Select Your Parasite
FLEAS
FACT: On humans, female fleas feed for an average of 7.4 minutes, and male fleas for 4.4 minutes. They often bite 2 to 3 times before leaving.
FACT: If you see fleas on your pet, the likelihood is that they have infested your home due to the female flea being able to lay up to 50 eggs per day. What a fleas infestation looks like:
![](https://www.vetkem.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/FleaStage2-PNG.png)
TICKS
What a tick life cycle looks like
Voracious 6-legged larvae hatch, feed on a small animal, drop to the ground and molt into nymphs.
8-legged nymphs wait in place for a host, feeds on a small animal, drop to the ground and molt into adults.
8-legged adults feed and typically mate on a larger animal. Males may mate several times before dying.
![](https://www.vetkem.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/FleaStage1-PNG.png)
The eggs hate into larvae.
Fertilized female drops to the ground. lays eggs and dies.
FACT: The CDC recognizes over a dozen tickborne diseases in the United States. Some of these include:
Disease (Pathogen) | Symptoms |
Lyme Disease (Borrelia burgdorferi) | Fever, loss of appetite, reduced energy; swelling of the joints can cause discomfort, pain and lameness. |
Anaplasmosis (A. phagocytophilum) (A. platys) | Lameness, fever, bruising |
Babesiosis (B. canis) | Fever, weakness, lethargy, anemia, bleeding and bruising |
Ehrlichiosis (E. canis) | Fever, lameness, headache, muscle ache, CNS symptoms, renal failure, “bulls-eye” rash |
Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (R. rickettsii) | Fever, nausea, rash, pain, headache |
Tick Paralysis (non-infectious) | Neurotoxin in tick saliva – causes ascending paralysis |
MOSQUITOES
FACT: Mosquitoes can breed in less than 1 cup of standing water and can fly continuously for up to four hours at 2mph.
![](https://www.vetkem.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Illustration1-PNG.png)
![](https://www.vetkem.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Illustration2-PNG.png)
![](https://www.vetkem.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Illustration3-PNG.png)
![](https://www.vetkem.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Illustration4-PNG.png)
FACT: These tiny insects kill more than 700,000 people every year and account for an estimated 17% of the estimated global burden of infectious diseases, including:
Disease | Symptoms |
Canine and feline heartworm infection | Soft/dry cough, shortness of breath, weakness; can be fatal if not treated |
West Nile | Fever, headache, body aches, joint pains, vomiting, diarrhea, or rash that lasts weeks to months |
Malaria | Flu-like fever, shaking chills, headache, muscle aches, exhaustion |
Zika | Fever, rash, joint pain and red eyes |