FLEAS BECOME NUISANCE EARLY THIS YEAR

Pet owners in America spend about $900 million a year on flea control products.

Figure it up, that's almost $2.5 million a day. Well, actually, it is $2,438,353.44 a day.

Either way, that's a lot of cash.

It could be worse. A veterinarian at the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine at Urbana, says fleas can also transmit human and animal disease known as "flea bite dermatitis," and some pets can develop a severe skin problem in which they lose their hair and develop bacterial infections.

In an effort to combat the flea problem, one Cape Girardeau company held its annual "Dog Dip Day," Saturday.

Tractor Supply Co., (TSC) 501 S. Kingshighway, provided the dip and tank, and pet owners dipped their own dogs in the tank of Farnum Flea Stop Citrus Dog Dip free of charge.

The promotion was conducted throughout 22 states by TSC dealers. The company is headquartered in Nashville, Tenn.

The local store had a number of dog owners show up for the daylong event.

TSC provided eye protection goggles and gloves to use while dipping the dog. The company also provided a dog kennel so that owners could leave the dog to dry, or so owners with more than one dog could leave them while dipping another dog.

"Fleas are really a problem this year," said TSC spokesman Tom Parrish, who is a buyer of pet health supplies for the company.

John Koch, veterinarian with Cape Small Animal Clinic, 210 Christine St. agrees.

"We're seeing fleas earlier than usual," Koch said. "The heavy flea season is normally in September."

Fleas, however, need a lot of heat and moisture.

"They're getting both early," Koch said. "We've had hot weather here, and plenty of rain in recent days. These conditions make it conducive for fleas to lay a great number of eggs."

Fleas are not only a nuisance to pets, but also in the home. Veterinarians say that when fleas are not feeding off your dog, or cat, they are looking for the perfect environment to reproduce. Unfortunately, that is usually the carpet of the home.

"A home can become infected in a hurry," Koch said. "If only 10 fleas are brought into the house, they can multiply to 250,000 in a short while."

The adult flea spends nearly its entire life on a dog or cat.

The female flea, Koch said, feeds almost continuously, consuming about 15 times its body weight in blood daily.

The female flea will lay from 25 to 40 eggs a day on the pet. Fortunately, the eggs are smooth and many fall off. But, some remain and will hatch into adult fleas in one to four weeks.

Veterinarians will design a flea-control program for your pet. And, if the pet is a house pet, veterinarians suggest vacuuming often. One pass with the vacuum can pick up half of the flea eggs. After vacuuming, homeowners are urged to discard the vacuum bags immediately after use.

"Fleas are expected to be rampant this year," Parrish said. "You can never defeat the flea totally, but you can slow him down to a crawl and wait for the first hard freeze."