What is flea and tick prevention?
Flea and tick prevention consists of a variety of products that control flea and/or tick infestations on your pet and prevent infestations inside your home. Fleas are small, parasitic insects; they feed on blood from animals and/or people. Ticks are a type of arachnid (like spiders, scorpions, and mites) that are also parasitic.
How can my pet get fleas or ticks?
Fleas and ticks can be found worldwide. Fleas can survive many environmental conditions but are most active in warm temperatures. They hop onto your pet from an infested animal or environment. They can also be carried by many wild animal hosts, such as foxes, skunks, raccoons, birds, and rodents. They have incredible jumping ability and can easily jump onto you or your pet as you walk by.
Likewise, several tick species can survive the winter cold, but most are most active in warmer temperatures. Ticks often wait on long grass or brush and transfer onto pets as they walk by. They can be carried by a variety of wild animal hosts such as deer, horses, and rodents. Ticks can also spread between pets when multiple pets are housed together, like in kennels or shelters. People can inadvertently bring ticks inside, exposing their pets.
Why is flea and tick prevention important?
Fleas and ticks cause two problems. First, they can cause discomfort and skin irritation through their bites and, in some cases, cause severe allergic reactions in both pets and people. Second, they can carry diseases and cause illness in pets and people. Some of these diseases can be deadly and others can cause severe, chronic, and lifelong illness. Prevention is key to avoiding these problems.
Prevention is also important because fleas and ticks can infest the home. Because they have different life cycles, treating an infestation is much more difficult and costly than preventing an infestation.
What kinds of illnesses can fleas and ticks cause?
Fleas and ticks can transmit infectious diseases when they take a blood meal from pets or people. The most common flea in North America can transmit murine typhus, flea-borne spotted fever, cat-scratch disease (bartonellosis), and flea tapeworms. Other flea species can transmit salmonellosis, plague, rodent tapeworm, murine trypanosomiasis, and dwarf tapeworm. Fleas in general can transmit hemoplasmosis and tularemia.
Depending on their species, ticks can transmit several infectious diseases, including: Lyme disease, ehrlichiosis, anaplasmosis, babesiosis, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, rickettsiosis, tularemia, cytauxzoonosis, and hepatozoonosis.
How do I know if my pet needs flea and tick prevention?
Fleas and ticks are small and can sometimes be difficult to see on your pet. Physical examination is the easiest way to identify signs of fleas or ticks. Using a flea comb can help identify the presence of adult fleas or flea dirt. Flea dirt (feces) looks like brownish-black, granular “dirt” that dissolves and turns red when placed on a wet paper towel. Fleas prefer the head and neck area of cats, and the rump and tail area of dogs.
Ticks can vary in size, depending on the life cycle and feeding stage. They can be as small as a pinhead or poppy seed, or as big as a pencil eraser. Ticks can attach anywhere on the body, but prefer dark and hidden areas like the ears, armpits, groin, tail, and between the toes.
"Fleas and ticks can survive in a variety of climates
and can live inside your home and on your warm pet."
Sometimes finding a flea or tick is difficult, especially on cats, because they are constantly grooming. Sometimes the only sign of fleas and ticks is skin irritation, and in these cases, flea and tick prevention is used as a treatment trial.
Fleas and ticks are present year-round in some areas of the world, while others have flea and tick “seasons”. However, year-round prevention is recommended when possible, because both fleas and ticks can survive in a variety of climates and can live inside your home and on your warm pet.
What are the different kinds of flea and tick prevention?
There are many products on the market to prevent fleas and ticks. Some products are sold over the counter and some require a prescription. Some products are used alone, and some are used in combination with other treatments or medications. Some products are applied to the skin, some are worn as a collar, and some are given by mouth (orally). Some are given daily, some are given monthly, and some can last for several months.
Your veterinarian will help you choose a product that works best for you and your pet based on your lifestyle, your pet’s lifestyle, and your needs and preferences. Examples of available products include the following:
- Topical flea products: Activyl®, Advantage® II, Cheristin®
- Oral flea products: Capstar®, Comfortis®, Sentinel® (growth regulator only), Credelio®
- Topical tick products: Preventic® (dogs only)
- Topical combination products: Frontline®, K9 Advantixx® II (dogs only), Bravecto®, Revolution®, Seresto® (collar), Vectra 3D® (dogs only), Effipro® Plus, Effitix® (dogs only)
- Oral combination products (dogs only): Bravecto®, NexGard®, Trifexis®, Simparica™, Credelio®
Can flea and tick prevention be harmful?
Flea and tick prevention products are generally safe when recommended by your veterinarian and when manufacturer guidelines are followed. Rarely, side effects can occur and may include:
- Skin irritation where a topical preventative was applied
- Vomiting or diarrhea
- Tremors or seizures (more likely to occur when applied to the wrong species or if overdosed)
In most cases, the risk of side effects from an appropriate preventative is much lower than the risk of disease. Ask your veterinarian for a recommendation specific to your pet, taking into account your pet’s current and past health condition.
