Tick removal aftercare?

jenarae

jenarae

Member
Feb 23, 2007
946
1
#1
I read on a few tick threads from the past but none of them really focused on after care...Yesterday i found a tick on my pup Toby's neck. Me and my dad removed it by soaking it in alcohol and pulling it off with tweezers. After we got the gross thing off we cleansed the area with more alcohol and put neosporin on it. Today it's scabby and the area is red...for those of you who have dealt with tick's on your dog's and cats what do you do after it's off? Is it a good idea to keep cleansing it with alcohol everyday until it is gone or just leave it alone? I also went out and got K-9 Advantix and he is now on that so hopefully i won't have to deal with anymore gross ticks. :tdown:
 
#2
I haven't had ticks on my dogs for years b/c we use Frontline and it works so well. But a month or so ago I found two wonderful dogs that I got to keep for two days until I found their owners.

One of them was infested with ticks. I pulled them all off and I think that was okay. I like your idea of putting alcohol on the spot to kill any germs.

I would watch your doggie for signs of lethargy or sore muscles in case of Lymes Disease. Other than that, I think you're doing the right thing by putting Advantix on Toby and keeping an eye on the spot.
 
#4
I would take your dog to your vet. I am not sure cleaning the area daily with alcohol is beneficial. Alcohol can irritate the wound, too, if you apply it excessively... If you decide not to take your dog to the vet, definitely watch for any clinical signs of Lyme disease, which tick is a carrier. I don't know how the wound looks like, so I really would have your doggie checked out rather than trying something at home...
 
#5
I just thought of this....maybe you should check with your vet about getting a Lymes Disease vaccine for Toby. Since ticks are in your area there's always the possibility he could become infected with this horrible disease.

My dogs all get the vaccine once a year and it doesn't bother them at all. We still use Frontline every month, so this vaccine is just in case.
 
#6
Well as far as applying alcohol i applied it yesterday after the tick was taken off and this morning...i only plan on doing it once a day...so it's most definetly not excessive amounts...so far he's acting completely normal (no signs of lyme disease) I read up on what ticks are the most notorious of carrying lyme disease and they are the deer tick and the lone star tick. The common dog tick is not usually the one to carry it...and the one my dog had looked like the common dog tick. It was not even an adult yet...still a nymph as they call it. I'm definitely keeping my eyes peeled on any signs of him acting abnormal. It's weird though because where i live we don't take him in areas of tall grasses or any woods or anything...so im soo confused as to how he picked one up! He's an indoor dog and our patio where he goes out to potty only has a few plants and the rest is concrete. Anywho he's on the Advantix now and will be for years to come. On my day off this week im going to take him in to get that lyme shot just to be on the safe side like you guys suggested. Here's a picture i took of the scab not the best picture cause it was kind of hard to seperate the hair with one hand and take the picture with the other! Poor Toby had a little vampire buddy haha... Thanks for all of your advice everyone...
Picture077.jpg


 
#9
Hi there,

NEVER EVER soak a tick in alcohol or whatever - trying to suffocate it or whatever - before you pull it out.
The reason is that all the 'bad stuff' (for lack of a better word) is located in teh tick's jaws and the tick 'pukes' when it dies and releases all the toxins into the dog's bloodstream. It's really the worst you can do.
Instead, use some tick pliers and pull the tick out by twisting it carefully. Let your vet show you how to do it.
Then you can put some disinfectant like Betadine on the wound but in general you should be OK.
 
#10
Thanks for your input hello2703 it's funny that you say no alcohol because when we discovered the tick i went to my room to look online what is the best way to remove it and this was the first website that came up...

http://library.thinkquest.org/03oct/00176/dogs.html

Stating:

TICKS
These common pests are mostly found in wood, fields, and sandy beaches. Ticks attach their bodies to the skin of any living being, usually around the ears or toes. Ticks can be taken off the skin with dips or can be taken off one by one.
DO NOT EVER USE THE TIP OF A HOT CIGARETTE TO BURN OFF A TICK!
The easiest way to remove a tick is with rubbing alcohol. Dab the tick with rubbing alcohol and then remove the tick with tweezers.

So that's exactly what we did. Some websites say no alcohol some say it's ok...so i don't know what to believe! haha...The tick was not squished when we were taking it off so i think it's safe to say it did not puke up anything...it was still alive when we pulled it off...Plus there was no time to run to the store to get tick pliers so i guess we did the best we could with the tweezers.
 
#11
Well, we live in the sticks, and because of that, Dakota has gotten a couple of ticks. We just got her the Lyme Disease vacination, and after we remove the tick, we let it alone, and it scabs over on it's own.
 
#12
jenarae said:
Thanks Westiegirl i just put him on K-9 Advantix which protects against fleas, ticks and mosquito's. I hopin it will repel against all those nasty bugs!
Click to expand...

I'm going to look into K-9 Advantix, my vet doesn't carry Revolution so they give me a prescription and I have to get it filled online. I'd much rather just buy something at the vet's office.
I love the all in one products!
 
#13
Westiegirl said:
I'm going to look into K-9 Advantix, my vet doesn't carry Revolution so they give me a prescription and I have to get it filled online. I'd much rather just buy something at the vet's office.
I love the all in one products!
Click to expand...

Yeah definitely look into it i have heard lots of greatness come of it! It sucks because i always thought that advantage protected against ticks and yeah...not so much...haha. So now my little Toby is on K-9. :yes:
 
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