PET HOSPITAL
3502 Foothill Blvd.
La Crescenta, CA 91214
(818) 248-3963
Mon. - Wed.
8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m
.
Thurs
8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Friday
8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m
3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Saturday
8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Sunday
10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
La Crescenta
La Canada
Glendale
Sunland
Tujunga
Fleas & Ticks
Fleas can cause a range of problems, including skin redness, excessive scratching, anemia in puppies, allergic reactions to the flea saliva or contraction of diseases carried by fleas.
Adult fleas are dark brown, about the size of a sesame seed. They live their entire adult lives on your pet and feed on their blood. Fleas can be picked up in the environment or through contact with an infected pet.
The adult female flea will start laying eggs daily (up to 50 a day). These eggs fall from your pet, landing on the carpet, furniture, dog bedding, and anywhere your pet goes. The eggs hatch within 4 weeks into worm-like larvae that burrow deeper into soft furnishings, carpet, and the nooks and crannies of your home.
There the pupae produce a silk-like cocoon and take 10 days to become adult fleas which only emerge when they sense pressure, carbon-dioxide (from breathing) or body heat. Once a flea emerges from a cocoon it can only survive a few days without feeding. However, cocooned fleas can survive up to 9 months in the environment! An adult flea with an ideal host can have a lifespan of a few weeks. Fleas can also bite people. It is much easier to prevent flea infestations than to treat them.
Flea Facts
- Flea saliva is considered one of the
most irritating substances on Earth. - Fleas are capable of transmitting
disease to humans and pets. - Fleas have changed history. As
carriers of bubonic plague, fleas
were responsible for killing
one third of the population of
Europe in the 14th Century. - A female flea consumes 15 times
her body weight in blood daily.
More than 2,400 flea species
exist worldwide. - Relative to their body size, fleas
accelerate the equivalent of
50 times faster than the space
shuttle's speed after liftoff. - Great jumpers – fleas can jump
150 times the length of their
bodies, the equivalent to a
man jumping 1,000 feet. - Fleas reproduce rapidly at room
temperature, making your home,
pet and carpet the perfect year round breeding environment. - You may not see fleas but they can be on your pet and in your environment.
- Check for flea fecal matter – oval
flakes at the base of your pet's tail.
Flea fecal matter contains blood,
which turns red when placed on a
moist paper towel.
We recommend a ONCE MONTHLY flea preventative for your pet beginning as early as 8 weeks old.
If you find fleas on your pet, make an appointment with your veterinarian, who will recommend a course of treatment for your pet and your home. Remember for every flea you see on your pet there are hundreds more in your environment. Successful flea control means treating both your pet and your home.
Ticks
Ticks live in tall grasses and heavily wooded areas. It is important that anytime you or your pets are in these environments a tick check be performed when you return home. Don't forget to check between the toes and behind the ears where ticks love to hang out.
Ticks burrow their heads into the skin of your pet and gorge on the blood. The bites can cause skin irritations, and spread diseases including the Borrelia Burgdorferi bacterium, better known as Lyme Disease. The safest way to remove a tick is to lightly pull a tick's body with tweezers and wait for the tick to let go. Complete removal of the tick is important. If a head remains imbedded in your pet's skin or you are in doubt about how to remove ticks, make an appointment with one of our veterinarians to remove them for you.