How Hard Do Fleas Bite?
WouterFleas can bite people, causing an itchy, red welt, and even severe skin irritation. Most people can treat a flea bite with a topical anti-inflammatory or antibiotic cream. Besides causing irritation, fleas can also transmit disease. They carry bubonic plague and tularemia, and can spread them to humans.
Fleas feed on blood, and will bite humans to get at the blood vessels. Their mouthparts are able to penetrate skin and find these blood vessels, and their bites are often very painful. Fortunately, you can treat flea bites with some simple home remedies. Using chamomile tea as a topical application may be effective for treating flea bites. Another home remedy is unfiltered raw apple cider vinegar. Be sure not to apply it to open wounds, though.
If you have a pet, you are most likely to come in contact with fleas from its skin. Pets tend to spend more time in grass and dirt, where fleas thrive. If you have a dog or cat at home, it is important to treat it for fleas. The symptoms of flea bites may clear up after a few days, but if you do not treat the dog or home, the fleas will return.
Fleas are tiny, wingless insects that are 1/8th inch long and dark red to black. Their hind legs are modified for jumping and can jump up to eight inches vertically and sixteen inches horizontally. Their body is thin and laterally compressed, and it contains spines that help them move through the hair of their host. Their spines are also effective at repelling pulls during the grooming process.
