The Common Flea
WAY more dangerous than you might’ve thought

The ordinary household name for the common flea is Siphonatera. Although Siphonatera is not the popular search engine word that many would use to find out more about the common flea or to find us, Beyond Pest Control, you may have noticed the part of this word has a subword within it, siphon. And that’s what fleas do, they bite and then siphon or draw off blood.  And like all blood suckers they do it well and they do it as often as possible.

While fleas prefer dining on our family pets, dogs and cats mostly, they are not opposed to taking a bite out of us as well. The history of fleas and mankind goes back several thousand of years, for as long as mankind has kept or raised live stock, fleas have been a major problem.

Back in caveman times, fleas no doubt bounced around and hid in bear skin rugs and animal furs. Today,  fleas can hide and live in carpeting, sofas and any over stuffed upholstered chairs and furniture. The reason fleas prefer our pets over us humans, is the fur skin.   Fleas can hide in fur. When people do get bit, it’s usually from an infested carpet area, while the family relaxes to watch TV at night. People are like a fast food meal to a bunch of hungry fleas… hop on, bite, hop off, then hide. But fleas can’t hide too well on people skin, it blows their cover.  This is why Rover and Fluffy are four star, sit down, white linen, restaurants to a starving flea.

Here is a typical flea percentage breakdown in many household situations, it exists as so:  5% of fleas live and dine directly on the host dog and or cat. Another approximate 10% exist as cocoons in the carpeting, and another 30% exist as larvae, the remaining approximate 50% are eggs   The flea life cycle is very much like that of the butterfly.  Female fleas lay their eggs, that grow into larvae.  Larvae then develop into pupae and that stage makes or construct a cocoon which they settle into until a suitable host comes along, then the pupae breaks out of the cocoon to start feeding off its host and the life cycle starts all over again.  This cocoon breakout is triggered as soon as anything of warm temperature comes in contact with it for even as little as three seconds. The pupae cocoon upzips and the immature flea can jump as high as four feet to land on the nearest warm blooded body to feed.

Fleas only food is blood, and it can live without a meal for as long as 100 days,
a little over three months. However, the female needs blood to lay eggs and it can lay over 2000 eggs within 36 to 48 hours after its first meal.

Fleas are very tiny insects, they measure about an eighth of an inch and often get confused with or mistaken for bedbugs, lice and ticks. This is because fleas have a similar flat body, with piercing siphon like mouths.  To paraphrase another infamous bloodsucker, Dracula:  “All the better to suck your blood”.   Fleas are reddish brown to black in appearance and are wingless. In full sunlight they glisten, in fact, this is a good way to flea comb your pet after a flea dip bath, out in full sunlight.

Unlike bedbugs which are not known for spreading disease, fleas have be linked to such serious diseases as Marine Typhus and Tungiasis. Fleas also travel on rats, which have the bacteria, Yersnia Pestis, which can result in Bubonic plague.  Murine Typhus is an infection caused by Rickettsia, Rat fleas called Xenopsilla Cheopis transmit this. Tungiasis is caused by the Chigger flea, and they can cause serious damage to the feet as the female species burrow into the feet and breeds there. Their feeding under the skin causes severe infection and irritation. The fleas are removed by surgery. Fleas also transmit Tularemia and tapeworms to humans as well as pets. Other than these diseases, fleas also can cause allergies to both humans and pets.

One very important thing you the reader needs to understand, is that a flea problem, once noticed, will not fix itself.

This is not something that will die off when the winter comes, ignoring them will not make them go away.  Your warm home will keep then eating and reproducing at an incredible rate. Removing an intrenched flea infestation is a labor intensive job.  Because of their ability to hide and their skill at jumping many jobs will require follow up treatments.

There is no need for you to worry, we can help. We have many solutions to get rid of fleas.  we’re reliable, we’re professional and we’re very good at what we do.  We are better than what you can do for yourself. Why?  because of our experience and knowledge.

If you learn anything from this website, please remember this, you are not just killing a flea, or several hundreds of fleas, you are hunting and killing the many stages of flea growth, including adult, larvae, and pupae cocoons. This is major, MAJOR warfare. Beyond Pest Control takes no prisoners. Our job is to kill them, dead. Unless you are equipped and prepared for major pest warfare, you will loose not only the battle, but the war. There are more of them then there are you. Let Beyond Pest Control help you since we have many solutions to get rid of fleas. Please stop poisoning yourself and your family by using over the counter chemicals to fight this never ending reproducing pest. Relief is just a phone call away. You can also from time to time find helpful hints at http://nypestpro.blogspot.com.

Click here to find out more information on Fleas and the hidden dangers

Beyond Pest Control.

Our pest control specialists service all NYC boroughs, including Queens, Brooklyn, Bronx, Manhattan, Long Island (both Nassau & Suffolk counties), Staten Island and even both Westchester & Rockland counties.