Fighting Fleas in Dogs naturally - here's how!

It’s very annoying if your dog has fleas, it's not only very stressful for them, but also a burden for the whole family. The intense itching and constant scratching not only drive the poor dog mad, but flea infestations on dogs also cause many other problems.

Although fleas prefer a host, they are not tied to it - so one dog's flea infestation can very quickly become the next dog's flea infestation and other family members are not safe from fleas either. If the fleas on the dog are not controlled, there is a risk of other health consequence It can lead to serious skin infections if the dog scratches itself too much, and there is also a risk of worm infestation. In this guide, we will show you how to identify fleas in dogs and how to protect them in a natural way.

What are fleas and where can a dog become infected?

Fleas are parasitic insects that are divided into different species. Each of these species has a preferred host - a favourite food, so to speak, because fleas feed on the blood of their host. The so-called dog flea prefers all canine species as a host and shows little interest in humans. One would therefore assume that it is responsible when it comes to fleas on dogs. However, it is not usually the dog flea that causes problems for our city dogs. It is the other species, such as the cat flea or the human flea, which are more flexible when it comes to their favourite foods that are causing problems for our dogs today. So, for the sake of simplicity, in this guide we will only talk about fleas on dogs without going into the exact flea species.

How does a dog get fleas?

There are many different ways your dog can get fleas. Contact with an infected animal, such as a stray cat in the neighbourhood, a hedgehog or rodents such as mice and rats in your garden, as well as an environment contaminated with other stages of flea development cycle, like eggs or larvae, this can be the start of a usually persistent flea infestation. Fleas are attracted to the warmth and movement of animals and humans, and they also react to the carbon dioxide in the air they breathe. Flea season occurs several times a year, depending on the outside temperature. Especially when it gets colder, the blood-sucking parasites try to get onto a warm animal or into a warm house.

Recognising fleas on a dog

As already described, the adult flea is visible to the human eye. If the dog scratches more and more, you can brush through the dog's fur with a flea comb and possibly see the flea directly on the flea comb. However, you will not always brush out an adult flea with a flea comb, flea faeces are a more reliable method of detecting fleas in dogs.

The symptoms of a flea infestation in dogs

The easiest way to recognise a flea infestation is if your dog scratches more often. At the beginning, the dog may only be annoyed by a few fleas and only scratch itself from time to time. However, fleas can multiply quickly and so the symptoms will continue to increase.

Symptoms of fleas on dogs include:

• The dog is restless and nervous, changes places more often
• They scratches and bite themselves more often or rubs their body against objects
• Scratching makes the coat dull or the skin flaky

Where do fleas prefer to settle?

Flea larvae and flea eggs are not visible to the human eye and are usually not found on the dog, but in its environment. This can therefore be the area where your dog lies down or the surroundings of all the other places where they spend a lot of time. As the flea likes it dark and warm, you should look for hidden places where there is not much movement when you go looking for flea nests.

Fleas on dogs also spend more time in their surroundings than on the dog itself. On its host, it can often be found on the back, along the spine, which is why you can also detect fleas here. There is a saying that for every flea you discover on the animal, another 90 fleas (as eggs, larvae or pupae) are hidden in the environment. For this reason, a well-thought-out approach to environmental treatment is one of the most important defence measures against fleas in dogs.

Is a flea infestation dangerous for the dog?

For “normally healthy" dogs, a "few" fleas are not dangerous in themselves, but they are also very irritating, and even a single flea can be responsible for a worm infestation in the dog. If the numbers of fleas get out of control, they can also become a health problem for an otherwise healthy dog. However, a flea infestation can be particularly dangerous for young or immunocompromised dogs.

Consequences of a flea infestation in dogs:

• The flea infestation can disturb the dog to such an extent that its behaviour is affected - it can become more easily upset or its ability to concentrate suffers.
• Scratching can cause skin injuries, which can become inflamed and infected.
• Blood loss can lead to blood and iron deficiency, which can weaken the animal greatly.
• The dog can become infected with other diseases and worms via the flea. You should therefore remember to have the dog checked for worms if it has suffered from a flea infestation.
• Fleas can be transmitted from animal to animal and also to humans.
• If the dog has a flea saliva allergy, its reaction to the flea bite will be particularly extreme and may last for a long time.

Is a flea infestation dangerous for humans?

The bigger problem with flea infestations is that the dog can become infected with various diseases via the flea, which can then also be dangerous for humans. 

Fleas are tapeworm carriers. Humans can also become infected. Although this happens rarely, it more often affects children. But not only tapeworms (such as the cucumber tapeworm), pose a danger, because the further south you travel, the more you hear about so-called Rickettsiae, which can also be transmitted via fleas and is the cause of spotted fever.

Unfortunately, some illnesses that were previously known more from the Mediterranean region or as "travel diseases" are now also increasingly occurring in the north and all signs indicate that this trend will continue in the coming years.

