Death by a flea bite, sounds like an extraction from a horror movie, either way it sounds as improbable as a rat having the ability to kill an elephant.

Let me start by introducing the topic of a very serious ailment known as bubonic plague. Wikipedia describes the plague as a bacterial disease that infects the lymphatic system of the human body. The bubonic plague is known to kill about 50% of the infected patients in 2-7 days.

A person infected with Bubonic Plague

The symptoms of the bubonic plague amongst human beings include the following:  swollen painful lymph nodes in the armpit or neck area, groin, chills, and this make include headaches, vomiting, and diarrhea.

Essentially the bubonic plague is a disease that is associated with rodents and other types of animals. I suppose what is interesting is that this disease is spread from rodents to rodents through flea bites, usually from infected and affected rodents. It also possible to get the plague directly from contact with affected rodents and animals.

So as a lovely pet owner, what precautions should you take to protect your faithful loyal companion, and most importantly yourself and family. There are number of things that you should do,

• make sure that your pet is treated with an effective flea treatment control product.
• avoid your pet from going hunting and playing with sick or dead rodents
• avoid your family from playing near rodent nest or burrows, children are the most like ones to do this
• be proactive clean up areas near your or in home where rodents could live, or take the necessary pest control procedures {consult a reliable pest control agent}
• as much as possible avoid your pets from roaming and hunting
• when your pet is sick, he should be promptly examined by a Vet

Maybe it is worth noting that some cats exhibit the some of the same symptoms as human beings when they are infected: fever, not eating, lethargy, swollen lymph nodes!!!

So it is possible to die from a flea bite, it might take a day or two happen, but one bite one infection and that could be just all it takes. History talks about something called the Black Death, that swept through Europe in the 1340s, killing millions of people, it is suspected that the bubonic plague was responsible for all those deaths.

Protect yourself,  family and pets against fleas by grabbing your free report right here

Your pet is the most precious family friend, in fact she is part and parcel of the family in many respects. To some, she is like the last born of the family and is treated as such, she makes the family complete. When she gets sick, the whole family is affected and is not well.

The summer season comes with a whole of rain and joy, but in most parts of the world it also comes with fleas, tick and various parasites that can not wait to latch on our lovely pets. No parent would leave their child in pain, so it is with every pet owner who loves their pet, that they would try and relieve their pet from ailments.

One of the dangers that pet lovers face, are the over counter medications. Every summer there are reports of cats and dogs suffering adverse effects from the application of certain medications. It is sad, but the pets will be exhibiting symptoms like lethargy, vomiting, confusion, or seizures, due the wrongful application of medications. This happens too many times during the summer period. It is a sad horror story when a pet owner loses a pet in this way. One set of these flea medications are the flea treatments that contain some form of Pyrethroids.

The pyrethroid Allethrin, is a some what synthetic version of pyrethrin, which coincidentally is the insecticide used in the famous home bug killer Raid. Most people would never consider spraying Raid on a dog or cat, so as such you should not use pyrethrin or its synthetic versions, pyrethroids. Wikipedia lists them as:

Allethrin
Bifenthrin
Cypermethrin
Cyphenothrin
Deltamethrin
Permethrin
Prallethrin
Resmethrin
Sumithrin
Tetramethrin
Tralomethrin
Transfluthrin
Imiprothrin
Pyrethrin or pyrethroids

The United States Environmental Protection Agency has more than thousands upon thousands reports of products that have caused harm to pets that contain pyrethroids and pyrethrins. The best thing is to try and avoid buying untried and tested flea treatment medications from grocery or drug stores. Considering the resultant cost of paying for medical bills if your cat or dog gets sick, it would be cheaper to get the vet recommended medications from a pet med store or site.

As always, when in doubt, consult your vet before applying any treatment, these pesticides can lead to a level of toxicity in your pet which can kill them.

Lastly, Enjoy the beauty that summer brings with the love and company of your pet.

When you consider the types flea controls that are available in this day and age, you would be forgiven for concluding that there is no reason why your pet should suffer from fleabites. Basically these types of medications fall into at least two types of categories depending on the way they are applied, they can be ingested or applied on the skin of the pet.

