Fleas are now mutating, making them resistant to the popular flea control products pet owners have come to rely on in the flea season. The experts are stating what pet owners have known for a while now, and the validation, while concerning, is a step in the right direction.
Vets like Katherine Van Ekert with Vet Pronto in San Francisco's Bay Area are telling their clients solutions, like Advantage and Frontline, that worked in the past are no longer offering benefits to your pets. Van Ekert is advising clients not to waste their money on them, according to San Francisco's local CBS, who says the fleas have mutated in a manner of survival of the fittest.
"You can imagine when we're applying a flea product that's designed to kill a flea and those fleas have random mutations, the genes that are resulting and are allowing the fleas to survive are going to win," said Dr. Van Ekert.
"This past summer has been dragging on months and months, so flea populations, they have been really small to start off with and they're growing," Dr. Van Ekert said, noting the warm weather is not helping curb flea populations, according to News 9 in Oklahoma City. "Normally, they go into dormancy in the winter, so they will hibernate for a while. But it just hasn't been cold enough for that yet."
As a solution to the problem, vets are now recommending oral medication for flea control, one that seems to help is Nextguard by Frontline.
"They really don't need anythin, but a dog or a cat to feed on and as long as that's available they will keep laying eggs. So you have to treat the house, the yard and the pet for the best flea control," said Dr. Denise Genix according to WTSP.
Dr. Genix, of South Tampa Veterinary Clinic explains there isn't one solution to fight fleas, you have to hit all of the flea cycles, and reiterates that oral flea medications are more effective than topical medications for your pets.
