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Tick Season is Here: How to Keep Your Dog Healthy and Tick-Free

With summer nearly upon us, more and more people will be taking to the great outdoors.  Many of them will be bringing their dogs along with them.  Unfortunately, when domesticated pets and wild nature meet, sometimes the results can be serious.

Ticks are a major cause of disease among dogs.  These relatives of spiders are parasites, attaching themselves to their victims by inserting their feeding tubes into the skin and anchoring themselves to the host with their mandibles.  Any diseases they carry can then be transmitted to the host via the bloodstream.

Diseases that can be transmitted by ticks include Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, canine ehrlichiosis, and canine anaplasmosis.  All can cause serious damage to your pet's biological systems, and left untreated can result in death.  Coming in contact with ticks can be a life-or-death situation!

You can reduce your pet's exposure to ticks by following a few simple rules.  Since ticks live in long grass and overgrown bushes and shrubs, keep your pet away from walking through uncut fields and brush.  Always inspect your pets after being in tick-infested areas, and promptly remove any ticks you find.  Ticks avoid direct sunlight, so keeping your yard maintained (cutting grass and trimming shrubbery) robs them of a place to live.  Don't allow your pets to roam free, as they're much more likely to become infested than those who are kept at home.

If you do find a tick on your pet, remove it by using fine-point tweezers and grasping the tick just behind the point of insertion.  Pull gently and steadily until the tick has been removed.  Using processes like covering the tick in Vaseline, or touching the head of a newly-burnt match to the tick's body, do not work.  After removal, cleanse the area thoroughly with soap (antibacterial if available) and apply antiseptic.  Notify your vet if you discover a tick on your pet and follow any additional instructions he or she may have for you.  Watch your pet carefully for changes in personality, activity, and eating habits; if you notice a change, take your pet to the vet for a thorough examination.

It's not necessary to keep your pet cooped up all summer long while you go out and have fun.  Taking a few precautions will prevent your pet from contracting any of these potentially fatal diseases and still allow you to enjoy your summertime activities with your pet in tow.  Enjoy!

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