After you’ve welcomed a new puppy into your home, it’s important to ensure you’re setting your puppy up for a long and happy life. Flea and tick protection for puppies is a critical part of that. Add flea and tick puppy prevention to your checklist, along with required and recommended vaccinations for your puppy, the socialization process, and initiating a regimen of quality preventive care, including heartworm preventatives.

Flea and Tick Protection for Puppies

Most flea and tick products for puppies are not safe to use until they’ve reached at least seven or eight weeks of age. Your veterinarian will be able to recommend a flea and tick preventative for puppies to safely use, and advise you on when it’s safe to begin administering it to your puppy.

What to Do If Your Puppy or Dog Has Fleas

Flea treatment: Nitenpyram is safe to give to puppies as young as four weeks old (and a minimum of 2 pounds). This medication is given in a tablet form to treat flea infestations. Because its active ingredient (nitenpyram) works for only 24 hours, it is not effective as a preventive medication. Always speak to your veterinarian before offering your puppy or dog a new medication to ensure it is safe for your dog to take and to confirm dosage.

Consult with your veterinarian before using any product on your dog, especially if she’s pregnant or nursing.

Flea comb: As an alternative to medications (or for pups younger than four weeks), using a flea comb to check your puppy for the presence of fleas and safely remove them.

Clean the home: Depending on the severity of the infestation, it may be necessary to also treat your home to ensure flea eggs and larvae don’t grow to reinfest your puppy later. Of the flea population, only 5 percent includes adult fleas on pets. The rest are in various stages of the life cycle and can be found outdoors or in your home. Vacuum your carpets (remember to remove the bag afterward) and clean all bedding your pet has used as well as any chairs with padding. Speak to your veterinarian about what additional steps you should take to treat the problem and prevent it from returning.

Why Flea and Tick Prevention Is Important

In addition to being uncomfortable for your dog, fleas are also the leading cause of tapeworm, a parasite whose larvae is carried by fleas. Ticks can transmit Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Ehrlichiosis, Anaplasmosis, and other serious conditions.

 running a flea comb throughout your dog’s coat to check for fleas. Also, be on the watch for “flea dirt,” little black specks usually found on a dog’s belly or around the tail. Vacuuming the home and spraying flea and tick insecticides on shaded areas in the yard can also be useful in keeping any potential flea problems at bay. Some people prefer the more “natural” option of using nematodes, an organism that feeds on flea larvae, on their yards. Other popular yard pest control products use essential oils as a deterrent.

How to Prevent Flea and Tick Infestations

Once your puppy is old enough, it’s important to start using a monthly flea and tick preventive medication to help ensure that your dog won’t be affected by fleas or ticks in the future. Many of the treatments available and are effective for preventing both fleas and ticks. Talk to your veterinarian about the best medication for your dog based on your location, the age and weight of your pet, and more.