About Ticks on Dogs
Ticks are not only annoying bugs that like to feast on your dog's blood, but they can also often lead to potentially serious diseases. It is imperative, therefore, that dogs be put on monthly flea and tick preventatives and that owners routinely check their dogs' fur for these potential disease carriers.
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Categorization
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Ticks are often referred to as insects, but in reality they are part of the arachnid family, which includes scorpions and spiders. The most common varieties of ticks found on dogs are American Dog Tick, Lone Star Tick, Deer Tick and Brown Dog Tick.
Behavior
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Ticks tend to live on tall grasses and shrubs. When a dog passes by, a tick will grab on and bury its head under the dog's skin, where it will feed on the dog's blood.
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Diseases
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Ticks are potential carriers of various diseases, such as Lyme disease, Erlichiosis, Babeiosis and Rocky Mountain Spotted fever. The longer the tick is attached to the dog, the higher the chance of transmitting disease; checking dogs for ticks promptly after having frequented a tick-infested area is highly recommended.
Removal
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During tick removal, gloves must be worn to avoid contamination with potential disease-causing secretions. Grasp the tick with tweezers as close as possible to the dog's skin, and remove with a straight, upward motion. If you can't remove the tick's head, the dog's immune system will discard it automatically.
Disposal
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Ticks should not be flushed down toilets, as they can survive the trip. Instead, they should be preserved in alcohol in a jar labeled with the date of collection for future testing and identification should the dog develops symptoms of a tick-borne disease.
Prevention/Solution
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Dogs living in the country or in areas with high tick infestations should be vaccinated against Lyme disease. Veterinarian-recommended topical tick products should be applied once a month. Owners should keep in mind that dogs may develop symptoms of tick-borne disease several months after exposure to ticks. Tick-borne disease symptoms include fever, weakness, lameness, joint swelling and/or anemia.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit ladyheart, ronnieb, jusben, xenia