When do I have to go to the vet for fleas on my dog?

As a general rule, you should take action as soon as you notice that your dog has fleas. As soon as you realise that your dog's behaviour has changed significantly - for example, showing signs of lethargy and tiredness - this is a sign that the flea infestation is affecting it more than it should. Keep an eye on your dog - if it scratches itself so much that it bleeds, this could lead to more suffering and serious injuries. Then there is a risk of skin infections and these also need to be examined by a vet. If your dog is allergic to flea saliva, even a single bite can cause severe symptoms.

Recognising flea allergies in dogs

With a flea saliva allergy, the body reacts to the protein contained in flea saliva with an allergic reaction. The symptoms that your dog then shows can be much more extreme and last much longer than with a normal reaction to a flea bite.

• The dog is extremely restless, scratches and bites itself or rubs its body against objects.
• The coat becomes dull and flaky.
• The fleabite sites can become extremely red and swollen, and if the dog continues to scratch, inflammation can follow. 
• Skin crusts may form.
• There may be localised loss of fur, which can spread over a wide area.

Fighting fleas naturally - our expert tips

There are three important points to consider in order to permanently control flea infestations in dogs:

• The fleas on the dog must be treated.
• The fleas in the dog's environment must be treated.
• The treatment of the dog and its surroundings should be carried out strictly for at least 6 weeks and closely monitored for a further 6 weeks.

Preventing a flea infestation

How you can prevent your dog from getting fleas depends on various factors that you should take into account. Firstly, the region in which you live or spend time with your dog plays a major role. In warmer regions, you are more likely to encounter fleas than in cooler regions. If your dog spends a lot of time in places where there are wild animals, the risk of a flea infestation is higher, even if the wild animals are only hedgehogs. Any dog can get fleas, but the risk of a flea infestation can vary greatly from dog to dog. If you regularly take your hunting dog to the hunting ground, it may be necessary to protect the dog from fleas all year round in a natural way in order to prevent flea infestation. However, if you live by the sea with your dog, you may not need to worry about flea prevention at all or you may only need to worry about it when there are temperature fluctuations, for example when autumn turns into winter, because the fleas then try to escape the cold into the warmth of the home with our animals.

These various factors determine how often you should take action to prevent a flea infestation. If you want to protect your dog all year round, then our Canis Extra Defence Complex is particularly interesting for you. If you only want to protect your dog from fleas in specific phases, then our Canis Extra Parasite Complex and our Canis Extra Organic Coconut Oil are also suitable.

Flea infestation in city dogs

If you live with your dog in the city and rarely go for walks in the countryside and there are no wild animals around, you can spray or massage our Canis Extra Parasite Complex or our Canis Extra Organic Coconut Oil directly into the coat before going for a walk. This masks the dog's odour for a short time and can thus provide temporary protection against fleas. When you return home, repeat the application before entering your home. However, if you regularly take your four-legged friend out into the countryside or are out and about where there are wild animals, we definitely recommend our Canis Extra Defence Complex.

What influence does feeding have on flea infestation in dogs?

In addition to the outside temperature, which influences flea activity, the animal's own odours can also attract fleas. Your dog's body odour can be strongly influenced by its food, so it is important to offer natural food without any synthetics such as synthetic vitamins, flavourings and preservatives. Medication and stress also have an influence on your dog's metabolism and therefore its body odour. Generally speaking, the more stressful things that affect the organism, the more attractive it is to fleas and other parasites such as ticks, mites or worms. Some animals have a genetically determined body odour that is more attractive to parasites or they have a particularly dense coat in which fleas and ticks can cling or hide particularly well.

To prevent parasites in advance, switching to a natural food such as our Canis Plus® can be a great help. By avoiding synthetic vitamins, the organism is protected from an oversupply, which the detoxification organs would otherwise have to laboriously remove from the body. The absence of preservatives gives the healthy intestinal flora the chance to develop, regulate itself and stay healthy. The selected herbs gently support the metabolism so that the body surface - i.e. the skin - no longer has to support and relieve the detoxification organs, which can have a positive effect on body odour.

Instructions on how to treat your dog to fight fleas 

If your dog is scratching frequently and you have found out that your dog has fleas using a flea test (described above), then you should do everything you can to quickly get the flea problem under control. Fleas are very annoying for your dog and can multiply quickly in its environment and, depending on the flea species, can also be dangerous to you.

