How to find out if there are fleas in a cat or cat
Content
Pet grooming is a laborious and laborious process. A cat should not only be fed, drunk, bathed, but also provided with protection from all kinds of parasites. This category also includes cat fleas - small jumping creatures, drinking the blood of the pet, and subsequently its owner. Regular planned activities to identify insects in the animal's hair will help solve the problem at the initial stage.How to find out if a cat has fleas and little folk tricks that facilitate the search for parasites are thoroughly consecrated in this article.
What do fleas look like
To find fleas in a cat, you need to have an idea about their appearance. Fleas are blood-sucking insects of brown color, the size of their bodies varies from 2-4 mm. They are very moving and jumping. Adults feed exclusively on blood and can stay on the body of their donor for a long time.
Larvae look like white fleshy caterpillars and absorb organic waste. It is almost impossible to meet the young on the cat's body, since the young individuals spend their time in the nooks and crannies of an apartment or house. Contrary to the mistaken opinion, fleas do not live permanently on the body of their victims. Places of their clusters should be found close to the habitat of the cat.
Mostly cat as a victim choose cat fleas. But given the ability to migrate from one type of animal to another and unpretentiousness in relation to the composition of the blood, on the cat's body can be rat, avian, dog parasites. Recognize fleas by their species can only a narrow specialist.
On a note!
For pet owners, the differences between species are irrelevant, since the characteristics of reproduction, nutrition and behavior of all fleas are identical.
How to understand that a cat has fleas
Determine that a cat has a flea by observing its behavior. The fact that the pet is disturbed by insects, will give the following signs:
- the cat behaves restlessly, cannot sit for a long time in one place, does not sleep well;
- pet constantly itches;
- With severe contamination, the cat may comb bites until blood appears.
A visual inspection of the fur and skin will help to determine if the cat has fleas. To do this, you should arm yourself with a comb and gently push the pet's woolen coat and carefully examine the bare skin. The presence of tiny black grains on it - excrement may indicate the presence of fleas.
On a note!
A simple test will help to make sure that the black lumps found are feces of parasites. Using tweezers, remove the find and place it in a small container with water. If it is a flea stool, the black grains will begin to dissolve in water and in this place the liquid will turn red or brown.
In cases of severe contamination in the cat's fur can be detected flea eggs. Their size is less than a grain of rice. The embryos are white or dirty yellow in color, and the shell is devoid of stickiness. Typically, parasites breed outside their host’s body. The female lays eggs while moving, which is why they literally fly away.
Due to the smooth shell, the embryos roll even from wool, hair. Therefore, if it is not possible to detect fleas in a cat, you should carefully examine and check the space adjacent to the cat's dwelling place in the apartment in order to identify eggs.
You can understand that parasites annoy a kitten or an adult cat, by the presence of wounds, red swellings, blisters on the skin. A magnifying glass or a magnifying glass will help identify flea bites, and not a rash caused by other factors. Bites are small red spots with a characteristic puncture point in the center. In case of development cat allergic reaction on flea attacks, the lesions begin to swell, swell.
Folk secrets to identify parasites
Determine the fleas in the cat can, if you resort to some tricks that are based on the nuances of the behavior of bloodsuckers:
- Spread a large white sheet in the place where the cat spends its time. Fleas are very active and mobile, so if you watch for a while, then on the sheet you will see quick movements of dark points.
- A rather radical way to check a cat for fleas is to bathe it. Blood-sucking insects are very afraid of water, and if you put your pet's body in a bowl of water, they will quickly leave their owner.
How to rid the cat of parasites
Fleas not only cause discomfort to the animal and man, they bite painfully. They carry dozens of deadly diseases and helminth eggs. Fleas in a kitten can cause weakness, anemia. If parasites are found in an animal, you should immediately proceed to flea extermination. In addition to taking care of the pet itself, you will need apartment disinsection and careful processing of all its accessories, toys, cat's house, accessories.
Selection means of destruction and protection of cats from fleas is huge.When choosing a drug for your pet, you should be guided by the age of the animal, ease of use of the tool, toxicity and efficacy of the drug. Arsenal of off-drugs:
- Anamparasitic shampoos. Conditionally divided into detergents to destroy fleas and to scare them. The first includes insecticide, which has a devastating effect on parasites. The tool is applied to the wet skin of a cat, aged for several minutes, then washed off. One-time processing is enough to kill fleas. Popular detergents are Bio Groom, Meadow, "Celandine", Leopard, "Phytoelite".
- Drops on the withers for cats have a destructive effect and protect the cat from parasites for 2-3 months, depending on the manufacturer. To use drops to disgrace is simple. It is enough to remove the pipette with drops from the package and apply the product to the withers of the animal. The death of parasites occurs within 24 hours after application. In the opinion of consumers, such drops have proven themselves well: four with a tail, Front line, Delicious, Rolf Club 3D, Barrier, Dana Ultra Neo, Stronghold, Advantagege, Blohnet, Celandine, Helminthal, Inspector.
- Collars for cats for the destruction of insects give the greatest effect, if you pre-buy a cat with anti-flea shampoo. Cat owners are in demand such collars: Leopard, Celandine, Beafar other.
- Spray against parasites for cats destroys pests and provides long-term protection of the pet from blood-sucking insects. The product is applied to dry skin against hair growth. In order not to lick the pet drug, put on a protective collar. You can not bathe the cat 2 days before the procedure and 2 days after.
Fleas need to get rid of necessarily. They dangerous not only for the home friend, but also for the person.