It is difficult to find anything amusing to say about this topic, the reason being that it’s the season to protect cats against fleas and dogs against fleas, ticks and sandflies.

If left uncontrolled, fleas multiply very quickly into the hundreds and on small pets this can be life-treatening- Martin Debattista

I vividly remember the client who could not get rid of the fleas from her small dog and, having time and again affirmed that she does not feed stray cats in her garden, eventually told me that her neighbour does.

When planning the right form of protection for your pet, you need to keep in mind two criteria: firstly, fleas, ticks and sandflies need to be considered together and, secondly, you need to give your vet the whole picture.

Fleas are blood-sucking insects that drain blood from your dog or cat. If left uncontrolled, they multiply very quickly into the hundreds, and on small pets this can be life-treatening.

Fleas also play an important part in the lifecycle of tapeworms, which are intestinal flat worms found in both dogs and cats.

Flea larvae ingest tapeworm eggs; when the infected flea is ingested by the dog or cat during grooming or nipping, the tapeworm then starts to develop inside the intestine.

Of course, the biggest problem with fleas is that they are the most common cause of itching allergies in dogs and cats.

A few important things to know about fleas is that they breed mostly at home, and flea eggs can survive unhatched for a very long time just waiting for a new host (your pet) to come along.

Whatever treatment or preventive measures you consider, this must include all pets present in the household since fleas are highly successful insects that spread everywhere.

In this respect, a common misconception among cat owners is that a cat that never leaves the house cannot get fleas. Unfortunately, fleas are very resourceful insects and will find a way to target even housebound cats.

In contrast, ticks tend to hitch a ride on their preferred target dogs when they are out of the house and, in particular, when they are out in the countryside.

Ticks can be present in alarmingly huge numbers. Because they are larger than fleas they can be even more life-threatening as they suck a larger volume of blood from the host dog.

Monitoring for ticks, even the occasional one, is vital to the well-being of your dog because they can transmit the ‘tick disease’ called Ehrlichia.

Ehrlichiosis is, sadly, highly-present in Malta, and is caused by a type of bacteria called ‘rickettsia’ which infects the blood cells of the host dog.

Ehrlichia is an insidious disease: not only is it life-treatening, it can also go undetected for a long time and is not easy to get rid of.

The main symptoms to look out for are weight loss, anaemia and nose bleeds.

Unfortunately, there is no vaccine yet available against Ehrlichia, so protecting dogs from ticks is imperative for dog owners.

One disease for which we now have a vaccine is the ‘sandfly disease’. Sandflies are tiny mosquitoes that prefer areas with vegetation and coastal regions, and prevail during hot, still summer evenings.

Sandflies transmit the dreaded Leishmanosis disease. Even if you have vaccinated your dog with the newly available Leishmania ‘sandfly’ vaccine, you still need to consider protecting your dog against sandflies since, as with most vaccines, this measure is not necessarily an absolute prevention.

The number of different products on the market intended to prevent fleas, ticks and sandflies is huge, and some are more effective than others.

Products range from sprays, spot-ons, tablets and injections, as well as natural repellants and other means of protection.

In deciding what preventive measures to take, you need to consider the number of cats and dogs in the house, as well as the type of property you live in.

The number of times your dog gets washed may be important since not all products are waterproof; in the case of cats, you’d need to consider whether they are allowed to roam outside and whether they have contact with other cats.

Before deciding on which products to purchase it would be a good idea to ask your vet which are best to use, and how they should be applied – both for preventative measures and to treat full-blown infestations.

It is important to give your vet the whole picture… remember the story of the client who did not feed stray cats.

Dr Debattista is a veterinary surgeon.

thisweekwiththevet@gmail.com

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