Can Humans Get Fleas?

On Sunday evening, I was watching TV with my dog Simon. He was sitting to my right and I was petting him. At one point, I looked down at him and noticed a flea running through his hair. UGH!! That marked the first flea sighting of the season and I HAVE BEEN ITCHING EVER SINCE!

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I am in crisis mode. I am calling their veterinarian this week to get them some flea medication. There is a zero policy for fleas in my house. If I see one, we launch in Terror Alert Level Orange.

Since seeing that flea, I am convinced that I have fleas too. I have been scratching my head constantly and I have noticed little bites on my legs. Now, I am a highly functioning adult who is fully self-aware that I may be bordering on insanity at this point. But I think I pose a fair question here. Can humans get fleas too?

The short answer is NO! Thank goodness. I was literally this close to running over to Walmart and buying myself one of those Seresto collars.

According to HealthLine.com, fleas "won't live on your body." However, they can and will bite you. SEE!! I knew I had flea bites.

And get this. In trying to find out if fleas can live on humans, I learned two very disturbing things about them. #1- There are over 2500 different types of fleas around the world. And, #2- those little suckers can jump up to 13 inches.

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That's precisely why they can propel themselves off the backs of your dogs and onto you.

Look! If your dogs have ever had a flea infestation, you know those little boogers can take over your house.

Making matters worse, fleas are pretty hard to kill.

Luckily, years ago, I found a way to annihilate them. I give my dogs baths in Dawn dish liquid. Not only will Dawn wash oil and grease off a duck, it will kill the crap out of fleas too.

And here's one more fun (okay, maybe that's a stretch) and random fact. The kinds of fleas that infest your dogs are actually called "cat fleas." And while I know for a fact that I can't get a case of cat fleas on my own, tell that to my scalp right now. I'm still itching.