How to remove ticks from your dog
Ticks can attack your dog or puppy and bring with them disease. Unfortunately, ticks can live for years on a dog, so it is better to find them and get rid of them as quickly as possible.
A tick is a long insect and has a head that imbeds itself into the skin of your puppy or dog. They feed on the dog’s blood and once they are full, they drop off and are similar to fleas in that they bring disease with them.
Ticks are sometimes noticed by the fact they drop off the skin once they are full on the dog’s blood so owners spot them on the floor. They can be spotted in the fur; they are small black spots stuck to the skin and if you look closely you can sometimes see the little legs on the side of the body.
Some of the products available for fleas can work a little on ticks but the best way to get rid of them is by examination. Check out the ears, armpits and neck areas.
The high season for ticks is in spring and summer so you have to examine your dog carefully on a regular basis.
Each tick has to be removed by hand and unfortunately, it does usually hurt the dog. Using rubber gloves and armed with tweezers, grab the tick close as possible to the puppy’s skin. You can get special tweezers from the pet store that makes removal easier, with full instructions, or your vet can show you how to remove them. A vet will remove them for you, but usually there are still eggs laid in the fur and you will need to continue watching for them at home and removing them when spotted.
Using the special tweezers, pull the tick gently but firmly with a twisting motion. If you squeeze the tick you will expose any disease it may be carrying.
Do not flush the tick down the toilet as they can survive in water. Burning the ticks is the only way to get rid of them properly, or put them out in the rubbish far from any animals.
