How To Care For Your Puppy
By Gary Johnson
A Puppy StoryMy grandmother had the sweetest little white dog when I was growing up. He was half-poodle, half-maltese, and I loved him dearly. But no matter how much I cared for that dog, he was Read more...
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Dog Potty Training
By Michael Willmore
Potty training for your dog! Well that’s something you better take care of, or you’re going to regret it forever. If you have given a proper training to your dog, you can trust him to defecate or Read more...
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Overcoming Dog Separation Anxiety
By Emillie Loh
Many dogs have separation anxiety. Separation anxiety in dogs exhibits behavior problems when they’re being left alone at home. This often leads to excessive barking, whining, chewing, house soiling Read more...
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How To Win The War Against Your Dogs Fleas
By BJones
All dogs pick up fleas, ticks, and chiggers at one time or another, usually during the warm weather months. Even a pampered city pet can pick up a stray flea from a potted plant. Hunting dogs often return home with a collection of chiggers or ticks. Fleas hop from one to another with amazing speed and agility. Your pet only needs to greet one flea infested friend in order to acquire the beginning of a flea colony of his own.
External parasites are not a special affliction of dogs. The is simply a convenient host for them. We would probably have them too, if our bodies were covered with hair and we ran around without shoes and clothing and sat or slept on the ground. Fleas are the most common, the easiest to detect and to get rid of. Fleas appear as black specks on a fine tooth comb, and a single one can drive a crazy.
The worst part of fleas is that they act as hosts to tapeworm larvae, and if your swallows one you may end up with a worm problem too. You can trap fleas in a silky smooth coat with a flea comb, but fleas that nestle in the dense undercoat of double coated dogs must be treated with a product that penetrates the skin, and a regular mild treatment is safer than an occasional severe one.
In one day a single flea can bite your pet 400 times, while consuming more than its own bodyweight in blood. Some dogs can contract flea allergy dermatitis, an allergic reaction to the flea’s saliva. The severity and length of the flea season varies depending on what part of the country you live in, but it is best to treat your pet in early spring, (April – May). In northern climates, flea and tick season usually lasts approximately 4 months, but in the extreme south, fleas can live all year long.
There are more than 2000 species of fleas in the United States alone, but the one that attacks most pets is the cat flea, Ctenocephalides Felis. A cat flea can lay up to one egg per hour, and within two days, a wormlike larvae will hatch from those eggs. The eggs are oval, smooth, and about 0.5mm in size. The hatched larvae will range from 1.5 to 5mm in length. The complete cycle from egg to adult takes approximately 30 to 75 days depending on temperature and humidity.
Adult fleas are about 1/16 to 1/8 inch long, are dark reddish brown, wingless, hard bodied, have three pairs of legs and are flattened from side to side. Fleas can jump vertically up to seven inches, and horizontally up to fourteen inches. They have piercing – sucking mouth parts and spines on their body. Adult fleas cannot survive or lay eggs without a blood meal, but may live from two months to one year without feeding.
In order to effectively control an infestation, fleas must be removed from the pet, the home, and the yard. Starting with the pet, there are shampoos, topical treatments, sprays, collars, and oral medications. The least recommended is shampoo, due to the grooming the pet does to his own coat. The pesticides can be toxic if they are consumed in quantity. Topical treatments are better, along with sprays
Designer Dog Clothes, Jewelry And Gourmet Food: Is Your Dog Is Spoiled Or Part Of The Family?
By Paul J Easton
I was dodging raindrops and puddles as I walked the short distance to my office. As I was passing a local house, I saw an elderly woman standing near the entrance holding an umbrella over her little Read more...
The Ten Most Popular Toy Dog Breeds
By Luke Donnelley
Toy dogs have become enormously popular over the years with a variety of people and for a number of reasons. These adorable little canines are ideal for apartment living in many cases, and many toy Read more...
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