Fleas, Ticks, and Healing Damaged Skin

By HelloLife

Fleas and ticks can be the culprit if you pet's skin is damaged. There are many methods and treatments available for the eradication of infestations of fleas and ticks, which will immediately aid in healing your pet's skin and preventing further damage.

Fleas

Fleas are small wingless insects, typically 2mm in length with long legs adapted for jumping. Fleas are designed to be laterally flattened, providing enhanced capabilities of movement through hair. The flea is also designed to have a well protected body and can withstand great amounts of pressure. The flea is particularly devoted to its eating routine, as one single flea is capable of biting your pet over 400 times in a period of 24 hours. The flea has specially adapted mouth parts, and is capable of consuming over twice its bodyweight in blood in a period of only 24 hours. Additionally, a single female flea can lay approximately one egg per hour and over 2,000 eggs within a lifetime.

Ticks

Ticks are one type of external parasite, approximately 3mm in length with six legs, adapted for effectively gripping onto a host. The tick is also particularly devoted to its eating routine, as one single tick is capable of attaching to a host and feeding for days before dropping off the host. The reason that ticks are considered to be highly dangerous to both humans and animals is due to the fact that ticks are often carriers of more serious diseases. The most commonly known complication due to tick bites is Lyme disease. Interestingly, ticks are only second to the mosquito when it comes to being a vector for the transmission of certain diseases to humans.

Types of Fleas and Ticks

There are over 200 different species of fleas in the United States alone. The most common fleas are known as the cat flea (Ctenocephalides felis) and the dog flea (Ctenocephalides canis). There are over 900 different species of ticks located throughout the world. The most common ticks in the United States are listed below:

American dog tick (Dermacentor variabilis)
Brown dog tick (Rhipicephalus sanguineus)
Deer tick or Blacklegged tick (lxodes scapularis)
Lone Star tick (Amblyomma americanum)
Winter tick (Dermacentor albipictus)

Fleas and Ticks: Healing Skin Damage

Both fleas and ticks are capable of causing damage to the skin from bites and through secondary infections. Once the skin damage has occurred there are several ways to enhance overall healing naturally.

Flea and Tick Removal: The first step is to make sure the infestation is completely eradicated. The healing process can not really begin if your pet still has fleas or ticks.
Hygiene: It is important to keep the affected area clean to prevent infections from occurring.
Scratching: It is also important to attempt to keep your pet from scratching at the area, as this will only serve to open the wound further, increasing the likelihood of infections.

It is important to look into all options for the treatment and removal of fleas and ticks with your veterinarian. As always, the best option is to prevent a flea and tick infestation from beginning in the first place.

Sources:

http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/696_flea.html

http://www.fda.gov/FDAC/features/2001/401_flea.html