Hello. Great questions!
Short Answer:
Fleas can potentially carry a few different diseases. If you kill fleas with your hands, make sure to thoroughly wash them with soap and water afterwards.
Long Answer:
Fleas can be vectors for tapeworms, plague, cat flu, murine typhus (flea-borne spotted fever), feline leukemia, and cat scratch fever.
- Humans can’t catch cat flu or feline leukemia.
- Fleas of dogs and cats don’t transmit plague (rodent fleas do).
- The dog tapeworm Dipylidium caninum can be transmitted to humans, though incidences are rare. It’s much more common for animals to get tapeworms from fleas, because they commonly ingest fleas while grooming.
- A somewhat uncommon form of murine typhus called flea-borne spotted fever is caused by the bacteria Rickettsia felis and can be transmitted by cat fleas. This disease can affect humans.
- Cat scratch fever is caused by Bartonella bacteria. It can be transmitted by cat fleas and affects humans.
In general, the odds of catching a disease from killing a flea with your hands is low. However, the possibility exists. To be safe, wash your hands after the deed is done.
Please keep in mind, I’m not a medical professional. This is information I’ve obtained through my own research, and am providing it as an educational resource only.
Sorry I don’t have any pages yet dedicated to diseases caused by fleas. It’s on my agenda!
I hope this was helpful. Good luck in dealing with those fleas!
