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Tick'd Off:
How to Remove a Tick Everyone can agree on one thing that makes our skin crawl: ticks. An unpleasant reality of pet ownership, ticks are a danger to both our health and that of our pets. After your dog has been anywhere outside where ticks lurk–in fields, woods, and even in your back yard, make sure to do a head-to-toe scan of her body for ticks. Ticks like to hide in the obscure places, such as in or behind the ears, between toes and on the underbelly. Check your dog thoroughly and as soon as your dog comes in from outside in the hopes that you can remove ticks before they dig into the skin and become imbedded. If you’re lucky enough to find a tick that has not imbedded and is still moving around on your dog’s skin, it can be easily removed with your fingers or with tweezers and then disposed of safely (see Disposal bullet below). But chances are you won’t be so lucky, the tick will be imbedded, or firmly attached to your dog’s skin. Here are a few tips on how to remove a tick, completely and safely. * Prepare: Dab the tick and close-surrounding areas with rubbing alcohol. You could also smother the tick in Vaseline, which will stop its breathing and loosen its hold on your pet. * Get Ready: Using whatever is most comfortable for you (tweezers, tissue or a “tick remover” tool), grasp the tick’s body close to the pet’s skin as possible (while being careful not to catch any skin). * Go: Slowly and firmly, pull the tick straight out of the skin without squeezing. Pulling too fast can decapitate the tick, leaving the head imbedded in your dog. Squeezing can release the icky fluids inside the tick into your dog’s body. * Disposal: The tick should either be flushed down the toilet or dunked into rubbing alcohol. Disposal is very important so that the tick does not reappear on your pet or you. * After care: Clean the affected area with alcohol and apply antibacterial ointment to the area. You should see a small hole where the tick was. Watch this area for the next few days to ensure infection does not set in. A very small tick could be a deer tick. If you can, save it in alcohol and bring it to your veterinarian. Deer ticks often carry Lyme disease and, if you find one, there are likely more where it came from and you should consider vaccination as an option. Regardless of tick type, note the date of the bite. Tick-related illness can take some time to show up, so that date will be useful if illness occurs. If ticks are a common occurrence where you live, talk to your veterinarian about tick protection. While flea collars have not proven effective, there are other options with varying degrees of effectiveness. |