What To Do If Your Dog Is Bitten By Ticks

If you live near a wooded or brush area that has a lot of ticks, you should be very careful that your dog doesn't get bitten by one of them! You should constantly be checking your dog for ticks, especially if you have just gone on a hike or a walk in an area where ticks are known to be present. You should look for ticks on your dog in four main areas: the head, the neck, the ears, and the belly. These are the areas closest to the grass, where the tick is waiting to jump onto your dog and bite into the closest area it can latch onto!

If your dog gets bitten by ticks, there are a couple of things that you need to do. First of all, you should verify that it actually is a tick that has bitten your dog. Look closely at your dog's skin – is there a bumpy area that looks like it might be a wart or a tick? If you look even more closely and see little legs sticking out, then your dog has certainly been bitten by a tick.

You should be very careful when removing ticks that have bitten your dog. Ticks carry diseases (such as Lyme disease) that can be transmitted to humans, so you will want to make sure that you do not have contact with the tick. You also should remove the tick as quickly as possible so that you minimize your chance of catching a disease.

You can remove the tick from your dog at home, if your dog should get bitten by ticks. You will need to use tweezers or needle-nose pliers in order to pull the tick out. Pull the tick out slowly and carefully. You should make sure that you remove the tick with steady pressure, so that you don't leave the tick's head inside your dog. Look carefully to make sure that no part of the tick has remained after you have pulled out the tick's body.

After removing the tick that has bitten your dog, you might see a little bit of a bump – this is just normal redness and swelling that occurs after a tick is removed. Within twenty-four hours this bump should go away – but if it doesn't you might need to visit the vet.

Wash the area where the tick was removed with water and soap. Make sure that the area is cleaned completely and thoroughly. Some people also recommend using hydrogen peroxide to daub on the area as well, in order to prevent infection or the spread of disease. If you have further questions about caring for your dog or tick removal, you can ask your vet. Your vet might have suggestions for other products that you can use to remove ticks or prevent your dog from getting tick bites again.

Remember, there are also things that you can find at local pet stores to prevent your dog from getting bitten by ticks. Your local pet store probably sells tick collars for a reasonable price (under $20). In addition, you can also by specialized shampoos that can keep ticks and fleas away. Or, if you want to really make sure that your dog doesn't get ticks, don't let your dog wander in areas where ticks are known to be. Keep your dog safely secured in your back yard or inside your home if ticks are a big problem in your area. All in all, you can save yourself a lot of worry and energy by just taking your dog on walks where ticks can't be found.

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