The Complete Flea Life Cycle
You must treat your home and your cat for each stage of a flea's life. Ignoring just one stage in your flea control efforts will result in the fleas just starting the cycle all over again. It's estimated that with any flea population, 95% of all the fleas are in a sub-adult stage (i.e., eggs, larvae, or pupa). These sub-adult fleas can lie dormant in your home for several months before they hatch and start the life cycle all over again. How Long is the Flea Life Cycle? The whole life cycle of a flea can be as quick as 20 days or can last up to one full year due to the flea being in a dormant stage. The life cycle can be interrupted at any stage, but some flea control methods are more effective than others depending upon the stage the flea is in. Warm and humid weather will speed up the cycle and contribute to a larger infestation of fleas. Flea Eggs The adult female flea lays up to twenty flea eggs at a time (and this can be daily!). The flea egg stage is the beginning stage of the cycle. The flea eggs may be deposited on your cat and in your cat's environment. This includes your cat's sleeping area, your carpet, your furniture, floorboard crevices and other cracks and corners of your home. Flea eggs will also be deposited in your yard. In addition to attacking your outdoor cat, fleas deposited outside from other neighborhood animals may afflict your indoor cat. Adult fleas are great little hitchhikers and can jump onto you while you're outside. The flea will then jump off of you and into your house and deposit her eggs! Flea eggs deposited directly onto your cat will usually fall off into your cat's environment fairly soon. Flea control efforts must consider the flea egg stage to be effective. Flea Larvae Flea eggs will hatch into larvae 2 to 14 days after being laid. The larvae are small and white. Larvae rely on adult flea excrement for nutrition, so this is a good reason to keep suspected areas where there might be fleas clean. Over the next two weeks to six months, the larvae will molt three times before entering the next stage of the flea life cycle. Flea control efforts must consider this aspect of the flea life cycle to be effective. Fleabusters Rx borate powder is a very safe method you can use to eliminate flea larvae in your home. Flea Pupa The flea larvae spin cocoons around themselves in which they move to the last phase of the flea life cycle and become adult fleas. The larvae can remain in the cocoon anywhere from one week to one year. Temperature is one factor that determines how long it will take for the adult flea to emerge from the cocoon. Warm and humid weather speeds the maturation process and the flea life cycle. While in this stage, the flea larvae are very resistant to chemical insecticides and other environmental treatment methods of flea control. Flea control efforts must consider this aspect of the flea life cycle to be effective. Adult Fleas The flea matures in the cocoon and emerges looking for a host to feed on. When the flea finds a host (your cat or kitten), it jumps on the host and holds on with six hooked legs. It then uses its sharp mouth parts to cut a hole and insert its feeding tube into your cat. After this blood feast, the flea lays its eggs and the flea life cycle starts all over again. Amazingly, an average adult flea can live without food for up to 58 days! Fleas spend most of their lives off of your cat and in your cat's environment, so just because you don't see a flea on your cat, don't give up on your flea control efforts, especially if you see other evidence of fleas. For example, tiny black flecks of flea dirt (excrement) will be left behind after a flea has fed on your cat. Choosing the Right Method to Get Rid of All the Fleas When choosing a flea control method, all stages of a flea's life must be considered. To get rid of fleas, you must choose one or more methods that are effective in all four phases of the flea life cycle. Related Topics: * Natural Flea Control Methods - More safe and alternative methods to eliminate fleas. Top Choices for Flea Control Online 1800PetMeds Only Natural Pet Store has the best selection of natural flea control products and the best customer service on the internet. From Flea Life Cycle to My Healthy Cat home
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