Spring time means removing Ticks properly

We have all been there - the creepy, crawly feeling when you are petting your dog or cat and you feel the unmistakable blip of a tick pass under your fingers.  It's spring - and we know they'll be out there!  The removal of ticks can be a pain, but if done properly you will minimize complications secondary to tick attachment and reduce the risk to your family.

• Remove the tick as soon as you find it.  The longer a tick is attached, the more it will feed, and the larger it's body will be.  A small, flat tick is newly attached.  A large, swollen tick has been there for a long time.  The longer a tick is attached, the more likely it is to transmit the diseases it carried like Lyme disease.
• Use fine-tipped tweezers to grasp the tick as close to the skin’s surface as possible.  When the tick is in deep thick fur, we often have to yank some fur or pinch the pet's skin just a bit.  The goal is to grab just the point of attachment, and not the body of the tick.
• Pull upward with steady, even pressure. Don’t twist or jerk the tick; this can cause the mouth-parts to break off and remain in the skin.  If this happens, remove the mouth-parts with tweezers.  They will appear like tiny black dots at the bite site.  If you are unable to remove the mouth easily with clean tweezers, leave it alone and let the skin heal.​  We have seen many tick bites where the owner has gone a bit overboard trying to remove a tiny possible tick fragment, causing much more trauma than was necessary!

• After removing the tick, thoroughly clean the bite area and your hands with rubbing alcohol or soap and water.
• Dispose of a live tick by putting it in alcohol, placing it in a sealed bag/container, wrapping it tightly in tape, or flushing it down the toilet.  They are extremely difficult to kill any other way, and you don't want them choosing you as their second feeding site.
• No matter what the type of tick was on your pet, or how long it was attached, ticks can leave quite a local reaction.  There can be a red bump, swelling, itching, oozing and crusting, and this can appear intermittently for up to two weeks.  This does not necessarily indicate the transmission of any disease; tick mouths are nasty, reactive sites that leave quite a dirty mess for the body to clean up.  You can apply topical antibiotic ointment and monitor to make sure the area improves week by week.  If a tick bite reaction enlarges over time or does not resolve within two weeks, please call us to get it checked out!