Tick Control for Dogs
Although ticks attack humans, dogs are their favorite host. Besides being painful, ticks carry many diseases threatening a dog's health. Ticks are parasites that suck blood from their hosts. Without warning, a tick can latch onto any part of a dog's body. When examining your dog for ticks, check all parts of its body, including around the eyes and inside its ears. By removing a tick within 24 hours of infestation, you can reduce the chances of disease.
-
Identification
-
The common dog tick varies from quite small, less than a fraction of an inch, although visible, to extremely large. When engorged, they're like a big grayish-green blob. Ticks are flat, shaped as teardrops in a two-part body inside a dark-brown leathery skeleton. The head is the tip of the teardrop, consisting of simple eyes and a mouth. Ticks attach their heads to the skin of a dog to suck out blood. The rest of the tick's body is expandable and contains the internal organs.
Controlling Ticks
-
Keep your dog away from wooded areas. Although dogs can contract ticks just about anywhere, they are more likely to pick them up in woods and grassy areas.
Regularly shampoo your dog with specialized tick and flea shampoo. This helps eliminate any ticks already on your dog's coat. Work in the shampoo over your dog's entire body and then wait 10 minutes before rinsing to allow the chemicals to work.
Special dips which contain permethrin, phrethin or organophosphates should be applied in an area with sufficient ventilation. To protect your pet's ears and eyes, place cotton balls in your dog's ears and ophthalmic ointment in his eyes.
When using aerosol or pump sprays, spray every part of your dog. For applying to eyes and ears, use sprayed cotton balls, making sure to not get any spray in the eyes. Again, spray in an airy area.
Although messy, powders, which usually contain pyrethrin, are easily applied. However, don't use powders if either you or your dog has asthma. Also, apply powders where there's plenty of ventilation.
Tick collars should be applied properly to work. The key is getting the right snugness by being able to fit two fingers between the dog's neck and the collar. To prevent your dog chewing on the collar, cut off any extra length once it's applied. Note on the package the duration of the collar's effectiveness. For example, some collars don't work if a dog gets his collar wet by swimming.
Besides controlling ticks on your pet, spray yards and kennel areas monthly. Leaves can also carry ticks, so remove them, as well as brush and tall grass
-
Types
-
Ticks are grouped into two types of families. The hard ticks have noticeable, projecting mouth parts. On the other hand, the projecting mouth parts of soft ticks are barely obvious. Dogs usually get wood ticks and brown dog ticks. Wood ticks are picked up when dogs venture deep into wooded areas or fields. Brown dog ticks can increase during colder climates. The brown tick can carry the Ehrlichiosis disease, which causes fever, lameness and even bleeding.
Removing Ticks
-
There are commercial tick removers, but fine-pointed tweezers are just as effective. Using tweezers, seize the tick close to the skin so you pull it off entirely. Then, pull gently and don't squeeze the tick's body. After removing the tick, cleanse the area, your hands and tweezers with disinfectant.
Misconceptions
-
Sometimes pet owners think they don't have to worry about ticks during the fall when the weather grows colder. However, frosty autumn weather doesn't kill ticks, so treat your yard in late fall and early winter. In fact, Lyme's disease is at its peak in places such as northern Wisconsin, with the deer tick as the main carrier.
Tips
-
Using protective gloves to remove a tick reduces the odds of a tick affecting the owner.
Rather than flushing a removed tick down the toilet, save it in a glass jar or pill container so your veterinarian can identify it.
Warnings
-
Check your dog for ticks when he comes inside. Ticks can also be carried indoors, although it's hard for them to thrive there.
Do a daily examination, rather than waiting for symptoms to appear. Signs such as joint swelling, fever, exhaustion, weakness and lameness do not show up immediately, taking as long as weeks or months to appear.
-
Resources
- Photo Credit Stockxchng
