The cat flea

Unlike lice, fleas do not live on a person or animal all the time. The flea spends 95% of its time in the environment and only 5% on the animal. We and our pets are just a canteen and transportation for them.

Fleas do not have a blood-sucking proboscis. The flea's jaws simply pierce the skin, pulling it apart to release saliva. In doing so, the parasite practically sinks into the wound to reach the blood vessel. The whole process is accompanied by intense itching and restlessness.

These small pests are characterized by a complete cycle of transformation - from larva to adult. The female ejects eggs from herself chaotically, without making special clutches. This can occur on the animal or outside it. Moreover, the speed of egg ejection is so high that they literally fly in different directions.

The eggs take about two weeks to develop, after which the worm-shaped larvae emerge. They feed on the feces of adults. In the process of growth, the larvae molt several times, then wrap themselves in a cocoon, from which the adult flea emerges, which is very hungry and looking for a victim.

The flea's life period lasts 2-3 months, but long-lived species have been known to exist for up to 1.5 years.

The common flea is capable of jumping distances hundreds of thousands of times its size, from 20 cm to 3 meters. If a flea were the size of a human, it could simply jump from one end of a soccer field to the other.

Most animals have changed their appearance and structure over the course of evolution, adapting to the conditions in which they live. But the fossilized remains of a 50-million-year-old parasite differ little from the modern flea.

If you have fleas in your apartment, it is quite difficult to get them out. But we are always ready to help you cope with these annoying parasites and tell you about prevention methods.