Common Summer Pests That Affect Cats and Dogs

This page is a general DIY guide on how to protect your pets from summer pests like mosquitoes, fleas, ticks, ants, and snakes through our recommended products and tips. By following this DIY guide, you will successfully prevent and control these pests from coming into contact with your pets. Pests such as snakes can be considered fatal if you or your animal have been bitten. It is always recommended to immediately contact the nearest hospital or animal health clinic for snake bites. It is suggested for homeowners facing venous or non-venomous snakes to reach out to their nearest animal control specialist to assist with the snake removal.

Summer is here and with it comes the warmer weather, outdoor activities, and the usual summertime pests. Mosquitoes, fleas, ticks, and ants are reminders of the irritating, biting pests homeowners and pets have to deal with, but there are also unseen pests such as snakes that need to be accounted for.

These pests are most trying during the month of July and August so pest preventative measures are best taken prior to this time frame. Among their activities, these pests also pose a series of health issues for your pets. When this happens, many homeowners are suddenly overwhelmed with the immediate call-to-action and mass information surrounding these summer pests.

We recommend inspecting your property for signs of these pests or conditions that may attract to them towards your yard. To properly inspect for each pests species, consider reading the inspection section within each control guide link. These pests are difficult to avoid during the summer, but by following the tips and products suggested throughout this article then you and your pets can control their populations and avoid minimum encounters.

Mosquitoes

Mosquitoes are one of the biggest pests you and your pet will face during the summer. With the warmth of the season and occasional rainfall creates the perfect home for mosquitoes.

Depending on the temperature and moisture within the air can determine the mosquitoes activity. When they are not active they will reside underneath any type of overgrown tree, brush, turf, or ornamental leaves. This excessive heat not only determines the mosquitoes activity, but can make any disease the pest is carrying more active and easily transferable.

Female mosquitoes will lay a large amount of eggs in small to large volumes of standing water within your yard. These areas could include bird baths, rain gutters, and other locations that can gather standing water.

Without treating your property, mosquito bites can develop in your pets heartworm disease or hypersensitivity leading to baldness or skin irritation. First, you will need to treat standing water sources such as bird baths or roof gutters collecting water with BTI Mosquito Dunks. This floating larvicide will gradually corrode in water releasing a material that mosquito larvae will feed on. Once ingested, these pests will cease development and be unable to grow into breeding adults. Mosquitoes not in the larvae stage, will need to be treated with an insect growth regulator like Martin's IGR Insecticide.

We recommend using Supreme IT a broad-spectrum residual insecticide that can treat over 70 types of pests and lasts up to 90 days. Broadcast Supreme IT with Martin's IGR Insecticide across your yard to coat the top and bottom of foliage leaves until wet, but not to point of run-off. Apply 1 oz. of Supreme IT and 0.67 of Martin's IGR Insecticide per 1,000 sq. ft.

Wait until the treated area is completely dry before allowing pets and children to enter.

Fleas and Ticks

For pets, fleas and ticks are an invasive and common species of insects that infest your home and yard throughout the year, especially in summer. Whether it is you or your dog or cat, fleas and ticks will bite to feed on blood.

Fleas and ticks attach themselves to branches, leaves, and twigs of plants until they come across animals or humans. Once attached to their host, they quickly make themselves at home and feed off your dog, cat, or you. Both fleas and ticks can transfer serious, and sometimes fatal diseases to you and your pets.

Biting poses serious health concerns, such as blood loss, these pests also make you or your pet uncomfortable with loss of fur and skin irritation even more so if not treated immediately. To learn if your pet is infested with fleas or ticks use a flea comb behind your pets ears, head, groin area, leg folds, and on or near the tail area. Refer to the image above for pest identification, fleas is on the left and ticks is on the right.

Be careful when using the comb if you come across a tick for these pests will latch onto the skin tissue and will not easily release it without drawing blood. If you come across ticks when examining or combing your pets fur do not try to remove them. Instead, treat them with Martins Preferred and Petcor Spray. After application, fleas and ticks will die off and not return on your pets for 30 days with Martins Preferred and Petcor.

It is always recommended to consult with your veterinarian for a pets age, health, body weight, and species could determine the products results and effects on your pet.

