Ticks,
Fleas and Worm
What are ticks?
Ticks are a type of arachnid they are more closely related
to the spider than other insects. They are typically 3-5mm in size and have
four pairs of legs. They do not have antennae. Ticks are a type of external parasite
which means they survive by feeding off of the blood of other animals. There ae
over 800 species of ticks around the world.
Ticks can pick up and pass disease causing
bacteria’s and have been known to carry lymes disease. For this reason, it is
important to remove any ticks you do find on your pet.
Do not try to pull the tick off your pet! The safest way to remove a tick is by using a tick twister. Tick twisters can be bought at your vets, at most pet stores of online.
The video below shows how to use a tick twister:
What are fleas?
Fleas are small flightless insects that survive as external
parasites on mammals and birds. They live off of the blood and hematophagy of their hosts. They
are red brown in colour with compressed bodies, fleas are around 1 to 3 mm in length with females being
the bigger of the two sexes. There are 2,500 different types of fleas.
Though fleas are flightless they have incredible jumping abilities
which allow them to jump up to eight inches into the air making it easy for
them to hop from the ground onto a cat! Fleas will consume around fifteen times
their body weight in blood each day and excrete partially digested blood which
the larvae will then feed on. Flea dirt is a good indicator that your pet has
fleas.
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How to treat fleas
We recommend a licenced product. This will come from your veterinary surgery in a spot on, injection or tablet form. Flea collars and unlicensed products should be avoided. Do not use a product intended for dogs on your cat as it can be toxic.
To
control a flea infestation the adult fleas must be killed and the environment
treated. The most common product used to treat households is in a spray form.
This spray should be applied to carpets and furnishings. This
spray should never be used on the cat itself. Regular vacuuming will also help.
To
prevent re-infestation monthly treatment of your cat is recommended. It can be
hard to get an infestation under control, sometimes taking weeks or months.
This is why it is important to take the necessary steps to prevent fleas before
an infestation can occur.
What are worms?
Parasitic worms are
large macro parasites. They can often be seen by the naked eye and are usually
transmitted via the soil and infect the gastrointestinal tract. They survive by
living and feeding on nutrients inside hosts such as cats.
They can’t
reproduce totally inside the host so some of their life cycle includes stages
that take place outside of the hosts body. Some worms are able to survive
inside their hosts for years because of their ability to manipulate the host’s
immune response by secreting products that prevent rejection of the worms by
the body.
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How to treat worms
We recommend using a licenced product from your veterinary
surgery. Avoid any product that is not
licenced as these may not work. Do not use a product intended for dogs on your cat
as it can be toxic.
This will come in a spot on or tablet form. Different
treatments will treat different types of worms so always check with your vet
which treatments will be the most effective for your pet.
To prevent re-infestation your pet should be treated
regularly.
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| Roundworm |
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| Tapeworm |
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