Flea Allergy Dermatitis (FAD) is the most common skin disease of dogs and cats, caused by irritation from flea bites.

Signs of FAD include:

• Scratching
• Hair loss
• Skin infection
• Crusting or thickened skin

Flea check

How can I tell my dog has fleas?:

• Adult fleas on your dog crawling through the fur
• Flea dirt or blood through the coat (take a good look around the tail region and tummy)
• Signs of scratching (including patches of hair loss or scaly skin, itchy dog)
• Your dog is licking or scratching

The secret life of fleas

Adult Fleas - only the tip of the iceberg
Despite being the most recognisable, adult fleas account for the smallest number of the flea population present during an infestation on your dog. They emerge from a cocoon when conditions are just right. To survive, they must feed immediately. Adult fleas feed and mate within 24 hours and lay eggs 36-48 hours after that, therefore fast killing is crucial.

Flea Eggs - the most abundant
Eggs are laid in the pet's coat and drop into the environment. On average, each female adult flea lays approximately 500 eggs in her lifetime. This is why flea infestations quickly grow into a big problem.

Flea Larvae - creepy crawlies in the environment
Newly hatched flea larvae live in the environment and feed on adult flea faeces (flea dirt), dead skin cells and other organic debris. The larvae spin a cocoon to form the next stage called pupae.

Flea Pupae - the survivors
Pupae are the most resilient stage of the flea lifecycle. The flea cocoon is very sticky and attracts dirt and other debris, making a perfect camouflage to remain undetected in the environment for up to 12 months. This extremely resistant flea stage is one reason why ongoing treatment is important to eliminate flea infestations.

How to keep your dog and home flea-free

Flea control for dogs is easier if you prevent fleas on your dogs. Regular cleaning of your dog's favourite areas including bedding and carpet will also help to eliminate further flea eggs and larvae. When choosing a dog flea treatment, there are many different types of products available including dog flea products that not only treats fleas on your dog, but also treats other flea stages and your dog's surroundings. To reduce irritation and discomfort from flea bites, choose a flea treatment that kills fleas on contact and doesn't rely on fleas biting to take effect.

The types of dog flea treatment for puppies and dogs available include Advantage for dogs, Advantix for dogs, Advocate for dogs, Capstar for dogs, Comfortis for dogs, Frontline for dogs, Nexgard for dogs and Revolution for dogs.

What is the best flea treatment for dogs?

Dog flea treatments can be categorised into 2 main parts:

Flea products to rid fleas on your dog

Spot on treatments - very effective, easy to apply, once a month treatments. Some products include worming or heartworm treatment as well as flea treatment. Examples of spot on treatments include Advantage, Advantix, Advocate and Revolution.

Dog Flea shampoo - kills fleas on your pet at the time of the bath, but once rinsed off have no lasting effect on fleas.

Rinses and sprays - vary in effectiveness, some need to be used weekly, some more often if severe flea problems are present. Rinses must be applied to a clean, mostly dry coat at the correct concentration to be effective.

Tablets like Capstar flea tablets will kill fleas fast within 30 minutes offering immediate relief from fleas but not treat the environment.

Collars & Powders - are helpful, but not the most effective treatment

Flea control for the environment

Dog flea control strategies including - Vacuum the carpet 2-3 times a week to remove eggs and stimulate dormant fleas, wash pet blankets weekly (in the washing machine) and leave in the sun to dry, spray the house, kennels and yards with an adult flea killer (professional treatment recommended) fog the house with a flea bomb to prevent larvae developing.

Fast flea facts

Fleas are small wingless insects and the most common pest that pet owners face. Their bites are painful and they are almost impossible to catch and squash. The common species of flea found on both cats and dogs is called the cat flea. Flea fossils date back to the Lower Cretaceous period, meaning fleas have been around for about 100 million years. At that time, their neighbours might have been a Tyrannosaurus Rex or Triceratops! Some fleas can jump 150 times their own length. That compares to a human jumping 300 metres. One flea broke a record with a four-foot vertical jump. Undisturbed and without a blood meal, a flea can live more than 100 days. On average, they live two to three months.

Help! My dog has Fleas!!

At Kellyville pets we can advise you on all the correct products for how to avoid your dog getting dog fleas, how to treat a dog with fleas, how to prevent your dog getting ticks, how to prevent your dog getting intestinal worms or how to treat a dog with intestinal worms and how to prevent your dog getting heartworm or how to treat a dog with mites.

Fleas-
My dog has Fleas
Does my dog have fleas?
How do I treat fleas on my dog?
How do I know if my dog has fleas?

You will know your dog has fleas by some very clear signs that your dog might have fleas.
If your dog has flea it will be scratching a lot if your dog has fleas. If your dog has fleas it will be very irritable and unable to rest comfortably if the dog has fleas.
Some dogs that have fleas will even drag their bottom along the ground as the fleas on the dog are irritating the dog that has dog fleas.

