Try to do this daily. In Arizona, ticks are active all year. According to the Humane Society, even the best repellants are no guarantee against the blood-sucking critters.
- Run your fingers slowly over your dog’s entire body feeling for bumps or swollen areas.
- Check between the toes, under armpits, inside ears, and around face and chin.
- Ticks can enter your house on your pet, then find a new host in another pet or human. Be sure to check all of your family members especially after outdoor activities in the wash or in grassy areas.
- Look for tiny black, brown or tan bugs. Ticks are arachnids, not insects, and like their spider relatives, they have eight legs. They can be as tiny as a pin head before they feed, but grow many times their size once they are engorged.
SOURCE The Humane Society
Lose Ticks
Take a deep breath. Finding a tick attached to a pet or person can be disturbing. But don’t worry, removal and treatment is straightforward.
Supplies Needed
- Pair of gloves
- Clean pair of tweezers or a commercial tick remover
- Antiseptic
- Rubbing alcohol
1. While wearing gloves, grasp the tick with tweezers as close to the skin as possible without pinching the skin.
2. Pull straight out in a slow, steady motion—don’t yank. Avoid leaving any part of the tick behind.
3. Save the tick in a small container with rubbing alcohol as evidence for the vet. This will help your vet with treatment if your dog begins showing symptoms of illness later.
4. Clean the area where the tick was attached with antiseptic. Clean the the tweezers with rubbing alcohol. Dispose of the gloves and wash your hands.
5. Over the next days and weeks, keep an eye on your pet and the affected area. Make an appointment with your vet (and bring the tick) if you notice:
- The site is infected
- Your pet has trouble getting around or is reluctant to move
- Your pet has fever, fatigue, swollen lymph nodes, loss of appetite or neurological problems
SOURCE The Humane Society
Related Links: Ticked Off!
