Helping to protect the dogs we love.
Tick and flea risk is not always visible. The places your dog explores every day — parks, paths, gardens and even shared indoor spaces — may carry risks that are easy to miss.
Helping to protect the dogs we love.
Tick and flea risk is not always visible. The places your dog explores every day — parks, paths, gardens and even shared indoor spaces — may carry risks that are easy to miss.
Why risk is easy to miss
Many dog owners think of fleas and ticks as a seasonal issue. But parasites do not simply follow the calendar. Tick activity can be influenced by environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity and recent weather, while fleas can survive in indoor and sheltered environments throughout the year.
Why risk is easy to miss
Many dog owners think of fleas and ticks as a seasonal issue. But parasites do not simply follow the calendar. Tick activity can be influenced by environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity and recent weather, while fleas can survive in indoor and sheltered environments throughout the year.
Common misconceptions can hide the reality:
exposure may happen year-round
misconceptions
- Ticks and fleas are only a summer problem.
- Tick and flea bites cause discomfort, but not serious health problems.
- A manual check to search for ticks is enough to protect my dog.
reality
- Risk can occur at different times of year, not only in summer.
- Bites can affect your dog’s health and may transmit disease.
- Checking your dog is important, but prevention needs to start before parasites are seen.
Why tick and flea exposure matters for dogs and people
Ticks and fleas can transmit pathogens to dogs. These pathogens may cause illnesses that affect a dog’s health and wellbeing.
Ticks are a group of bloodsucking external parasites that includes a dozen different species.
Some important ticks in Europe are the castor-bean tick, by far the most common; the meadow tick, which transmits many grave diseases; and the brown dog tick, the only tick species that can reproduce indoors.
These parasites that belong to the same class as spiders are of particular concern because of the diseases that can be transmitted from their bites to both people and pets, such as Lyme Disease – a serious condition in humans, it manifests with fever, rashes, muscle and joint issues and neurological disease.
Fleas are wingless, blood-sucking little insects, with a flattened body on the sides, that can jump 160 times their body length with their powerful legs! They are particularly common among cats, dogs and small mammal pets.
Fleas cause itching and scratching, and they also bite people which is of particular concern as they can carry diseases that infect both people and animals, such as bartonellosis or cat-scratch fever. Bartonellosis can have lethal consequences for some people and is seen mostly in immunosuppressed humans.
Symptoms from these diseases include fever, enlarged lymph nodes, and inflammations of the eyes, gums, and heart. These parasites can be very distressing for the pet and the owner, so they can erode your relationship with your pet.
Fleas are wingless, blood-sucking little insects, with a flattened body on the sides, that can jump 160 times their body length with their powerful legs! They are particularly common among cats, dogs and small mammal pets.
Fleas cause itching and scratching, and they also bite people which is of particular concern as they can carry diseases that infect both people and animals, such as bartonellosis or cat-scratch fever. Bartonellosis can have lethal consequences for some people and is seen mostly in immunosuppressed humans.
Symptoms from these diseases include fever, enlarged lymph nodes, and inflammations of the eyes, gums, and heart. These parasites can be very distressing for the pet and the owner, so they can erode your relationship with your pet.
Your dog’s lifestyle directly influences their level of exposure. Risks can be found in the most common places.
Park walks
Grass, shrubs and shade can be tick-friendly, especially where other dogs or wildlife pass through.
Forest paths
Dense vegetation and wildlife corridors provide ideal questing conditions for many tick species.
Garden time
Even controlled environments can harbor risks brought in by local wildlife or neighbouring pets.
In the home
Warm home environments allow flea populations to persist, making indoor spaces a key area.
Why prevention starts before the risk
Prevention helps protect your dog’s health and wellbeing before fleas and ticks are seen. By controlling parasites on your dog, you can also help reduce their presence in the spaces you share, and protect your family’s health.
Proactive Wellbeing
Stopping parasites before they cause damage is the most effective way to ensure long-term health and comfort.
Home Security
Preventing infestations in your living spaces is significantly easier than treating them once they occur.
Finding the right protection
Every dog is different. Where they go, how they live, and the environments they explore can all influence their level of exposure to fleas and ticks. That is why flea and tick protection should be discussed with a veterinarian, who can help recommend an approach that fits your dog’s lifestyle and your everyday routine.
Yearly
Injectable
Veterinarian-administered option that can provide 12 months protection.
Up to 8 months
Collar
Wearable options designed to provide protection (3 to 8 months).
Up to 3 months
Spot-On
Topical treatments applied to the skin, usually between the shoulder blades or along the back.
Up to 3 months
Chewable
Administered orally and passed through the gastrointestinal tract into the dog’s bloodstream.
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There is more to the spread of disease-carrying parasites than a general rise in temperatures. Here we will tell you the full story, so you…
Talk to your vet about how to protect
your dog,
season after season,
year-round.
Talk to your vet about how to protect
your dog,
season after season,
year-round.
Sources
- Dantas-Torres F, Otranto D. Canine vector-borne diseases: a changing world demands a new preventive strategy from veterinarians. Parasites & Vectors. 2026;19:160. doi:10.1186/s13071-026-07331-2.
- Mylonakis ME, Harrus S, Breitschwerdt EB. An update on the treatment of canine monocytic ehrlichiosis (Ehrlichia canis). The Veterinary Journal. 2019;246:45–53. doi:10.1016/j.tvjl.2019.01.015.
- Beletić A, Janjić F, Radaković M, Spariosu K, Francuski Andrić J, Chandrashekar R, et al. Systemic inflammatory response syndrome in dogs naturally infected with Babesia canis: association with the parasite load and host factors. Veterinary Parasitology. 2021;291:109366. doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2021.109366.
- Köster LS, Lobetti RG, Kelly P. Canine babesiosis: a perspective on clinical complications, biomarkers, and treatment. Veterinary Medicine: Research and Reports. 2015;6:119–128. doi:10.2147/VMRR.S60431.
- World Health Organization. Leishmaniasis. WHO fact sheet. Published 12 January 2023. Accessed 3 June 2026.
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