This technical information is used by permission from The Companion Animal Parasite Council. For questions and more information specific to your pet(s), please contact your personal veterinarian or write us at info@ahsvet.com.
Fleas
Species* (see images below)
Canine
Ctenocephalides felis (cat flea)
Ctenocephalides canis (dog flea)
Echidnophaga gallinacea (poultry sticktight flea)
Pulex simulans (flea common on wild mammals)
Pulex irritans (human flea)
Feline
Ctenocephalides felis (cat flea)
Ctenocephalides canis (dog flea)
Echidnophaga gallinacea (poultry sticktight flea)
Pulex simulans (flea common on wild mammals)
Pulex irritans (human flea)
*Other flea species may on occasion parasitize dogs and cats.
Ctenocephalides felis (female) flea
Pulex simulans (female) flea
Echidnophaga gallinacea (male) flea
Life Cycle – Eggs (see images below)
- Eggs are pearly white, oval with rounded ends, and 0.5 mm in length.Eggs are deposited on the host and readily fall into the environment within a few hours.
- Eggs hatch in 2-16 days.Flea Eggs
Flea Eggs
Flea larvae hatching from egg
Flea eggs hatched
Larvae (images below)
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- Larvae are maggot-like, approximately 0.5 cm long, and covered with many small hairs.
- Larvae feed on blood in flea feces, organic debris, flea eggshells, and other flea larvae.
- Flea larvae will not develop outdoors in areas exposed to sunlight. Common sites of outdoor larval development are cool, shady areas where pets rest. Development occurs inside in undisturbed, protected sites (e.g., in carpets, under furniture, along baseboards).
- Speed of larval development to pupae is dependent on temperature and humidity.
Pupae (images below)
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- Whitish pupae (cocoons 0.5 cm long) can be found in soil, on vegetation, in carpets, under furniture, and on animal bedding.
- Adult C. felis can begin emerging about 8 days after initiation of pupal development; all fleas are usually emerged by day 13 at 24°C (75.2˚F) and 78% relative humidity.
Preemerged Adult in the Cocoon (images below)
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- Adult C. felis may remain quiescent in the cocoon for up to 30 weeks at 11˚C (51.8˚F) and 75% relative humidity. Delayed emergence occurs when there are no appropriate environmental stimuli.
- Mechanical pressure, CO2, and increased temperatures stimulate flea emergence.
Pre-emerged Adult Flea
Adults (images below)
- Adults can emerge in as little as 13 days; emergence may be delayed up to 50 weeks depending on temperature and other stimuli.
- In temperate climates, 90 to 95% of fleas emerge within 21 to 35 days.
- In subtropical climates, 96 to 99% of fleas emerge within 14 to 28 days.
- Adults begin feeding immediately when on the host.
- Blood excreted by adult fleas dries into reddish-black pellets in the haircoat (“flea dirt”).
- Egg production begins within 20 to 24 hours of females taking their first blood meal.
- Female fleas can produce 40 to 50 eggs per day.
Ctenidia, eyes, mouthparts
Flea laterally compressed wingless, contain head, thorax and abdomen
Female flea abdomen bears the sex organs
Male flea abdomen bears sex organs
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- Ctenocephalides felis survives for 10 days at 30°C (37.4°F) or 5 days at 10°C (33.8°F).
- In cold climates, fleas survive as adults on dogs and cats or wild mammals or as preemerged adults in protected environments.
Disease
- Annoyance and pruritus are common complaints.
- Heavy infestations may lead to iron deficiency anemia and death, particularly in young animals (dogs, cats, goats, cattle, and sheep).
- Ctenocephalides felis is capable of transmitting Rickettsia typhi, Bartonella hensalae, Dipylidium caninum, and Acanthocheilonema (Dipetalonema) reconditum.
- Fleas can transmit hemoplasmas (formerly Hemobartonella spp.; now known as Mycoplasma spp.).
- Fleas can transmit Flea Typhus (Rickettsia felis).
- Flea allergy dermatitis (FAD) is caused by hypersensitivity to antigenic material from the salivary glands of fleas.
Prevalence
- Ctenocephalides felis is the most common ectoparasite of dogs and cats in North America.
- Ctenocephalides felis is uncommon where relative humidity remains below 50% (desert southwest and Rocky Mountain states).
Host Associations
- Ctenocephalides felis infests dogs and cats as well as many other mammalian and avian hosts.
