|
Ticks on Dogs
|
|
Two images of the American Dog Tick (Dermacentor
variabilis)
(Tick Images may take a moment to load)
This tick image and all others on this website are
copyrighted...
no copying or reproduction without verifiable permission from T
J Dunn, Jr. DVM
**********************
Tick Removal
Always use latex gloves when examining your pet for ticks.
Check your pet daily for ticks by thoroughly feeling for any lumps
under the hair. Pay close attention to ears, around face, eyes, legs,
and belly.
Ticks will range in size from the size of a sesame seed to the size of
a fingernail (engorged).
The best way of removal is gripping it with tweezers as near the head
as possible and pulling it straight off, with no twisting.
The area should then be disinfected.
An alternative is to take a length of sewing cotton, make a thumb knot
and tighten this loop around the parasite close to your skin.
Pulling both ends will then dislodge the tick.
A Tick removal hook is available from most pet stores.
Place the tick in a jar of alcohol, noting the date, in case of
future illness. Tick identification and location of tick infestation
will be important.
Tips:
Do NOT use a match or caustic materials to try to smother the tick or
get the tick to 'back out'. This doesn't work, and may be causing the
tick to regurgitate more saliva (and potential pathogens) into the
skin.
Talk to your vet about effective tick control (spray, powder, spot-on,
or collar) for your pet.
Check pet daily, especially in the spring when ticks are most common.
Ticks attach themselves from the ends of damp vegetation to any passing
animal. They are more prevalent in Spring and Autumn. Current
thinking suggests that the longer the tick is attached, the worse the
risk of infection. Sometimes ticks are confused with growths so check
your dog regularly.
Ticks can carry
transmittable diseases ( e.g Lymes Disease,
tick-borne fever) and
cause local irritation.
Lyme Disease is an illness that does not go away, even though it may
lay dormant, it is very debilitating in its later stages. We all
need to be aware of this so be careful when removing ticks from your
pets
as the ticks can bite
Taken
from advice given in "The Sporting Gun" by Richard Prior
back to top
*********************************
One womens experience
Kerryn
Humphreys lives on the North York Moors and has two working black
Labradors and
a Wolfhound. She reports that they used to collect ticks
throughout the year. A friend suggested homeopathic sulphur for
one of the Labradors skin condition. She miraculously stopped
picking up ticks. Now all three are dosed with sulphur (at 30c
potency), two tiny pills three
times a week and seven daily doses for a week every three to four
months.
This is the second year we've been following this regime and I can
count on one hand the number of ticks found on all of them.
A colleague used to dose his golden retriever with Frontline, but still
kept finding ticks. Since changing to sulphur he's found only one
since Easter.
back to top
************************
Tick Twister O'Tom
Tick Removal
Hook
The safest way to remove ticks without leaving mouthparts of the tick
planted in the skin. No use of chemicals. Takes the tick away quickly
and painlessly. Does not squeeze the tick, thus reducing the risk of
infection. Designed by a Veterinarian.
Two sizes are supplied in each pack - ultra thin for small ticks and
large for large ticks. The hooks are made from recyclable injected
plastic. They are hardwearing, indefinitely reusable and virtually
unbreakable. They
can be disinfected with usual disinfectants, or even put in the
dishwasher.
The Tick Twister works with the two following principles:
1) Tick is gripped without compressing the tick's body
2) Tick is extracted by rotation and a slight upward motion,
not by pulling.
When the tick is grabbed with tweezers or similar unsuitable
instruments, the tool exerts a pressure on the tick's body. However,
when the tick is grasped with the Tick Twister there is no pressure on
the tick's body, thus, reducing the risk of the injection. With the
Tick Twister you do not pull on the tick. Instead you rotate the tick
and use a slight upward motion until the tick detaches after 2-3
rotations.
The Tick Twister is chemical free. More and more studies have proved
that if you use chemical products to kill the tick, it is an attack for
the tick and it reacts by a saliva back flow, which increases
inflammatory phenomena.
This item is usually dispatched within 3-4 working
days.
http://www.dfordog.com/acatalog/dog_first_aid.html
The above information is simply
informational. It's intent is not to replace the advice of a
veterinarian nor to assist you in making a diagnosis of your pet.
Please consult with your own veterinarian for confirmation of any
diagnosis. Your pets life may depend on it.
