Here an Egg, There an Egg, Everywhere an Egg
Unlike other external parasites, such as some species of mites, fleas dont burrow under your pups skin, nor do they lay their eggs under the skin. Instead, the fleas themselves live on the surface of the skin, where you can see them if you comb through the hair on Fidos coat. These opportunistic pests typically lay their eggs while they are on the surface of your pups skin. Because these eggs arent sticky, they wont stay there for long and dont need the warmth of your pup to properly develop. In fact, the eggs can survive in the environment for months waiting for the weather to become warm and humid before they hatch.
Can Fleas Live Inside a Dog?
There is some good news in your battle against fleas. They do not burrow under your pet’s skin and live there for a long time. Despite what you have heard, fleas are surface creatures only and do not hide under your pet’s skin.
They may get under your skin because you may have had a hard time getting rid of your pet’s fleas, but that is only frustration and not actual living conditions. Try the many different remedies that are available today to see which one will work for your dog or cat.
You are not limited to just one remedy. Try a few different ones as fleas like to hide in deep, dark places where some remedies can’t reach. Also, giving your pet an edible anti-flea medication is probably the best way to combat those fleas when you have a busy schedule.
Or you can comb those fleas out with ease if you have the time. Pick the right remedy for your home and schedule and make sure to clean up your carpets, bedding, and clothing to make sure no flea gets to live too long.
Will Baking Soda Kill Fleas on My Dog? Click here to learn more.
How do flea products work?
In addition to killing adult fleas, flea treatments will usually interrupt the flea life cycle by killing them before they have a chance to lay eggs around your home. Some products have a direct effect on the immature flea stages. For example, the active ingredient in Seresto Flea and Tick Control Collar, imidacloprid, works by killing both adult fleas within 24 hours and also flea larvae, offering good flea control.
Curious to find out more on how long it takes fleas to die after treatment? Read our helpful guide.
Fleas In Dogs | Vet Explains
An itching, scratching dog conjures up nightmarish s of fleas hopping everywhere—especially onto our furniture, beds, and carpets. Fleas are prime suspects if your dog is scratching without any apparent reason, but before you can blame fleas for your dog’s discomfort you need to do a little more investigating.
The best way to find out if your dog has fleas is to look for symptoms of flea bites on dogs.
Fleas are tiny parasites that feed off of the blood of their hosts. There are over 2,200 species of fleas in the world, but the flea that most frequently infests dogs is not the dog flea, which is relatively rare, but the cat flea, scientifically known as Ctenocephalides felis.
While it might seem somewhat ironic that the fleas bothering your dog are “cat fleas,” this flea species is known to infest more than 50 different mammals and birds throughout the world. In the United States, they prefer dogs, cats, wolves, foxes, raccoons, opossums, ferrets, and domestic rabbits. The widespread palette of fleas gives your dog plenty of opportunities to pick them up as she goes about her day.
Flea removal is tricky, and you need to have a basic knowledge of the flea life cycle to choose the right products for your dog. As gross as it might be to think about, you need to know how fleas feed and reproduce.
Adult fleas lay their eggs in the hair of their host—your dog. A female flea can lay as many as 50 eggs a day and an average of 27 eggs a day for up to 100 days. As far as I am concerned, that’s 27 eggs a day too many. These eggs fall to the ground every time your dog shakes, scratches, or lies down, infesting your home and yard.
The eggs hatch 1-to-6 days later into larvae. Indoors, the larvae burrow deep into the fibers of your carpet or outside into grass, leaves, or soil, where they then spin themselves a cocoon after a week or two. The larva matures into an adult flea inside the cocoon and waits for a potential host to pass by. Pre-emerged adults can survive for weeks and even months under the right conditions, which is one of the reasons why it is so hard to remove fleas from the home.