Ticks!
Ticks are small, blood-sucking parasites that are found throughout the world. Ticks can thrive in various habitats, including grassy fields, forests, and your backyard!
Wise and Wonderful Integrative Veterinary Center, your local Santa Rosa vet, offers some information about ticks, tick-borne illnesses, and tips for treatment and prevention.
Ticks feed on the blood of mammals, birds, reptiles, and even amphibians. They use their sharp, barbed mouthparts to pierce the skin of their host and then feed on the blood. Ticks can be carriers of various diseases, including Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and babesiosis.
While active year-round in Sonoma County, ticks are most active during the warmer months. They are attracted to hosts by various factors, including body heat, movement, and the carbon dioxide we exhale. Once they find a host, they will often attach themselves to areas of the body that are warm and moist, such as the armpits, groin, and scalp.
Most veterinarians recommend a regularly performed heartworm test for your dog and cat. They may recommend testing for exposure to tick-borne illnesses if you suspect your pet has been exposed. Many dogs that test positive for one of these tick-borne diseases are not clinically ill at detection. Your veterinarian will discuss options with you for treatment and follow up if your pet tests positive. A dog that is ill with tick-borne disease will often have symptoms of fever, depression, lethargy, loss of appetite, joint pain, and more.
Prevention is the best method to mitigate tick-borne diseases. The primary defense is an effective tick product. There are topical and oral medications that can help prevent the transmission of tick disease.
Check your pet often for ticks and remove any that are found. Ticks have different life stages. The smallest are larvae; they molt to a nymph before becoming adults. The super-tiny stages can be easy to miss, even on humans, so check your pets carefully. Some tick-borne diseases require the tick to be embedded in the skin for at least 24-48 hours; the sooner they are removed, the less likely disease transmission has occurred. Still, certain illnesses can be transmitted from tick to host in less than three hours, so consistently using a good preventive is crucial.
An embedded tick is best removed by grabbing at the head of the tick, nearest the skin, with tweezers or forceps, and then slowly and steadily pulling straight out. Commercial tick removers are also available, but hair may interfere with their use, so choose wisely. The CDC also recommends washing hands after removal or wearing gloves. Deposit the tick in a little vial of rubbing alcohol, or flush it down the toilet.
Remember that while tick-borne illnesses can be serious, they are also preventable. Taking the necessary precautions can help protect your pets. Call Wise and Wonderful — 707-546-4646 — to make a wellness appointment to ask about tick prevention, or call us if you have concerns about your dog’s health.
Wise and Wonderful offers special pricing on flea, tick, heartworm, and other parasite preventives.