- Ctenocephalides canis infests wild and domestic canids.
- Echidnophaga gallinacea infests poultry and occasionally cats, dogs, foxes, and various rodents in the southern United States.
- Pulex simulans infests rodents as well as cats, coyotes, dogs, foxes, opossums, raccoons, and other animals.
- Pulex irritans infests humans and also cats, dogs, foxes, pigs, and other animals.
Transmission to Hosts
- Adult C. felis uses visual and thermal cues to locate hosts. Newly emerged cat fleas survive only a few days before requiring a blood meal. In most homes, newly emerged fleas die within 1 to 2 weeks without a host.
- Acquiring newly emerged fleas from an infested environment is the primary cause of the initiation of an infestation. However, adult fleas can transfer directly from one host to another.
Diagnosis
- Physical examination of the host is the first step in identifying fleas within hair coat or flea feces (“dirt”) within hair coat. Flea feces can be removed with a flea comb. When feces are placed on a wet towel, the feces dissolve and turn red.
Flea Dirt (feces) appears red due to the blood diet.
Treatment
- Comprehensive flea-control programs should eliminate fleas on pets, eliminate existing environmental infestations, and prevent subsequent reinfestation.
- Elimination of fleas on pets can be achieved through use of available flea adulticides that are highly effective for killing adult fleas:
- Dinotefuran: dogs and cats (monthly topical spot-on)
- Fipronil: dogs and cats (monthly topical spot-on or spray)
- Imidacloprid: dogs and cats (monthly topical spot-on)
- Metaflumizone: dogs and cats (monthly topical spot-on)
- Nitenpyram: dogs and cats (daily or as-needed oral pill)
- Selamectin: dogs and cats (monthly topical spot-on)
- Spinosad: dogs (Monthly oral pill)
- Synthetic pyrethrins: dogs (various formulations); some formulations are registered for use on cats while others may be toxic to cats
- Certain flea insecticide formulations contain IGRs or IDIs either alone or in combination with adulticides. These agents prevent flea eggs from hatching and kill larvae or early pupae.
- Occasionally, label-recommended application of topical insecticides will not appear to control the problem. This may be real or perceived, based on pet owner expectations of product performance, frequency of bathing, and reinfestation rates. If additional control measures are needed, products may be combined, environmental control may be implemented, or frequency of application may be increased. Federal law prohibits the extra-label use of pesticides regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Control and Prevention
Administer preventive flea and/or tick products as soon after birth as possible (consistent with label claims) for the life of the pet. However, because substantial geographic differences occur in flea prevalence and seasonality, prevention programs should be tailored to needs of the individual pet. (Go to top)
Public Health Considerations
- Cat scratch disease: C. felis can transmit infection between cats.
- Murine typhus (C. felis and Pulex spp.): Infected fleas may bite humans and transmit disease.
- Plague: Rodent fleas that may be acquired by dogs and cats in southern Rocky Mountain states and southwestern states may be vectors for bubonic plague (Yersinia pestis). These fleas may leave the host to bite humans.
- Flea Typhus. Fleas can transmit Rickettsia felis in certain parts of the world.
- Dipylidium caninum: Ingestion of infected fleas by children has resulted in development of D. caninum (tapeworm).
- Allergy: Flea infestation of homes and areas around a home often results in humans being bitten by newly emerging fleas. The resulting papular rash can be mild to extensive, depending on numbers of fleas and individual hypersensitivity reactions.
This information was made available by The Companion Animal Parasite Council. (CAPC)
ABOUT CAPC
The Companion Animal Parasite Council (CAPC) is an independent council of veterinarians and other animal health care professionals established to create guidelines for the optimal control of internal and external parasites that threaten the health of pets and people. It brings together broad expertise in parasitology, internal medicine, public health, veterinary law, private practice, and association leadership.
Initially convened in 2002, CAPC was formed with the express purpose of changing the way veterinary professionals and pet owners approach parasite management. The CAPC advocates best practices for protecting pets from parasitic infections and reducing the risk of zoonotic parasite transmission. The council has four major objectives:
- adoption of practices and procedures to protect pets from infections by parasites;
- adoption of practices and procedures to reduce the risk of transmission of zoonotic (transmittable from animals to humans) parasites from pets to people;
- collaboration among pet owners, veterinarians, and physicians to control infections by parasites; and
- collaboration with other groups that share the common interests of parasite control and animal and human health.
