Keeping your home free of fleas can be challenging, especially if you have a feline friend who loves lounging around. Luckily, it is not difficult to keep your cat flea-free for the entire year, if you use the right practices, you can keep your cat from coming into contact with fleas so they don’t take up residence in their fur.
One way to keep your cat away from fleas is by using a topical flea treatment these products work by suffocating fleas as they jump onto their host and feed off of them. This is why it is imperative that you use these products consistently and at the correct intervals throughout the year.
What is Flea Treatment and How Does it Work?
Flea treatment works by essentially smothering the fleas on your cat as they jump onto them when fleas jump, they are essentially shooting out their legs to grab onto something else.
A flea’s legs are very long and sensitive, so they will latch onto anything they can get a grip on this is why cats are one of the most common hosts for fleas, after jumping onto your cat, the fleas will go about feeding and growing.
This can take a few days, so it is important that you treat your cat for at least a week in order for the treatment to be effective. Flea Treatment NZ can be applied to your cat’s skin or ears, the ears have a high concentration of nerves close to the skin, which causes the treatment to be more effective.
How to Keep Your Cat from Coming Into Contact with Fleas
- Keep your cat indoors this is by far the best way to keep your cat flea-free, and it is the most important step.
- Keep your cat indoors long enough that they are not able to go out and hunt for additional food.
- Keep your outdoor cat indoors during the spring and summer months and vice versa. This is when outdoor cats are able to hunt and will be more likely to come into contact with fleas.
- Try to groom your cat on a daily basis. This will encourage your cat to groom themselves, which will reduce the amount of time they spend in contact with fleas.
- Try to keep the area where your cat sleeps clean and free of debris.
- Vacuum your floors on a daily basis. This will prevent fleas from laying eggs, and it will also pull up any fleas that have already jumped onto your cat.
- Try to keep your cat’s diet clean. Cats are obligate carnivores and will naturally consume fecal matter, so try to keep any food your cat eats inside.
When outside, try to keep your cat away from areas that may have been recently visited by wild animals. Fleas can be found in the feces of wild animals, so try to keep your cat away from areas where they may come into contact with this fecal matter.
Encourage Daily Grooming
Cats groom themselves regularly, so it is important to encourage this behavior when trying to keep your cat flea-free, this will reduce the amount of time your cat spends in contact with fleas and encourage your cat to groom itself more often.
Daily grooming is an important part of flea prevention because it removes the layer of dust and dirt that fleas love to feed off, you can do this by regularly brushing your cat and giving them a bath.