Summer blooms not only with colorful flowers but also with various parasites, and there is no doubt that as a pet parent, you take considerable steps to control these pests especially ticks. Ticks can be picked up easily by furry pals and are huge in number whether it’s urban area or rural area. These blood sucking creatures that belong to the spider group can cause a wide range of diseases, including Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain fever, which are highly dangerous for pet health as well as humans too.
Usually present on leaf litter, undergrowth and long grass within heathland, woodland, rough pasture as well as urban parks and gardens, ticks are picked up on hair, clothes when a dog or person brushes part them. Feeding on the blood of animals, they can pick up the infection and can pass on from one animal to another.
To avoid these blood-thirsty critters, follow the tick tips and protect your furry pal.
Round the WORLD Tick Tips
- Buy a tick removal device such as a tick key from your vet or an online store, so you can easily remove any tick, which you may notice on your furry pal.
- When taking your dog to a new area, always look for warning signs on lampposts that can indicate whether the area is full of ticks or not, and you can avoid taking your pooch there.
- Do not try to take your dog through lush green areas, long grass or marshy places. These areas are usually highly infested with ticks.
- To locate ticks, always check your dog’s neck, ears and legs after walks. Though the tick may not necessarily bite, it may take time to find a suitable site on the skin. Therefore, it is crucial to brush off pets and clothing whenever you and your furry pal return from a walk.
- In case, if you find any lump, part the hair and look more closely, maybe using a magnifying glass. Once a tick has started to feed, its body will start filling with blood. Adult fleas are easy to be seen as they swell many times their original size, sometimes as large as a pea. However, mostly they are as small as a poppy seed, so you have to look closely.
- If you find any tick, then immediately take tick key or any other tick removal device to remove it. Don’t forget to wear gloves while removing it. When a tick is removed within first 24-hours, there are less chances of getting an infection.
- Do not crush or squeeze the tick, as this can result in breakage of head and body, releasing toxic saliva harming your pet.
- Dispose of the tick by crushing it between tissue paper and flushing it down the toilet.
Along with this, you should also treat your pet with tick medications. These parasite treatments will kill ticks as well as protect your dog from harmful tick infestation.
Source by Eugene Hix