Summertime is here! The time of year when we love to take our dogs for hikes in the woods and picnics in the park. It’s also the time of year for nasty ticks and tick borne diseases in dogs.
Because ticks can transmit serious or life-threatening diseases to both pets and people, it is important to use routine tick prevention as instructed by your primary care veterinarian. Options for tick prevention include both topical and oral medications, many of which prevent fleas as well. Of course, preventatives won’t stop ticks from attaching to your pet or you, so it’s important to do a thorough tick check after walks in wooded or grassy areas.
How to Remove a Tick from a Dog
It’s important to know how to remove a tick from a dog. If you find one, it should be removed immediately. If it has already attached itself,
Use fine-tipped tweezers to grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible.
Pull upward with steady, even pressure. Avoid twisting or jerking.
Clean the bite area and your hands with soap and water, rubbing alcohol, or hand sanitizer.
Keep an eye on the bite area for signs of infection, such as redness, swelling, or discharge. If you notice any of these symptoms of a tick bite, contact your veterinarian promptly.
How to Dispose of Ticks
Once removed, don’t just toss the tick outside or flush it down the toilet. Instead, ticks should be submerged in rubbing alcohol, sealed in a plastic bag or container, or wrapped tightly in tape. Do not crush it with your fingers, as this could potentially expose you to pathogens if the tick is infected.
One tip is to carry a sticky roller in your backpack or car and roll it gently over your dog’s fur after a walk. Sometimes, ticks who haven’t attached will stick to the tape and can be removed this way. The sticky sheet can also be used to trap the suffocate the tick.
What Are Common Tick Borne Diseases in Dogs?
Common tick borne diseases in dogs include Lyme disease, ehrlichiosis, anaplasmosis, Rocky Mountain Spotted fever, bartonellosis, and babesiosis. These illnesses can cause both acute and chronic illness, either of which can cause a host of clinical signs and complications.
Acute tick borne illnesses often cause fever, shifting leg lameness or joint pain, and lethargy. Depending on the specific tick borne illness, some patients will show changes in blood work, including a low-platelet count or low red blood cell count (anemia). If the platelet count is low enough, spontaneous bruising and bleeding may occur. In severe cases, acute infection can produce life-threatening organ dysfunction, neurologic dysfunction, or inflammation of the heart and/or blood vessels.
Chronic tick borne infections may result in arthritic changes, immune system dysregulation, changes to the bone marrow, and organ dysfunction. Low white blood cell count, low platelets, and anemia is also possible. In dogs, Lyme nephritis (kidney inflammation) has been identified as a severe and potentially fatal complication of chronic Lyme disease. This is because the kidneys become damaged by the body’s immune response to the Lyme infection and start to leak protein into the urine. Over time, protein levels in the blood may decrease significantly and the kidneys may start failing. By the time these patients are diagnosed with kidney failure, they can be very challenging to treat, have a guarded prognosis for survival, and may require hemodialysis.
How To Detect Tick Borne Diseases in Dogs
Tick borne diseases in dogs can be diagnosed in several ways: through serology (looking for antibody response to infection) or PCR tests (looking for the infectious organism itself). Importantly, some patients will have a positive antibody test but are not actively infected and show no symptoms of a tick bite; in these cases, the positive antibody test may indicate exposure to the disease rather than infection.
The treatment of choice for most tick borne illnesses is doxycycline; patients with mild to moderate clinical signs (fever, joint pain, lethargy) often improve within 24 to 48 hours of starting treatment. Intensive care may be necessary for more severe acute infections or complications from chronic infection.
Final Thoughts
Ticks and tick borne illnesses may have you reconsidering your summer outing. But don’t let these little buggers keep you and your pets from enjoying the outdoors. Being up-to-date on preventatives prescribed by your veterinarian and staying vigilant after outdoor time is the best way to keep you and your pets safe during tick season.
Should you find yourself in a veterinary emergency, we can help!
Call our Frederick location at 301.200.8185 Call our Richmond location at 804.206.9122