Fleas on your dog – the treatment explained in just a few steps

1. If possible, wash your dog with our Canis Extra Care Shampoo. If your dog accepts it, leave in the foam for 3-5 minutes to soak in and then rinse thoroughly. 
2. Dry your dog thoroughly and blow-dry them if they allow it. The heat from the hairdryer can cause problems for the fleas (it can also be too hot for your dog, so you should only do this with another person, making sure that you always have one hand free to control the temperature of the hairdryer air and the dog's skin and that you can swivel the hairdryer continuously). 
3. As soon as your dog is dry, apply a small amount of our Canis Extra Organic Coconut Oil everywhere on your dog and rub it on your dog’s skin or use Canis Extra Parasite Complex and spray your dog with it. Decide which product is easier for you to use and repeat this step as required.
4. Start immediately with the environmental treatment.

Fleas on dogs - the aftercare

• Canis Extra Mineral Spray is the ideal care product for particularly sensitive skin. It relieves skin irritation caused by fleabites, is quickly absorbed and quickly develops its soothing, moisturising effect. It is also very suitable for eczema, itching and minor inflammation and helps restore your dog's coat to its former lustre by supplying it with natural Dead Sea minerals.
• If constant scratching irritates your dog’s skin, you can also massage Canis Extra Organic Coconut Oil onto the irritated area to nourish the skin.

Fleas in the home? Environmental treatment is important!

A female flea will visit a dog for a meal and can start laying her first eggs a short time later - which can be as many as 30-50 a day. As the female flea lays eggs every day, you can easily calculate how quickly the fleas will conquer your home. The eggs are transported through your dog's fur and fall out of the fur unhindered. They can therefore be found wherever your dog moves and especially in places where your dog spends long periods of time, such as lying areas or the dog bed.

Environmental treatment is so important because it gives you a chance to intervene decisively in the flea's development cycle.

The flea eggs develop into flea larvae within a few days, and these can actively crawl into deeper objects in your home (carpets, upholstery, etc.). Flea larvae feed mainly on flea faeces and small organic particles at home. After the larval stage, they pupate. This takes about 2 weeks but can be maintained for several months if the environment does not offer favourable conditions. In general, however, it is said that a "flea cycle" at home lasts approx. 3-5 weeks.

Daily vacuuming and washing blankets, pillows and other textiles can significantly reduce the number of flea eggs in your home and, unlike flea larvae, they cannot yet actively move around and hide.  These thorough cleaning measures also remove flea faeces. As flea larvae mainly feed on this, you are depriving them of their food source. Please bear in mind that you will have to replace the bag of your hoover regularly, because depending on the model, it is possible that fleas can escape from the hoover. As this can be very expensive, you can alternatively try heating the bag in the oven at 80-100 degrees for approx. 20 minutes or putting it in the microwave at 600 watts for approx. 2 minutes. However, you have to check first whether your hoover bag is suitable for this and can cope with it - you should also make sure that there are no items in the hoover bag that could cause problems in the oven or microwave.

Even if you cannot wash all textiles at 60 degrees (this temperature would kill the flea), even at lower temperatures the eggs are at least partially rinsed out during the wash cycle, allowing you to further reduce the flea population.

Due to the flea's generation cycle described above, you should treat the area daily for at least 6 weeks and keep an eye on it for another 6 weeks afterwards. Otherwise, it would be quite possible for the problem to start all over again, as flea pupae may have survived somewhere in the home, hatch after a few weeks and then infest the dog again.

The flea's reproduction strategy increases the flea's chance of survival enormously and is also the reason why many dog and cat owners are confronted with fleas again after a few weeks, despite successful flea treatment.

Fleas in bed or on the sofa - what to do?

If your dog has fleas and these have found their way into your home, then you should assume that the eggs can be found wherever your dog spends time. If your dog is allowed in bed or on the sofa, then flea eggs will also be found here. As described above, daily, thorough cleaning helps to reduce the flea population as much as possible. Of course, you can't put everything in the washing machine (the mattress, large blankets, cushions etc.) - but you can vacuum a lot of things, hang them outside to air out and shake them out, freeze them (for 5-7 days) and spray them with Canis Extra Parasite Ambient Spray (remember, however, that you should test the material for compatibility beforehand). Everything that helps to reduce the flea population will help you control the fleas.

Fleas in the car

When treating your dog for fleas, don't just think about your home, but every place where your dog spends time - including your car, the garden shed, his place in the garage, etc. All too often, fleas become a permanent problem because the dog keeps bringing them into the home from these places. Car seats and upholstery can be sprayed prophylactically every few days for at least 4 weeks with our Parasite Ambient Spray and also blow-dried. You should also vacuum the car regularly.

Flea infestation from your own garden

If your dog keeps bringing fleas home from your garden (for example, because hedgehogs or other wild animals live in your garden), you can only solve the problem if you permanently protect your dog. You can find out which products are suitable for this and how to use them under "Preventing a flea infestation" above. It is almost impossible to keep your garden flea-free if there are wild animals living in it that you cannot treat. The only hope is that a proper cold winter will solve the flea problem in the garden and that fleas will not return the following year. You can also try planting plants such as peppermint, rosemary, chrysanthemum or lavender, as these are said to repel fleas.