Adult fleas bite and feed on blood, causing skin irritation and distress to your cat. In kittens a heavy flea burden can cause serious illness and weakness, cat fleas are also responsible for spreading tapeworm.
The life cycle of a flea involves an egg, larva, pupa and adult, it is only the adult female that will live on your pet, using their blood as a food source. The female flea will lay up to fifty eggs a day, these eggs do not stick to the coat but slide off into the environment, anywhere your pet spends a lot of time, typically in bedding, carpet, or the garden.
These eggs develop into larvae then form a protective cocoon for themselves, they will hatch into adults when the temperature and conditions are right. Indoors this life cycle can continue year round due to central heating, but those pupae in the outdoor environment need to wait until temperatures rise, which is why we see a rise in flea problems during the summer.