Fleas are a very common problem. They are all around and jump onto your pet from infested environments such as homes, gardens and parks – but not usually from other infested pets as is often thought. Once a flea has found a suitable host it will tend to stay there.

• If you have a cat or dog, the chances are they will experience a flea infestation at some time in their life.
• A 2005 survey shows that nearly 1 in 10 dogs and over 1 in 5 cats may be suffering from fleas at any one time.
• A female flea can lay up to 50 eggs in 1 day or up to 1,000 in a month

Checking Your Pet for Fleas

By the time your pet starts scratching, there could already be an infestation in your home - and infestations can be hard to resolve.  Preventing the event with  is the best solution, but if you've not been routinely treating your pet and are worried they might be suffering from fleas, you can check if there's a problem in these ways;

Looking for Fleas

You might be able to spot fleas in your pet's coat by gently parting the fur around the neck or base of the tail.

Looking for Flea Dirt

Fleas are often difficult to find, so the best way to check is to look for 'flea dirt' - small black specks in the pet's coat, which consist of your pet's dried blood excreted by the fleas.

• Comb through your pet's coat and collect any debris onto a damp piece of white paper or cotton wool.
• If the specks that fall onto the damp surface dissolve to give red/brown swirls or patches, then your pet has fleas.

If you can't see any flea dirt but your pet is still scratching or losing hair, consult your vet for help.

A 4-Step Plan to Stamp Out Fleas

If you've got a flea infestation, follow this guide to successfully get rid of the problem.

1. Use Frontline Combo regularly to kill adult fleas on your pet and to provide ongoing protection against newly arriving fleas.
2. Ask your Frontline Combo supplier to recommend an environmental product for your home that will effectively kill flea eggs and larvae.
3. Though no product can kill flea pupae, you can encourage them to hatch into fleas by turning up the central heating, vacuuming regularly and washing your pet's bedding regularly.  Once hatched, they will jump onto your pet and be killed by Frontline Combo.
4. Allow your pet into the infested areas of your home.  Your pet's presence will encourage pupae to hatch and reduce the likelihood of human bites.