Dog Owners, Protect Your Pooch from Ticks

Taking Fido for a walk in this area can mean coming home with an unwanted stowaway: a tick.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends these tips when it comes to dealing with these pests, regardless of whether you're using a flea-and-tick control product on your dog:

• Check your pets for ticks daily, especially after they spend time outdoors.
• Ask your veterinarian to conduct a tick check at each exam.
• Talk to your veterinarian about tickborne diseases in your area.
• Reduce tick habitat in your yard.
• Talk with your veterinarian about using tick preventatives on your pet. 

Some dogs are at higher risk for tick infestation, including those whose owners like them to tag along for long periods of time outdoors: fishermen, hunters, runners. Other dogs, whose greatest expeditions are to the corners of the yard, are still at risk, though slightly less so. Ticks are most prevalent in forest preserves or other heavily wooded areas, according to Oak Forest Animal Clinic's Dr. Ben Welbourne. 

Deer ticks carry the risk of Lyme Disease and brown dog ticks are responsible for another illness appearing more recently, called Ehrlicia. Lyme Disease is more common and can be difficult to detect in dogs, as the symptoms mimic other illnesses. Dogs with Lyme Disease might display warm, swollen joints; signs of arthritis, unexplained fever and anemia as long as months after the initial bite. 

Welbourne offered some tips on protecting your pooch—and the people who love them—from the burrowing arachnid. 

Treat Ahead of Time
Purchase preventative products, such as Frontline, Revolution, Advantix, or the Preventic collar. For dogs defined as high-risk, back it up with Ovitrol, a spray used in small doses as additional protection. Advantics, Preventic are available over the counter. Frontline and Revolution require a prescription. 

While treatments are mostly effective, some ticks seem to "laugh" at the products and attach despite them, Welbourne said. However, ticks need 48 hours of feeding to infect prey with Lyme Disease. Most products—or a second dose—will effectively kill the tick or cause it to detach before the 48-hour period. If a pet owner finds a tick embedded, Welbourne recommends contacting your veterinarian. 

Remove with Caution
If you find a tick on your dog (or cat, or other pet, or yourself) and it does not appear engorged, follow these tips to remove it safely. 

1. Use a tweezers to grip the tick near the head. 
2. Pull on the tick gently and slowly, as it might take some skin with it as it detaches. The entire tick needs to come out, and if it's latched on, it might hold tight.
3. Do NOT squish, crush or break open the tick, as that will release Lyme Disease organisms into the air. While you can't catch Lyme Disease from your dog, you can catch it from the tick, Welbourne warned. 
4. Place the live tick in a jar with rubbing alcohol. The tick will suffocate. 

Other things you can do to protect yourself and your furry friends:

1. Keep your yard clean and grass trimmed. Remove debris and keep your bushes trimmed.
2. When taking a walk, keep away from tall grass and weeds.
3. Consider a repellent collar or chemical skin application for your pet.
4. Treat the lawn around your home if keeping greenery is not enough.
5. Try an all-natural method. Click here for more information. 

Got a method we did not mention? Tell us in the comments.

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