An unfortunate common health problem that wreaks havoc in your dog’s life is fleas. Flea control and treatment are therefore essential components of caring for your furry best friend. For more information on flea control visit www.virbac.com.au

1. Flea Control & Treatment
Essential components of caring for
your furry best friend.

2. How Dogs Get Fleas
Fleas are tiny parasitic insects
that thrive in warm and humid
environments. They need hosts
like dogs and cats to complete
their life cycle.
Adult fleas from the environment
or other animals jump onto your
dog when he is taking a walk,
visiting friends at the dog park or
playing outdoors.
And thus begins the flea
infestation on your dog.

3. Why Immediate Flea Control
is Critical
A flea control prevention program for
your dog is essential because the
moment fleas find the host (your dog),
they start feeding on blood, biting and
feeding hundreds of times per day.
The female flea lays eggs within 48
hours and lays up to 2,000 eggs in her
lifetime to restart the lifecycle – a flea
infestation can build up very quickly.
Flea eggs fall from the dog into the
environment, particularly in popular
resting areas.

4. Once in the environment the flea
eggs develop into larvae and pupae
which are notoriously difficult to treat
and provide a source of constant re-infestation
of adult fleas.
Always be alert for typical symptoms
like constant scratching, biting and
general discomfort. Unless the
infestation is heavy, fleas may not be
visible to the naked eye.
It is essential to initiate flea treatment
immediately before flea numbers
increase and the environment
becomes heavily infested with flea
eggs, larvae and pupae.

5. Why Flea Treatment Is Important
Flea treatment for dogs is important
because fleas can cause:
• Skin Infections – some dogs
develop allergic reactions to the
flea saliva resulting in intense
itching, redness, loss of hair in
patches, broken skin and
secondary skin infections.
• Anemia – fleas constantly suck
your dog’s blood, and can cause
severe and sometimes fatal
anemia.
• Tapeworm Infections – fleas
can pass on tapeworm infection
to dogs.

6. Lastly, dog flea treatment is
important because you are
in close contact with your
pet and thus fleas can infect
you and your family too.

7. How to Take Control of Fleas
1. Flea control in the environment
Flea eggs fall from the dogs into
the surroundings such as your
carpet, bedding or the garden.
Once in the environment the eggs
hatch and eventually become
adult fleas, ready to cause further
infestation on your dog.
Vacuuming carpets, washing pet
bedding in hot water and
treatment with
household flea sprays are
advisable for flea control, in
addition to flea treatment applied
to your dog.

8. 2. Flea control on your dog
There are several products
available on the market for dog
flea control. Check with your
veterinarian to find out which
product they recommend.
Dog flea treatment options include
oral medications and line-on flea
control products. Use flea
prevention products which have
some residual effect, to prevent
re-infestation on your dog. Using
spot-on flea control products once
a month is recommended, to avoid
flea infestation.

9. With the right combination of
flea control strategies for your
dog, they’ll be flea-free,
happy and cheerful.
For more information on flea
control visit www.virbac.com.au

10. With the right combination of
flea control strategies for your
dog, they’ll be flea-free,
happy and cheerful.
For more information on flea
control visit www.virbac.com.au