YOUR GUIDE TO FLEA SEASON:
The first sign your dog may have fleas is the flea dirt that accumulates within their fur. You will see the flea dirt way before you ever see a flea. Flea dirt looks like large pepper flakes - it is the flea feces. Fleas are sucking your dog’s blood therefore, when you go to wash your dog and see a red tint in the water that is a sign of the flea dirt being rinsed away. This alone is not enough to get rid of the fleas, but you do need to wash that away dirt before you move forward with a flea treatment.
Your dog will begin showing signs of fleas such as scratching, licking or chewing in a quick jerking reactions. If you find 5 fleas or less, it’s not yet an infestation so you will just need to do the following. First give your dog a flea bath and leave your dog lathered for 10 minutes (Star Barks tip: shampoo twice always!) then treat with Frontline (or similar). You may also consider getting a carpet or fabric spray to avoid fleas multiplying and causing an infestation in your home.
When and how do you know you have a flea infestation? When you see more than 5 fleas on your dog you need to take the following actions to get rid of the infestation in your dog’s environment. You can do that by fumigating your home and your dog’s environment. If you avoid this step your dog can have fleas for months or even years! A flea infestation that goes untreated can cause a tapeworms and even become anemic because of how much blood they are losing over time.
Star Barks recommended products to treat your dog for fleas can be found here: https://amzn.to/3O1nYs5
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