What you Should Know about the Health Risks to Your Pet from Fleas, Ticks and Mosquitos
By Andrea S. Freeman, VMD, MS
Now that the warmer weather is upon us, fleas, ticks, and mosquitoes abound and these pose health risks to both pets and people. Here are some things you should know about minimizing these risks.
Fleas and Ticks: Fleas and ticks are vectors for a number of diseases that can affect both pet and human health. While we are most aware of them in the spring and summer months, in reality, both fleas and ticks can be a year-round problem. They are often able to survive freezing temperatures for extended periods of time and survive even better when they spend the colder months in garages, homes, or living and feeding on wildlife or our pets. Milder winters allow for the survival of many more of last year’s fleas and ticks. Fleas cause annoyance and skin irritation at a minimum, but some pets (and people too) can have a serious allergic reaction to flea saliva, which is injected while feeding and can cause severe itching and hair loss. Feeding fleas also transmit a number of infections from parasites, such as tapeworms, to the more serious bacteria, Bartonella. Bartonella can result in illness, swollen lymph nodes, and anemia in pets. Up to 40% of cats have been exposed to the bacteria; however, most do not show any signs unless they develop other immune-compromising diseases. These cats can still transmit the bacteria to people, a condition called Cat Scratch Fever, which can result in serious complications in young children and immunocompromised adults.
Ticks can transmit even more serious diseases including Lyme disease, Ehrlichiosis, Anaplasmosis, and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (RMSF). Tick prevention in our pets is an important factor in reducing the risk of infection to our pets and to human family members as well.
Mosquitoes: Although usually considered a nuisance, mosquitoes pose a serious health risk to dogs and cats since they transmit heartworm disease. Heartworm disease is present in all 50 states and because mosquitoes easily get into homes, even indoor pets are at risk. Immature worms injected into the bloodstream from the bite of an infected mosquito spend the first three months in circulation before establishing themselves in the pulmonary artery, the large blood vessel through which blood travels from the heart to the lungs. There the worms will spend the next 2-4 months growing into mature adults and it is only after this time (5-7 months post-mosquito-bite) that they will be detected on a heartworm test. As adult worms, they will mate and produce offspring to be distributed in the pet’s bloodstream where they can be picked up by feeding mosquitoes and passed on to other animals. Both dogs and cats may be affected, although cats tend to have a more aggressive immune response to the infection which can result in a limited number of worms developing to adulthood. This immune response can be so strong that it can cause sudden death in otherwise healthy cats. Historically, heartworm disease has not been particularly common in the Northeast U.S., leading to the misconception that heartworm prevention is not necessary if you live in New Jersey. Because rescue animals are commonly moved around the U.S., the risk of heartworm disease remains ever-present. The delay between when animals are infected and when they test positive further complicates matters since pets that test negative may go undiagnosed for some time, further allowing for mosquitoes in the area to become infected and spread the disease.
Heartworm preventatives are widely available by prescription and are extremely safe, effective, and typically cost between $6-8/month. Treatment of heartworm disease can cost several thousand dollars, and the treatment itself is also potentially life-threatening.
Thankfully, there are many safe and effective options available for flea and tick control as well as heartworm prevention. Products applied topically to the skin, collars, and oral preventatives – many with tasty flavors that are easy to administer – now make flea, tick, and heartworm prevention safe and simple. It is best to discuss these with your veterinarian to determine the preventatives best suited to your pet. Products sold through veterinarians tend to be safer and more effective than most over-the-counter products.
