat and risk to your home and pet, they come from infested environments where flea life stages are scattered, and the hatched eggs will be looking for any blood source possible. But it’s not just pets they jump on, they detect the warmth and movement and hop onto it, which can be us humans, and we could lead them back into our homes on our clothes and shoes.
Spreading of fleas can be avoided by –
- Spraying anti-flea spray
- Vacuuming regularly
- Washing pet’s bedding
- Treat your pets
- Keeping your yard clean
- Apply flea-control spray outdoors
- Discourage wildlife around your home
- Bathing your pets with pet-safe flea shampoo
- Brush your pets fur
- Steamers help severe infestations
Winter
Although mating for fleas slows down in fall/winter as it gets colder they are still a problem and live on your pets, treatment and grooming needs to happen all year round. They survive in homes and on animals as their heat source and will be looking for shelter, so you’ll need to check your carpets and home regularly if there’s signs of an infestation.
Certain types of fleas adapt in the winter months to stay alive during the cold conditions, so when they hatch they will be equipped to survive, but also flea eggs can stay dormant for extended periods for months waiting for the right conditions to hatch. This means you could have eggs in your home that are dormant, waiting for the temperature to be right enough to hatch.
Luckily though, these months are the easiest for pet owners as most as adult fleas usually die off when exposed to extreme cold, but this does matter depending on what stage of development they’re at. So they will be less of a problem for the home, but you still need to stay vigilant and to de-flea your home before new flea eggs can hatch in the spring.
Spaces they hide during the winter months –
- Wildlife
- Pets
- Rodents
- Carpets
- Upholstery
- Pet bedding
- Leaves
- Animal nests
- Under porches/decks
How long different stages of the life cycle can survive without a host –
- Adult fleas: 1-2 weeks without a host
- Flea eggs: Up to several months in dormancy
- Flea larvae: Up to several months in dormancy
- Flea pupae: Up to several months in dormancy