Call now on - 01928 711 883
Small (2mm) wingless insects, flattened side to side, red-brown with backwardly directed spines and legs designed for jumping.
All adult fleas are parasitic on warm-blooded animals. Larval stages live in the nest of the host and feed on skin, feathers and, most importantly, the blood-rich faeces of the adult flea. When fully grown the larvae spin well camouflaged silken cocoons. When fully developed the adult waits within this until it detects the vibrations caused by a potential host. Only then does it emerge. The complete lifecycle takes about a month in the summer.
The Cat Flea is by far the commonest species of flea and readily bites humans. The Human Flea and the Bird Flea are next in importance. Dog fleas are rare, although other species may become temporarily attached to dogs.
Adult fleas feed on blood. Their bites can cause intense irritation around the central bright red spot. Different people react differently to a bite, both in terms of degree of reaction and time taken to react.
Because vibrations trigger the pupa to emerge, when people enter empty premises where infested cats previously lived, the human hosts can suffer significant attack.
The first step in controlling a flea infestation is to identify the primary hosts, such as cats or dogs, and give them the recommended veterinary treatments.
In order for these to be successful, a residual insecticide should then be applied to all areas where the host is likely to be found. This will prevent the pupa from emerging to create a new generation of fleas. Steam cleaning of carpets and furniture will kill any fleas left.
Regular combing and bathing of pets can help to avoid future flea problems.
A fixed price 2 visit blitz treatment using a variety of control methods. A 3 month guarantee and certificate is included as standard.
Sometimes confused with black beetles from the garden, cockroaches are distinguished by their very long whip-like antennae, flat oval bodies and rapid, jerky gait. The adult German cockroach is 10 to 15mm long. The Common or Oriental cockroach is 20 to 24mm long. They are rarely able to survive out of doors in the British climate, but thrive around the heating ducts and boiler rooms of large centrally heated buildings e.g. hospital, bakeries, hotel and restaurant kitchens, laundries and blocks of flats. They cluster around pipes, stoves, sinks, especially in humid areas.
The German cockroach carries its egg case, a small brown purse-like capsule, until the 30 or more nymphs hatch from it. The Oriental cockroach deposits its 13mm long egg capsule on packaging, sacking or in suitable dark crevices before the 16 or 18 nymphs hatch out. Cockroaches grow by stages - from "mini-cockroach" nymphs to maturity in six to 12 months for the Oriental cockroach, but only in as many weeks in the case of the German cockroach.
Cockroaches are found throughout Europe and the Americas, particularly in warm, humid climates.
Both German and Oriental cockroaches eat any sort of food and emerging after dark, from their inaccessible harbourages to forage, contaminating food and food utensils, or food preparation surfaces as they go. They taint food with an obnoxious smell and may be carriers of various diseases, including serious food poisoning.
All the nymphal stages and the adults feed on the same type of food, making the establishment of an infestation extremely easy.
Infestations can become very quickly established and can be very difficult to control, because the populations increase rapidly and cockroaches are incredibly hardy – they can survive long periods without food or water.
However, once the source of infestation, the species of roach and their harbourages have been identified, cockroaches can be effectively controlled using an integrated approach, incorporating baits, sticky traps, insecticidal dusts, growth regulators and proofing against further infestations.
Post-treatment monitoring is essential and re-treatment will almost certainly be needed.
A fixed price 3 visit blitz treatment using a variety of control methods. A 3 month guarantee and certificate is included with each treatment.