Quick - safest/easiest way to remove a tic from my pups ear?

[rafiki]

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[Laura Corin]

Call your local pet shop and see if they sell tick twisters. They work really well on animals and humans - no mouth parts left to get infected. I took two or three a day off various family members during our last holiday in the Highlands.

 

Laura

[jplain]

We live in Lyme disease country, and in spite of diligent bug repellent application, we pick off a few ticks off the kids every year. Our dept of public health suggests using regular tweezers. My kids prefer the blunt ended kind, rather than the pointy kind, but either work. Sterilize them first with alcohol. Then grasp the tick's head (not body!) with the tweezers and pull smoothly and firmly up away from the skin. The goal is to remove the whole tick, mouth parts and all, but that isn't always possible. Clean the skin with alcohol afterward. We generally put on an OTC antibiotic cream as well.

[rafiki]

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[Mama Geek]

If you are in Lyme country I would ask them to test the pup and if the pup is positive start it on antibiotics for a few months. It is pretty nasty and not something that you want to mess with.

[rafiki]

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[jplain]

I don't believe that either Frontline Plus or Interceptor is effective against the bacteria that cause Lyme disease.

 

In order to transmit Lyme disease, the tick had to have been a deer tick. Your vet should have a good idea of what kind of tick it was. No other type of tick can transmit Lyme dz, though there are other tick-borne illnesses as well, so it is still worth being on the lookout for symptoms.

 

Also, in order to transmit Lyme dz, ticks need to have been attached for at least 24-48 hours, and must have begun to feed. A tick that hasn't yet fed has a flat body, so if the tick's body wasn't starting to swell up, it probably hadn't fed yet.

 

Testing at this point would only indicate past exposure, not current disease, because it takes time, often weeks, to develop antibodies. Instead, you'll want to watch for symptoms and ask for testing/treatment if any appear.