DON'T BUG US!

The 84th Annual Pony Swim and Auction is next week, so we must be in the middle of summer! There will be thousands of visitors to our little island with lots of excitement and fun.

Another, less fun, way to tell its mid-summer is the mosquitoes, ticks and my personal least favorite fleas! All three can make our life miserable. Chincoteague is famous (at least locally) for its mosquitoes. They are just about everywhere and can be vicious. Remember to keep our yard (campsite) free of standing water to help prevent them laying eggs. Also, because heart worms are life threatening to us, please give us a heart worm preventative recommended by our vet. If there are trees, shrubs or tall grass there will be ticks. After we’re outdoors, be sure to check us (and yourself) daily for ticks. Some ticks can also cause life-threatening illness to both us and our caregivers. Collars, topical applications and pill treatments are available to help control ticks.

Last and definitely not least are fleas!!! They are the most troublesome for me because they’re everywhere and I have an allergy to their bites! Ouch!! As with ticks, there are multiple preventative treatments available via our vet or over the counter. I’m still searching for the perfect preventative for me… maybe I’ll go all natural with garlic and brewer’s yeast or a little lavender oil between my shoulder blades… It’s also very important to keep our home flea free because… Fleas are marvelously adapted for survival. The female lays eggs on the host animal, but the eggs fall to the ground, carpet, sofa, dog bed, owner's bed, or easy chair where they hatch in two-to-five days. Uck! The flea larva feeds on organic debris in the environment. Within a week or two, in the hard-shelled pupa, the larva transforms from a tiny maggot-like creature into a six-legged blood-thirsty super-jumper able to leap 100 times its own height, and the cycle begins anew... UCK!!! Flea/tick foggers and sprays can help rid your home of these pests. Vacuum, vacuum, vacuum… mothballs in the vacuum bag should kill fleas you suck up. It’s a never ending battle…good luck!! P.S. our vet is always an excellent resource for finding the best preventatives and treatments for summer pests.

I visited the groomer this week to get a fresh summer cut. I also had my tummy shaved to make it easier for the new pups to eat. There were a few fleas (surprise) so I received an all natural citrus based dip…even smelled pretty good. The pups are growing, mom can see and feel them under my skin…pretty cool! One more blog entry before their scheduled arrival!

See ya next week…