How do I treat a dog with fleas?
There are many products on the market that are a treatment for dogs that have fleas. At Kellyville pets we supply a number of different products to kill adult fleas on dogs. These include Capstar, Advantage, Advocate, Advantix for dogs, Confortis, Frontline plus, Frontline Spray, Nexguard, revolution and sentinel. All these products can be used to kill Adult fleas on dogs if your dog already has fleas.

How do I treat my home for dog fleas?
To prevent fleas in your home environment you must first remove all flea eggs from the environment, vacuuming and mopping floors will remove most flea eggs from the environment. Adult fleas can be killed in the home using a flea bomb which will also kill larvae in the home. Flea bombs is the most effective way to remove fleas from the home environment using a flea bomb.
How do I prevent my dog getting dog fleas?
Products that can be used to prevent a dog getting fleas include, Advantage, Advocate, Advantix, Confortis, Frontline plus, Frontline Spray, Nexguard, Kiltix collar, Revolution or Sentinel can be used to stop the infestation of fleas on dogs.
Most preventative flea treatments are either a chewable tablet or a spot on liquid on the dogs skin on the back of the dogs neck or a collar to stop a dog from getting fleas.

To stop a dog from getting fleas, it is important to look into the environment to stop more fleas from breeding which will prevent your dog getting fleas. Overgrown grass and plants are the perfect places for fleas to breed in the environment. Fleas will also breed in carpet and bedding.

Worms-
My dog has worms
Does my dog have worms?
How do I treat my dog for worms?

There are many different types of intestinal worms that your dog can get- dogs can have the following intestinal worms- roundworms, hookworms, tapeworms, and whipworms.

How do I know if my dog has intestinal worms?
There are lots of symptoms for dogs that have intestinal worms.
Dogs coughing is one of the signs a dog has worms. Dogs may develop a cough if they have hookworms and roundworms
Dog that has gut worms will often vomit. Dog may vomit if they have Roundworms.
Soft stools and canine diarrhoea can be the result of worms. Dogs with hookworms may have blood in their faeces
Dogs with intestinal dog worms that are lethargic and less active than normal may be showing symptoms of having worms.
Potbellied appearance is commonly seen in puppies that have picked up worms from their mother dog .If your dog starts to appear potbellied or bloated, it may have contracted intestinal worms.

Your dog may have intestinal worms if you notice a sudden change in your dog’s appetite, your dog may have intestinal roundworms if the dogs appetite has changed. Dogs that are infected often lose their appetite. As intestinal worms steal a dog’s nutrients, a dog with gut worms may also show a sudden increase in hunger as a result of intestinal dog worms.
Your dog could have tapeworm if your dog shows signs of rapid weight loss, he may have a tapeworm or your dog may have a whipworm.
If your dog’s coat begins to dull or if your dog’s coat dries out your dog may have picked up a form of worms a healthy dog should have a shiny thick coat as a healthy dog does not have worms. Loss of hair or the appearance of rashes can also be a symptom of worms.

A dog could have a severe worm problem if the dog show signs of skin irritation it may have a severe infestation of worms.
Dogs with intestinal worms will occasionally rub their rear ends on the floor in order to relieve themselves of the itch due to worms in their bottom and they will rub their bottom on the ground.
Roundworms can often be seen in a dog’s faeces. Tapeworms may appear as small moving segments in the fur or area around dog’s anus if the dog is infested with tapeworm.

ticks-
Tick prevention for dogs.
What is a tick?
My dog gets ticks
Will my dog get ticks?
How do I prevent my dog getting ticks?

A Paralysis tick it a small tick that feeds on the blood of animals a bush tick feeds on animal’s blood also.
When a paralysis tick is feeding on the blood of animals it secretes a toxin into the animal’s blood which is potentially lethal with the administering of the toxin from the paralysis tick.
Bush ticks also administer a toxin that is not as harmful as the paralysis tick. The paralysis tick is far more dangerous than the bush tick.

A paralysis tick’s toxin can cause paralysis in a dog and even death in dogs from the paralysis tick.

Where do you find dog ticks?
On the eastern coast of Australia Paralysis ticks are very commonly found on the coast in warm weather, bush ticks are found near water or dog ticks can be found near dense bushland. Paralysis ticks are found year round but the population increases in the warmer weather like the start of summer. Bush ticks can be found year round near bushland. Bush ticks can be found year round and in any long grass or bushland the dog ticks can be found.

Tick prevention for dogs
Products to prevent ticks on dogs available at Kellyville pets include- Advantix, Kiltix collars, Nexguard and Frontline plus

Can my Cat have tick treatment?
Unfortunately there is currently no safe tick preventative for cats.

Does my dog have mites?
My dog has mites
How do I treat mites on my dog?
How do I prevent my dog getting mites?

Mange is an external skin disease caused by a parasite called a mite.
Mites cause dogs a great deal of irritation and itching is one of the first symptoms of mites in dogs.
A dog may also have fur loss due to a mite as this is symptom of mites which a parasite causing fur loss on dogs.
Does my dog have ear mites?
Ear mites can also live inside a dog’s ear causing irritation inside the dog’s ear from the ear mites.
Products available for the treatment of mites available are- Advocate and revolution