Parasite Prevention and Control Guidelines
Parasite prevention and control within the salon is essential for the safety of myself, pet parents and all pet’s entering the salon. For this reason, it is required that all pets are parasite free before entering the salon.
In the event that I discover fleas, ticks or ringworm on your pet before or during the grooming process, I will take precautionary steps in salon and provide you with home treatment advice.
Cats and dogs are susceptible to a number of parasitic infections, several of which are zoonotic (possess the ability to infect people as well as animals). Parasite prevention is not only important for the health of your pet but also for the health of your family.
Please note ticks are a problem all year round in Queensland and are particularly bad from August till May.
FLEAS
- Home Treatment - Regular flea treatments are highly recommended as advised by your veterinary surgeon.
In addition to flea treatments, I recommend vacuuming your carpet and all the spots your pet sleeps on consecutively for 2 days, then leave it for a day, then again consecutively for 2 days – vacuum like this for two weeks and the fleas will be gone.
- If fleas are found on your pet during the grooming process – Fido’s Flea Shampoo is required and will be applied during the bathing process for the additional treatment fee. This shampoo contains the natural insecticide pyrethrin to control fleas, ticks (not including paralysis ticks), lice and mite infestations on cats, kittens, dogs and puppies.
TICKS
- Home Treatment – Regular searching for and removal of any ticks found is highly recommended, along with tick treatments advised by your veterinary surgeon.
- If ticks are found on your pet during the grooming process – Using a tick removal hook, I will simply remove the tick, wash my hands thoroughly, clean the bite site with rubbing alcohol, and rinse the tool with disinfectant. I will always let you know if I find and remove a tick from your pet.
If I find the tick before or during the bathing process I will apply Fido’s Flea Shampoo for an additional treatment fee. This shampoo contains the natural insecticide pyrethrin to control fleas, ticks (not including paralysis ticks), lice and mite infestations on dogs, cats, puppies and kittens.
RINGWORM
Please note – I am unable to groom your pet if ringworm is present as ringworm is highly contagious.
- Home Treatment – Skin creams very rarely work; at best they stop the spread of the existing lesions around the body. Treatment of the disease is usually indicated to minimise the risk of spread of infection to humans (particularly children) and to other cats and dogs. The treatment of Ringworm may need to be given for weeks and sometimes months (typically 3 – 5 months).
The response of individual pets to treatment varies, and it is important that therapy is not stopped too early to avoid recurrence of the disease. In most cases this means that pets must be treated for a minimum of six weeks, and in some cases much longer therapy is required.
If there is more than one pet in the household, it is possible either to try and separate infected from non-infected pets and just treat the infected ones, or in some situations it may be preferable to treat all the pets – your veterinary surgeon will be able to advise you regarding your own circumstances.
Thorough vacuum cleaning of rooms where the pet has access to is the best way to minimise environmental contamination, and this should be done as frequently as is possible (eg. Daily or every other day). In addition, the use of diluted bleach is recommended in areas that can be readily disinfected.
Hairs infected with ringworm contain numerous microscopic fungal spores which can be shed into the environment. Infection of other animals and humans can therefore occur either by direct contact with an infected pet, or through the environmental contamination with fungal spores.
In addition to minimising direct contact with an infected pet, it is therefore also important to attempt to keep the environment free of spores. Topical treatment of affected skin and clipping of infected hairs (with careful disposal) may help to reduce environmental contamination, and is also worthwhile considering restricting the pet to certain rooms of the house that are easy to clean.
Thank you for taking the time to read and understand the guidelines for Parasite Prevention and Control within the Purrfect Pet Spa salon. If you have any questions or would like further advice please feel free to contact Purrfect Pet Spa by phone or text on 0492 008 583.