Is this a tick?

Dr. Marie replied:

Thank you for this fantastic photo:



While I can't give a diagnosis over the internet I can tell you that I am quite certain that you have taken a photo of a tick! That's probably not what you were expecting to hear.

Ticks can stay on a dog for quite some time. It looks like this tick is engorged meaning that it has been there for long enough to feed.

The obvious question is how to get a tick off. Whatever you do, don't pull on it. If you do so, usually what happens is that the tick's body will come off and the head will stay in place. If you have access to any flea/tick spray then spraying this on the tick will kill it and you can remove it. What I do in my office is use a little plastic tool called a tick twister. I put it underneath the tick, twist it around and then the tick just comes out.

It's not a bad idea to have your vet remove this tick. They can show you how to do it in case Badger gets any more of them.

You will want to ask your vet if lyme disease or any other tick borne diseases are prevalent in your area. If so, they may want to test for lyme disease in 4-6 weeks' time. However, the chances of getting lyme disease from a single tick bite are not high.

It's not a bad idea to have a good feel all around Badger's body to see if there are any more as well!

Dr. Marie.


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Dr. Marie replied:

Oh yeah! You got it!

I've yet to see holistic flea or tick products that really work. The way that I look at it, if a natural product was able to kill or reliably repel fleas or ticks then we wouldn't need to be continually improving on and developing synthetic problems. Even the synthetic products often become ineffective after a few years because these creatures are so hard to take care of.

Don't forget to ask your vet about their protocols for lyme testing in your area.

Dr. Marie.