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All Natural Cat Health Blog
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| What Are Parasites?A parasite is an organism that lives and obtains nourishment by feeding on or within another animal called the host. There are external parasites and internal parasites. The most common internal parasites in dogs and cats are worms and protozoa. The most common external parasites in cats and dogs are fleas, ticks, mites and lice.
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| What are Fleas?Fleas are insects and are external parasites that live on mammals and birds. Fleas are dark reddish-brown, wingless and very small (appx. 1/16" to 1/8" long). A flea has 3 pairs of legs with the back legs being longest and allows them to be excellent jumpers, up to 13' horizontally and 7' vertically. The body of the flea is compressed from side to side which allows them to easily move through the hair, feathers or fur of their host. They have a piercing/sucking mouth which allows them to feed off the blood of their host. There are numerous types of fleas but the most common fleas are: cat flea, dog flea, rat flea, poultry flea, sand flea and human flea. Fleas, when ingested by cats or dogs cause tapeworms.
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| What are Cat Fleas?The cat flea (Ctenocephalides felis) is the most common flea among domestic cats and dogs. The cat flea's primary host is the domestic cat but it is also the most common flea found of domestic dogs.
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| What are Dog Fleas?Dog fleas (Ctenocephalides canine) looks much like the cat flea but is not as common. Most fleas found on dogs are not dog fleas but cat fleas.
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| What are Tapeworms?The tapeworm is a flat segmented worm that consist of a head, neck and a number of segments. The head has muscular grooves or suckers that enable it to attach to the intestines of their host; cat, dog, human. Each segment of the tapeworm has its own reproductive organs but it does not have a digestive system. Since they do not have a digestive system of their own they have to absorb nutrients through their skin. Tapeworms live in the digestive system of their host and have been reported getting as long as 30 feet. New tapeworm segements are continually being formed in the neck area. Segments at the end of the tapeworm are cast off as they mature. These mature segments are egg packets and are often seen near the anus of the cat or dog. If these segments have been recently passed they may be seen moving or wiggling. If the segments have dried they have been described as looking like sessame seeds, uncooked rice or small cucumber seeds.
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| What are Ticks?Unlike fleas, ticks are not insects. Ticks belong to the same family as spiders and mites. Ticks, spiders and mites are arahnids. There are approximately 850 species of ticks worldwide belonging in 2 different families depending on their structure: Ixodidae and Argasidae. Ixodid ticks have a hard outer covering called a 'scutum', more commonly termed hard-shelled ticks. Argasid ticks have no scutum and are soft-shelled ticks and are fewer in number than the Ixodid or hard-shelled ticks.
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| What are Mites?Mites and ticks belong to the class Arachnida, subclass Acarina. There are over 45,000 known species of mites which scientists believe is only 5% of the total diversity of mites. Because of their small size (most are microscopic) most will go undetected. Mites can be found in soil and water, on plants and animals and even on mold. The species that are commonly found on animals are members of the sarcoptidae family. Mites are usually found in warm humid locations including furniture and bedding.
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| What are Lice?Lice (Pediculosis) are flattened, wingless insects that are very host-specific and do not transcend pet species: cat lice are specific to cats, dog lice are specific to dogs. Transmission of lice is by direct contact with an infested pet; cat to cat, dog to dog. None of these specific lice pose a threat to humans. Of all the external parasites of dogs and cats lice are the easiest to treat and eliminate.
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