Sorry! But There Is No Off Season: Why Fleas and Ticks Don't Care What Month It Is
It's February in Green Bay. Twelve degrees outside, the heat's cranked up inside, and somewhere near the UW-Green Bay campus, an indoor cat is about to learn a hard lesson about complacency. We hear some version of this story every winter: an owner pauses flea and tick prevention months earlier because “it's not the season anymore,” and then a pet is suddenly itchy, losing hair, or worse. So instead of another lecture, we let two of our more opinionated regulars settle the debate.
Meet Biscuit, a golden retriever who takes his monthly prevention very seriously, and Duchess, an indoor-only cat who is extremely confident she's above all this. (Biscuit and Duchess are stand-ins for the conversations we actually have in the exam room — not real patients — but everything they argue about below is real.)
Do Fleas and Ticks Actually Take Winter Off?
BISCUIT: It's negative four degrees out. I still got my flea and tick preventative today, because ticks don't care what the thermometer says.
DUCHESS: That's cute, but I live indoors. I am basically in a biosecure facility.
BISCUIT: You share a wall with six other apartments and a laundry room. That's not a biosecure facility. That's a petri dish with a lease.
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VET'S NOTE Biscuit's onto something. The Companion Animal Parasite Council has moved away from seasonal on/off guidance entirely, recommending year-round, lifelong prevention because flea and tick seasons no longer follow a predictable calendar. A recent industry survey found veterinarians are roughly four times more likely than pet owners to see prevention as a year-round necessity — 47% of vets versus just 10% of owners — and 44% of owners still believe the risk is limited to summer. That gap between what vets know and what owners assume is exactly how “off-season” infestations happen. |
Wait — Indoor Cats Can Actually Get Fleas?
DUCHESS: Okay, hypothetically — if a cat theoretically stopped her flea and tick preventative in October because her human said “you never go outside” — hypothetically — how would fleas even find her?
BISCUIT: Through the door. The hallway. Your human's shoes. The neighbor's dog. Basically anywhere a flea has ever been within one degree of separation from your building.
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VET'S NOTE This is close to a real exam we saw this past February — a three-year-old indoor cat with sudden itching and patchy hair loss, owned by a college student whose apartment cat had never once gone outside. On exam: no live fleas (typical for cats — they groom too well to leave evidence), but plenty of “flea dirt,” the digested blood fleas leave behind. Cats in multi-unit buildings pick fleas up indirectly all the time — a neighbor's pet, a shared hallway, even a person's shoes can carry them in. And here's the part that surprises most owners: a cat doesn't need an infestation to suffer. Flea allergy dermatitis means a single bite can trigger a full-blown allergic itching reaction. This cat responded beautifully to a prescription flea preventive and a short course of anti-itch medication, and has had zero issues since — as long as she's stayed on her preventive. A thorough physical exam is often what catches this early, which is a big part of what we're checking for during routine wellness visits and cat exams. |
So What Actually Works — Every Month, Not Just Some Months?
BISCUIT: Consistency. Every month. Same day, same treat after.
DUCHESS: My human forgot mine twice last year and then acted surprised when I flared up.
BISCUIT: Honestly, that tracks. Almost half of owners admit to forgetting a dose within the past year.
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VET'S NOTE That's not an exaggeration for effect — survey data backs it up almost exactly. Year-round protection only works if it's actually year-round; a missed month is a real gap, not a rounding error. The American Animal Hospital Association recommends consistent, uninterrupted parasite prevention for exactly this reason — fleas, ticks, and the diseases they carry don't wait for a convenient month to show up. If you're not sure what schedule fits your dog or cat best, that's exactly the kind of thing to sort out at their next visit rather than guessing. |
FAQ: Flea and Tick Prevention, Year-Round
Do fleas and ticks really stay active during Wisconsin winters?
Yes. Adult fleas and ticks can survive in protected, insulated environments — garages, crawl spaces, wood piles, and especially heated homes — even when it's well below freezing outside. Ticks can also become active on any day the ground temperature rises above roughly 35–40°F, which happens more often in Northeast Wisconsin winters than most owners expect.
Can an indoor-only cat get fleas?
Yes. Fleas travel on other pets, on people's clothing and shoes, and through shared spaces like apartment hallways and laundry rooms. An indoor lifestyle lowers risk, but it doesn't eliminate it — especially in multi-unit housing.
What is flea allergy dermatitis, and why does it matter?
It's an allergic reaction to flea saliva that a single bite can trigger — not just a heavy infestation. That means a pet can have a severe itching and hair-loss reaction from fleas an owner may never actually see, as described in this veterinary commentary on year-round flea protection.
When should pets be on flea and tick prevention?
Every month, all year. Seasonal on/off schedules leave gaps exactly when a pet is most likely to be exposed without an owner noticing — through other animals, shared living spaces, or unseasonably mild stretches of weather.
Let's Close the Gap Between “Seasonal” and “Safe”
Gentle Vet Animal Hospital
2560 University Ave, Green Bay, WI
(920) 435-5000
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Schedule online: my.provet.com/gentle-vet