Topical products are the flea control treatments that are applied to a pet’s skin, for example if it is a dog it would be applied on its skin, some of these products kill other parasites as well such as ticks. Flea control treatment medication can also be applied in the form of pills. Choosing which treatment is best for your pet will depend on a number of factors, the biggest amongst these is the issue of climate and behaviour pattern of your pet. If your pet likes the outdoors, playing in the water etc, then it would get a different type of treatment compared to pet that spends most of its time indoors.

The thing to keep in mind that the main enemy, the flea, thrives well in an environment that is warm and if your pet is infected, you might have to work on ridding your house of the fleas as well. This will involve cleaning your bedding, carpet by thouroughly vacuuming. Getting rid of fleas in your house will involve a number of procedures, for example, you can non-toxic powder to kill the fleas, then you can also use steam cleaning to kill fleas that are still in their larvae state as well as the organic matter that they feed on. Flea bombs are option that is worth considering as well, but caution has to taken to keep the pet away while these are being applied. Places to keep in mind when cleaning are doghouses, kennel areas, baseboards, pet houses, perimeter of the yard, decks, patios, the car and the home in general.

What ever you decide to for your pet, also make sure that you have sound advice and when in doubt, consult your veterinarian. So should you apply a topical medication or put your pet on the pill?

You need to have a suitable strategy on how you will tackle the issue of flea control treatment. There are various options, one is of using flea medication.

Choosing the right flea medication for your pet could be a daunting tasking and a painful for your pet as well, should you make the wrong choice. There are a number of people that have been affected by potentially the wrong application of over-the-counter flea medications.

The can have have hazardous effects like seizures, to quote a Michigan veterinary specialist emergency doctor, Loretta Lee who was talking to Fox News, “We typically do see reactions with over-the-counter medications that are spot on medications, and typically what you’ll see are skin reactions, so they’ll be scratching all over once it’s applied. We can see seizures and some animals can die from it,”.

It is always worth while taking note that some animals should be never be treated with anti-flea chemicals, “Puppies and kittens, especially those that are under twelve to 18 weeks. Pregnant animals can not have that medication, as well,Some cats can not have certain medications and so you need to read the packaging.” listed Dr Lee.

Some sound tick-and-flea treatment advice, once given by Sandra Koch, a veterinarian and board-certified dermatologist at the University of Minnesota’s College of Veterinary Medicine includes the following notable points:

# You should not put Fido’s medicine on Mittens. Dosages that would be fine on a large dog might hurt a smaller breed, also Some ingredients that are effective on a dog (permethrin and pyrethrin) can kill a cat.

# Don’t expect a natural concoction to work; none has been proven scientifically.

# If the pet gets an adverse reaction, bathe the animal with soap and water as soon as possible then immediately call a veterinarian.

# Avoid bathing the animal or letting it swim for 48 hours before and after applying a topical product.

# Don’t apply the product on a sore.

# Consider prescription products for specific uses: Comfortis, a monthly tablet just for fleas, is good for a dog that swims a lot. Revolution and Advantage Multi include a heartworm preventative. Vectra 3D also protects against mosquitoes

There is some interest articles that are worth reading about that i have come across:

Fur Flies Over Flea Treatments
…Dr. Hansen of the ASPCA advises against applying flea powders and sprays in addition to a spot-on treatment because chemicals in different products could …..An increasing number of pet owners are reporting what they believe to be harmful side effects from over-the-counter and prescription flea and tick treatments.

Flea infestation is no small problem
….A good flea control program includes good sanitation and treatment of the pet and environment. OK, the first step is to practice good sanitation. ………..Fleas can be a source of both irritation and disease. Dogs and cats scratch constantly when heavily infested, resulting in soiled and roughened coats and, sometimes, in nervous conditions. The most serious effects occur when a pet develops an allergy to flea bites. As few as one or two bites can cause severe itching and scratching in allergic pets.

Act now to prevent fleas and ticks
…..Some flea treatment sold in pet stores may not even work. Follow directions carefully and remember more is not better. Pets can be injured when too much …Once fleas and ticks settle in, they are difficult to get rid of, so it is best to prevent the problem now. If you have companion birds in your home, consult a vet first, as birds are very susceptible to chemical emissions released by sprays, cleaners and powders. Birds hide illness very well, so an owner won’t necessarily know if a bird gets sick because of chemicals used to kill fleas.