Most dog owners have encountered the pesky problem of ticks
on their dog. Ticks are small arachnids that
can be black or brown and they have eight legs. If your dogs often spend time
outdoors, then a daily check should be part of your routine. Check the dog’s
entire body, including under the armpits, between the toes, and the inside of
the ears.
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If you find a tick on your dog, you should act promptly to
remove this parasite. Grasping the tick
out and pulling in a straight, steady motion is the most basic way to remove
ticks. Drop the tick into a small container that contains isopropyl alcohol to
immediately kill it.
If your dog has quite a number of ticks on his body, bathing
with a shampoo that contains medicated ingredients to kill ticks on contact is
an inexpensive way to deal with these parasites. However, you would need to
bathe your dog once a week as the effective ingredients in the dog shampoo won't
last that long. Some of these are amitraz shampoo, Defendex All-Natural Flea,
Tick, and Mange Shampoo for Dogs and Cats, PetArmor Plus Shampoo, Demodex Mange Shampoo
Dogs and Mite.
Tick collars can repel ticks although mainly useful for
protecting the head and neck. These dog tick collars may be used as an added
preventive measure. Make sure that you can fit two fingers under the collar
when it is around your pet’s neck.
Spot-on treatments such as Frontline, K9 Advantix II, Bio
Spot Active Care, and Revolution are convenient ways to give your pet
month-long protection. The treatment is applied by pouring the liquid onto the nape
of your dog, just between the shoulders. Bigger dogs need a larger dose size so
instead of applying on one spot, you can apply it on several spots.
Oral medications or pills may also be given to dogs. They work
by killing the ticks and will disrupt their life cycle. They are convenient and
can easily be given.
Injectable medication such as Ivomec or ivermectin may be
used to kill ticks. Although this is mostly to prevent heartworms in dogs, they
may also be used by your veterinarian to treat demodectic and sarcoptic mange
and other skin and intestinal parasites.
While you may be doing all you can keep your pet tick-free, they
may keep coming back if the rest of your house and your yard is infested. You must
consider treating your home and surroundings as well to prevent re-infection.
