Those insects just know how to leap, don’t they? Fleas are practically known for their jumping ability despite their size, being able to jump as high as 13 inches, which is around 200 times their own body length.
But their jumping height isn’t the only thing that they are known for. Fleas also have a considerably reputation for being a household pest, being taken in by a household pet that wandered outside for a bit and came home with a new family. Of insects.
So now an important question props up: How dangerous are these little buggers? Should they be dealt with as soon as possible? Am I in danger?
Are they a health concern for me?
The first thing we clearly want to know about these fleas is how dangerous they are to the average human. After all, we want to know how dangerous they are so we can set our priorities straight on when we should deal with them.
The thing about fleas is that historically, they actually used to kill humans with alarming regularity. This is due to the fact that they used to transmit a dangerous bacterium called Yersinia pestis. You probably know it by its more common term though: The plague. Since rats coexisted with humans at the time, it was much easier for fleas to spread the plague to people when said rats died, since fleas would be searching for new hosts while bringing disease with them.
But that was back then. While the plague has been all but eradicated with new cases rarely popping up nowadays, fleas are still on the loose and harassing humans and animals alike.
Fleas are still a health concern, of course. Fleas can carry different types of pathogens and parasites like tapeworm and transmit them to unwitting hosts, but they’re nowhere near the deadly threat that they once were in the past.
The more common fleas that you see on cats and dogs are also quite picky eaters as well, as they prefer sucking blood of the specific animals of their choosing, and usually ignore humans. This is not to say that fleas that target humans don’t exist, but rather that fleas are much more specialized and “picky” with their targets, depending on the species, especially when there are estimated to be around 2000 flea species all over the world!
But you won’t have to worry about a flea biting into you anytime soon – the types of fleas that prefer humans are usually tucked away deep in the countryside or jungles, and unless you’re quite the intrepid explorer, you’re unlikely to encounter one out randomly while in the city.
But it’s your pets that you should be worried about – They’re the ones that are most likely to get affected by fleas, especially if they enjoy going outside. Fleas are easily picked up by one infested animal from another, and strays, feral, or other dogs outside are a great and easy way for fleas to spread.
How do fleas find their way inside my house?
As mentioned earlier, fleas normally hitch a ride on other animals, and may find themselves hopping around your front or back yard. As a result, there is a chance that your pet may unwittingly bring one of these annoying bouncing insects back home.
But just because your pet is the only one that is around the yard doesn’t mean you’re off the hook yet – fleas are known for hanging around squirrels, rabbits, and rats, most of which are quite good at sneaking around undetected. There are a lot of opportunities for a flea to attach itself to your pet from your backyard.
To make matters worse, once you bring even a single flea in, your house is ripe for a flea infestation. This is because an adult female flea can lay as much as 40 eggs per day on your pet, all of which are likely to bounce around and roll away into the depths of your house, carpets, furniture, wall cracks, and other dark places of your house. Eventually, these eggs will hatch, and, well, your problem will then increase exponentially….
What are the signs of a flea infestation?
Dealing with fleas as soon as possible is important in order to minimize the damage before the fleas are able to reproduce, and the longer it takes for you to act, the harder it becomes to remove fleas. Having tiny insects bouncing around your drapes and furniture does not sound like a pleasant time at all.
Since fleas primarily get around by animals, this means that you should always be sure to check your pets when they come back home after going out. Fleas are around 1/8 of an inch in length, and are brown in color, but they may also be black or even reddish. They also have six legs. Another telltale sign that you can watch out for is if your pet has red parts around their skin, specifically, the belly, the hindquarters, the neck, as well as the ears.
Make sure to remove as many fleas as possible. As mentioned earlier, even one female flea is enough to cause an infestation. If you suspect that a flea might have laid eggs that have scattered around the house, vacuum everywhere, and vigorously treat carpeting with anti-tick or flea products.
Conclusion
Fleas are more of an annoying part of life for you and your pet. They present danger, but not as much as they used to in the past and are more dangerous for the fact that they can multiply rapidly and easily overwhelm a house if allowed to do so.