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Guide on flea bites
Guide on flea bites
Fleas are tiny blood-sucking insects found worldwide, they are ectoparasites that live and feed on their hosts. These tiny wingless insects are capable of driving animals insane with irritating and itchy bites, and they don’t spare humans especially when your home is invaded by fleas. Besides the itchy bites, fleas are also capable of unleashing real evil because they feed on a wide range of animals, they can transmit disease between these animals and some of the diseases they carry are very deadly.
What do flea bites look like?
Flea bites are very irritating and itchy, and constant itching can cause a secondary infection. When fleas find a host, be it humans or animals, they use specially-adapted needle-like mouthparts to probe the skin in search of blood vessels. They have three needle-like stylets, they will use two of these to pierce the skin on an unlucky animal in search of blood before injecting the third and central needle-like structure which is especially for drinking blood.
While the flea feeds, it releases drops of saliva on the wound, the saliva of these insects contains an anticoagulant which keeps the blood from clotting and ensures the flea gets its fill. The saliva also contains a substance that irritates the skin and when it gets into the bloodstream, the body reacts to it by producing histamine around the infected area, this results in a small reddish swell which is usually very itchy. Flea bites look like small red bumps on the skin and some will have a red “halo” around it and these small red bumps appear in clusters.
Symptoms of flea bites
Some of the symptoms of flea bites include extremely itchy red bumps that may develop into blisters or small wounds with continuous itching. In pets, these bites will cause intense itching and you may find your poor pet very restless and rubbing their body on different surfaces or erratically spinning around in circles to get those tiny bloodsuckers out. Extreme infestations may lead to loss of fur in pets as they keep scratching and tearing themselves up. Some pets are allergic to flea bites and this may result in flea allergy dermatitis.
Symptoms of flea bites
If a person or animal is not allergic to flea bites, then the itching will be minimal and the bite will disappear within 24 to 48 hours. But if you or your pet is sensitive to a flea bite, then there will be very intense itching and irritation which can cause swollen welts that can last for about a week. To reduce the itching and redness, wash the affected area with mild antiseptic soap and place an ice pack around it to soothe the irritation.
Sometimes in severe cases, an allergic reaction to the bites may cause extreme pain around the bites and other reactions like swelling and difficulty in breathing. In this case, it’s best to seek medical treatment for these bites. Let your vet prescribe the appropriate anti-flea medications for your pet and treat your home to eliminate all traces of these parasites.
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