TICK! Help please!

[carrie79]

I was grooming zorro and noticed he had a beige "growth" on his back ear. I asked my hubby what is this and he says "its a tick" and pulled it off. Now I am guessing this was wrong....He said he only had the head of the thing. I am going to call vet tomorrow morning (it is 9pm here) but do you think he needs an emergency vet? How dangerous is this for him? Anything I can do here?

[fairlight]

I would take a glob of dish detergent and put it EXACTLY where the tick was. If there is anything left of the tick it will back it's way out.

[carrie79]

okay thanks. I did that. The spot is really swollen. I am wondering if the head is stil there. First hubby said he had the head, then he said he didnt know but he got the legs at least. Men.... said he didnt want to look too closely.

[fairlight]

As far as I know carrie there is nothing you can do until morning. It probably looks more swollen than it really is because now you are noticing it. Hang in there and Zorro will be fine until you get him to the vet tomorrow. I would go over him very carefully to see if there are anymore ticks on him.

[carrie79]

I did when I was brushing him. It was SO HUGE! ahh yuck.

[fairlight]

It must have been filled with blood. Hang in there and take Zorro to the vet tomorrow to make sure all is well.

[FairyDogMother]

If you got the legs, you most likely got the head too. After being pulled out, it does get swollen and there will be a sore for a bit. I just had to pull one off a foster I had. We don't have much of a tick problem up here so it totally grossed all of out at our rescue! He had lived outside only in the sticks... Not anymore I'm happy to report. I also put Frontline Plus on his the next day!

[lemonie]

We just pulled 186 ticks off a stray we got in the shelter over a matter of 3 days. They are nasty little buggers and it seemed nothing was working except us pulling them off. The frontline only immediately killed the ones down the back of the neck and the tick dip cleared out several but still left about 40. Finally we just poured some rubbing alchohol all over the dog and let it set for about 30 minutes. This seemed to work the best and luckily we have a very tolerant dog. This is a good reminder for everyone to keep your pets on frontline or something in close comparison. Also, lyme vaccines, though not required, should be requested if you live in a wooded area. Hope everything worked out well at the vets.

[Bosley Slave]

I'm sure your pup will be fine until you can take him to the vet tomorrow.


To safely remove a TICK:

1. Using a pair of pointed precision tweezers, grasp the tick by the head or mouth parts where it enters the skin. DO NOT grasp the tick by the body.

Etched or rasped fine-point tweezers may not be effective in removing deer ticks. Choose unrasped fine-point tweezers whose tips align tightly when pressed firmly together.

2. With a slow, smooth motion, pull firmly and steadily outward. DO NOT twist the tick. DO NOT apply petroleum jelly, a hot match, alcohol or any other irritant to the tick. This can cause the tick to burrow more deeply, and expel more bacteria into the blood.
3. Place the tick in a jar of alcohol to kill it.

4. Clean the wound with disinfectant. Monitor the bite for a rash for three to 30 days. Be alert for other symptoms of Lyme disease. If a rash or other early symptoms develop, see a physician immediately.

Here are a few "Don'ts" that I found on the web:

Don't use alcohol, - While many of these things are effective in getting a tick to let go, they tend to make the tick regurgitate before doing so. Since the pathogens ticks carry tend to reside in the gut, this is exactly what you don't want them to do! Ticks should only be removed by carefully pulling them straight out.

One word of advice - Never use the old remedy of applying heat (such as a match head or a cigarette) to a tick to get it to release. Researchers have found that ticks treated this manner will frequently spit up before they release, thereby transferring any pathogens they may be carrying into the host.

Don't smother the tick with Vaseline, nail polish, mineral oil, or anything else. If the tick is smothered, it may regurgitate the blood mixed with its own toxins back into your pet which can, of course, increase the risk of disease.

[~Astral~]

I had this with my cat years ago. It didnt effect him but he did have a swollen spot due to where the tick has been removed. I promptly purchased frontline combo and haven't had a tick since. Take your dog to the vet so they can give him the once over and make sure everything is ok and also get some frontline combo. Pet store products never work. Frontline combo will kill fleas, mites and ticks hun. Its usually very good and should sort out the problem