Hartz ranks top 20 cities for fleas

Secaucus, N.J.-Southern cities have the highest projected rates of flea and tick infestation according to a new study released by The Hartz Mountain Corp.

The study looked at flea, tick and Lyme disease problems in the 100largest metropolitan areas of the United States.

Cities, particularly southern Florida, were the highest projected ratesof flea and tick infestations, while Northeast cities in Connecticut, NewYork, New Jersey and Massachusetts have the highest occurrences of Lymedisease in pets.

Of the top 20 cities with highest projected incidence of flea and ticks,seven were located in Florida.

Bob Devine, president and CEO of Hartz, says, "Approximately 60percent of American families own pets, making fleas and ticks a pervasiveproblem. The goal of this study is to help pets and their owners safelyenjoy the outdoors while understanding the potential dangers of some commonpests: fleas and ticks. Through effective prevention measures and regularvisits to the veterinarian, pet owners can help protect their pets,"he says.

Hartz contracted with Sperling's BestPlaces to perform the demographicconsulting and analysis of data.

The flea study included the largest 100 metropolitan areas in the UnitedStates based on population. Data categories were weighted based on theirsignificance: heavy precipitation; high humidity (60-80 percent); warm wintertemperatures; minimum number of days annually below freezing; number ofmonths with an average daily maximum temperature between 70-85 degrees F;number of calls to the Hartz hotline regarding flea and tick control products;and sales of Hartz flea and tick control products.

The top 20 cities for fleas and ticks from the 100 areas are:

1. West Palm Beach/Boca Raton, Fla.

2. Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

3. New Orleans

4. Mobile, Ala.

5. Tampa/St. Petersburg/ Clearwater, Fla.

6. Baton Rouge

7. Sarasota/Bradenton, Fla.

8. Houston

9. Orlando

10. Charleston, N.C.

11. Miami

12. Jacksonville, Fla.

13. Honolulu

14. Birmingham, Ala.

15. Atlanta

16. Memphis

17. Nashville, Tenn.

18. Greenville/Spartanburg/Anderson, S.C.

19. McAllen/Edinburg/ Mission, Texas

20. Little Rock, Ark.

The top 20 cities with highest incidences for Lyme disease (from the100 metropolitan areas) include:

1. Nassau/Suffolk, N.Y.

2. Middlesex/Somerset/ Hunterdon, N.J.

3. Hartford, Conn.

4. New Haven/Meriden, Conn.

5. Providence, R.I.

6. Philadelphia

7. Monmouth/Ocean, N.J.

8. Wilmington, Del./Newark, Md.

9. Newark, N.J.

10. New York

11. Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton, Pa.

12. Baltimore

13. Albany/Schenedtady/ Troy, N.Y.

14. Minneapolis/St. Paul

15. Springfield, Mass.

16. Boston

17.Harrisburg/Lebanon/ Carlisle, Pa.

18. Bergen/Passaic, N.J.

19. Buffalo/Niagara Falls, N.Y.

20. Washington D.C. M