Next, you will need to treat your yard as this the most place for you and your pet to come across fleas and ticks. We recommend using Valar Plus Bifenthrin Granules and Supreme IT to treat your yard for fleas and ticks.

Valar Plus Bifenthrin Granules is a granular insecticide that will treat the soil for fleas and ticks. Apply 2.3 to 4.6 lbs. of Valar Plus Bifenthrin Granules per 1,000 sq. ft. of turfgrass.

Once applied, water in your application with Supreme IT to activate the product. Use 1 fl. oz. of Supreme IT per gallon of water per 1,000 sq. ft.

Ants

Witnessing ants in and around your home is never a good sight to see, but having these pests in your food bowl is especially problematic. Reason for ants appearing in your pets food bowl is during the summer months they are scavenging for food and water. Conveniently this food source in your pets food dish is sometimes located near a water dish which creates ideal conditions for ants.

In most species of ants, they are considered to be non-threatening to you or your pets if bitten. However, if bitten enough then pets will consistently lick or chew at the afflicted area until the flesh swells. In more serious scenarios, this can lead to infection, shock, vomiting, and discomfort.

Remove or dispose of leftover food to deter ants from coming inside or near your home. Additionally, you may want to consider a timed water or feed bowl for your pets to reduce food waste. Store unused pet food in a compact and tight lidded plastic container to avoid ant contamination.

To deter ants from your home, apply 2.3 lbs. of Valar Plus Bifenthrin Granules per 1,000 sq. ft. of your lawn. If you have spotted ant mounds, treat as a spot application with 1/2 cup of product directly on the mound and then water in. Next, activate Valar Plus Bifenthrin Granules with Supreme IT at the rate of 1 fl. oz. per gallon of water per 1,000 sq. ft.

Snakes

For many pet or home owners, the sight of a snake is quite a shock when compared to other summer pests. Snakes can be encountered in your yard, park, underneath porches, crawl spaces, and anywhere outdoors. Most species of snakes are reclusive so its not as common to run into them. However, snake encounters are increased during the summer since these pests are cold-blooded and need the warmth to move more easily.

For sudden encounters, it is always best to slowly walk away from the snake. Quick movement can startle them and cause the snake to strike towards you and your pets. However, if you or your pet step on a snake it will sometimes react through biting. Despite the snake being venomous or non-venomous the bite should still receive immediate medical attention from a doctor or veterinarian. Non-venomous snake bites can lead to infections and other serious health complications.

To limit these encounters, always keep you and your pets feet visible and avoid high brush or grassy areas. Pets are more likely to get bitten than you so it is best to keep them on a leash when outside.

Controlling snakes around the home is possible through pet food control. By removing unused pet food in your pets dish this helps to eliminate the presence of rats and mice, which is a food source for snakes. To control rodents, place 2 to 3 Eratication Rodent Baits into a tamper-proof station like Solutions Rat and Mouse Bait Station. Within 2 to 4 days, you will notice rodents population decrease. Inspect your bait stations at least once a day to place fresh bait and immediately remove decease rodents.

Once the rat or mice population is controlled, you can apply Snake Out. This product will not harm the snake, but irritate its sense of smell through natural ingredients. The snake will then naturally leave your property to escape the aroma from Snake Out. Apply Snake Out in bands 8 inches wide by 50 feet in length or 1 lb. per 100 sq. ft.

Key Takeaways

Which Pests are Harmful to Pets in Summer?

• Summer pests that effects pets the most during the summer is mosquitoes, fleas, ticks, ants, and snakes.

How to Protect Your Cat and Dog From Summer Pests

• We recommend applying Valar Plus Bifenthrin Granules across your lawn then watering it in with Supreme IT to control ants, fleas, and ticks. To control mosquitoes and their larvae, you may only use Supreme IT, Martin's IGR Insecticide, and BTI Mosquito Dunk. To control snakes, you will need to first eliminate current rodent populations with Eratication Rodent Bait and Solutions Rat and Mouse Bait Station.

Reasons Snakes and Insects Invade Your Yard

• Insects are often attracted to your yard due to overgrown turfgrass, shrubbery, and excessive amounts of water, leaves, twigs, and food residue. Often snakes invade a yard for abundance of rodents or various objects in yard providing shelter.