4 Flea Diseases You Must Know for Your Pet

It is not a challenging task to dismiss fleas. Unlike ticks are famous for causing Lyme disease in pets, fleas do not seem all that threatening. Mostly, we see the tiny bloodsuckers as a nuisance for pets and us. However, we do not see them seriously threatening anyone’s health.

But one thing to remember is that fleas may transmit many diseases to humans and animals. Fleas may cause serious harm to your and your pet’s health through their bites, and when the animals ingest them, they target them.

Here are four flea diseases you must be aware of:

Murine typhus

Rats are one of the leading carriers of flea that carry Murine typhus. However, cats contacting infected fleas may bring these disease vectors home. Humans usually get typhus from flea bites. When the bugs bite, they typically defecate at the same time.

Rickettsia typhi is the type of bacteria found in the feces. It enters the body through the bite wound or from a person who is scratching the bite area. Signs of typhus include body aches, nausea, fever, and headache. After 5-6 days of initial symptoms, you may notice a rash starting on your body’s trunk and spreading to your legs and arms. If you think you have murine typhus, see a doctor as soon as possible. You can treat the disease with antibiotics, but if you wait too long, you may need to be hospitalized. If left untreated, the condition may linger for more than usual.

Mycoplasma haemofelis

Mycoplasma haemofelis (M. haemofelis) is a parasitic, bacterial disease transmitted to cats through flea bites along with mosquitoes and ticks. It is an infection of the red blood cells. M. haemofelis may cause anemia and fever in cats. Some evidence suggests that M. haemofelis may infect humans, especially those with compromised immune systems. As fleas are equal opportunity feeders, an infected flea may transmit the parasite to your pet and you.

M. haemofelis attaches to the infected cat’s red blood cells. It leads the body’s immune system to treat the red blood cells as foreign, marking them for destruction. The destruction of large numbers of red blood cells leads to anemia.

Vets also prescribe antibiotics for the treatment of affected animals. In severe cases, cats may require a blood transfusion with antibiotics.

Tapeworms

One of the topmost loathsome parasites is a tapeworm. They make themselves home in the intestines of humans, cats, and dogs. Pets may get tapeworms by swallowing infected adult fleas, which can happen when animals groom other animals or themselves. Cats may also contact the disease by eating infected mice.

While it is highly uncommon in adults, children may get the infection accidentally by swallowing an infected flea that they may encounter while playing outdoors. Children and pets pass segments of tapeworms known as proglottids during bowel movements.

Treatment of tapeworm in pets and humans is easy. For both, you can consult a doctor or vet and get the medicine at a discount through the Rx discount cards for pets and for your family members.

Cat scratch disease

The bacteria called Bartonella henselae (B. henselae) is the one that causes cat scratch fever. It is quite common in felines. CDC reports about 40 percent of cats, especially kittens, have the bug at some point in their lives.

Few cats develop severe symptoms. The CDC recommends taking your cat to the vet if it is vomiting, decreased appetite has swollen lymph nodes, has red eyes, or seems lethargic.

Most cats never get sick, and those who typically suffer from fever for two to three days recover entirely. If your cat seems perfectly healthy, it may still make you sick. The reason is that the cats pass the disease on to humans by scratching or biting a person hard enough to break the skin or by licking on or near the scabs or wounds.

Conclusion

Effective flea control treatment can help you and your pet’s life more comfortably. It will also help to protect you, your family, and your pet. While many reliable and safe products are available in the market, select the proper treatment that depends on you and your pet’s lifestyle.

If you want a discount on prescription medications for these diseases, you can download the best prescription discount card.