When winter rolls in, it’s easy to assume that the cold will finally put an end to those bothersome fleas. Can pets have fleas in winter? Unfortunately, the answer is a chilly YES. And even when temperatures are extremely low, fleas can thrive well. So let's look at why flea infestations remain a problem even with the colder months, what pet owners can do, and why year-round protection is necessary.
Do fleas survive in the winter?
In their natural habitat, they face big obstacles in surviving the freezing temperatures. Their life cycle is slowed right down or even comes to an absolute standstill in extreme temperatures. However, when pets are indoors, then central heating gives fleas an ideal warm space to breed so that fleas do easily survive the winter inside most homes. This indicates very well that there's no winter break from needing flea prevention.
Why Are Fleas a Persistent Problem During Winter?
Figures from the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals, or PDSA, indicate an approximate 20% drop in sales of flea treatments during Britain's winter months. This probably is because so many pet owners believe the onset of fall signals the end of flea season. But at no time is it more active indoors than during periods of cold weather outside, as the cozy warmth of a heated home often easily infests pets and the proximity around them.
How Fleas Survive Indoors: The Temperature Factor
Central heating makes houses a perfect home for fleas, which love warm, damp rooms. If left unchecked, these pests can reproduce throughout the year within any house. Vets therefore, highly advise continuous flea treatments on pets, regardless of season. In addition to infesting pets' mattresses and carpets and upholstered furniture, fleas wait patiently in secluded holes for their opportunity to jump onto an unsuspecting host.
How to Keep Your Pets Free from Fleas during Winter?
For pets, successful prevention and elimination of fleas in winter would require work on both indoors and outdoors. That is because most of its life cycle lies in the environment rather than on the animal. So, to destroy these persistent parasites, you have to treat the entire house environment. Here's how you can do that:
- Regular Pet Treatments: Even during the winter months, pets need to be treated for fleas. Consult your veterinarian to make the appropriate selection for the right flea treatments to minimize the chance of having fleas into your home. Most products, topical or oral, are designed to rapidly kill adult fleas, which puts an end to eggs that were supposed to hatch.
- Home Maintenance: Fleas do not stay merely on the pets, but also often lay eggs in areas where pets are staying. It is highly recommended to clean and vacuum the blankets, rug carpets, and other fabrics where the pet would lie down. This way, all the eggs, larvae, and pupae can be cleared from the home.
- Outdoor Spaces: While less of an issue during winter, if the pets spend a significant amount of time outdoors in yards or common outdoor locations, these outdoor areas should also be treated to minimize potential exposures to fleas that would survive sheltered outdoor sites.
Treating Pets for Fleas in Winter End
Treating your pet directly is only one part of the solution, but it is an important step to keep the fleas under control. The following are some common and effective treatments for keeping pets flea-free:
Spot-On Flea Treatments
It is made by applying it to your pet's skin, usually at the scruff of the neck. It controls the fleas since they start killing adult fleas within a few hours. Options include:
Frontline Spot-On for Cats & Dogs
- Kills fleas within 24 hours and ticks within 48 hours
- Prevents re-infestation of fleas up to 8 weeks in dogs, for 5 weeks in cats. Recommended every four weeks in peak season
- Safe for pregnant and lactating animals, safe for kittens over 8 weeks weighing 1 kg + and puppies over 8 weeks weighing 2 kg +
Advantage for Cats, Dogs & Rabbits
Flea medications by oral route:
Most often in tablets, oral flea medications begin killing fleas in as few as a couple of hours after application, and the medication can work in animals which will take it orally. For owners, it often becomes less difficult than other medication routes:
Capstar for Cats & Dogs
- Kill fleas in 15 minutes, killing all fleas in 24 hours.
- Harmless to reapply but not more than once a day.
IGRs:
These treatments work against the flea life cycle to prevent the eggs and larvae from growing into adults. Even though they do not kill adults, they are best for long-term flea control:
Program for Dogs
As a tablet or suspension, this product works by interfering with hatching flea eggs thus controlling infestations on a long-term basis. Most such products are typically combined with adulticides to kill the adult fleas, such as Frontline or Capstar.
Combination Products:
All-in-one flea control comprises adulticides and IGRs to ensure that fleas are destroyed in all facets of their life cycle.
Frontline plus for Dogs & Cats
- Adult fleas get killed within 24 hours and ensure re-infestation does not occur for up to 8 weeks.
- It also kills ticks and biting lice and ovitraps the development of eggs and larvae for comprehensive protection.
Injectable Flea Control for Cats:
There are actually flea controls available for cats in injectable form, which a vet can administer. This offers six months of flea prevention and serves by inhibiting the ability of the fleas to produce fertile eggs.
Making Your Home Flea-Free During Winter
Cleaning and Treating Indoor Spaces
In pet-owning households, egg, larvae, and pupae fleas infest carpets, furniture, and bedding of pets. Regular cleaning will disrupt the flea life cycle and reduce the re-infestation risk. Some of the key features include:
- Vacuum frequently: Vacuum any room in which pets rest or spend a lot of time. Make sure to focus on soft furnishings, bedding of pets, and carpets.
- Wash Bedding: Launder your pet's bedding and any washable covers in hot water to destroy any fleas, eggs, or larvae that may have taken refuge there.
Home Treatment Sprays
Home treatment sprays give effective control within a home using low concentrations of insecticides safer for a homeowner. Many also contain insect growth regulators that prevent larvae from developing into adult fleas.
Professional Pest Control:
For more serious infestations, you should hire professional pest control. Licensed operators have stronger pesticides and training necessary to effectively and safely treat homes for fleas. If you believe that your efforts are not giving full eradication of the fleas, service by professionals will be your best choice.
Do Dogs Need Tick Prevention in Winter?
Although they are much more active during warm months, ticks are still a nuisance during winter if pets continue to go outside. Ticks tend to live in leaf litter, tall grasses, or woodpiles where temperatures can rise a few degrees. Since there is a chance of disease transfer through ticks, it would be best to consult with your vet about whether to keep your dog on its tick-prevention program all year.
What Time of Year Do Fleas Come Out?
Flea season is said to be the warmer summer months of late spring to early fall in the UK, but their emergence can occur at any time of the year due to the cozy environment provided by central heating, making winter months all the more vital to maintain prevention measures. Indoor environments are not too demanding to survive, so any form of break in this prevention could prove detrimental for your pet or home to the onset of an infestation.
UK Flea Season and Overwintering Fleas
Seasonally, in the UK, the warm months can be said to constitute flea season. However, due to the provision of central heating in almost all homes, fleas are easily harbored indoors during winter months. When fleas become established indoors, they lay eggs in carpets, furniture, and pet bedding. These eggs hatch later and produce numerous fleas throughout the year, regardless of the season. Technically, therefore, flea season may coincide with warmer seasons, but indoors, fleas are year-round.
Flea-Free Pet and Home throughout the Year
Flea season comes to an end with winter, a common misconception of most people. As long as a home provides warmth, humidity, and comfort, it is easy for fleas to survive through winter. It goes without saying that keeping homes flea-free requires pet owners to use preventive measures throughout the year. Comprehensive treatment of both pets and the environment is still the best method to prevent infestations.
Thus, by maintaining a routine of consistent flea prevention and keeping ahead of the curve of active methods with a no-flea outlook in your home, you ensure a healthier, happier environment for your pet and your family.
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