A quick guide to ticks and fleas!
The sun's shining and everything's beginning to bloom, so you decide to go on a hike with your dog to enjoy the outdoors. You and your dog have a great time, but once home you notice a bug crawling around on your dog’s face. Eek - it's a tick!
Heading into the summer season it's important to proactively protect your dog from these potentially harmful parasites. But where to start? As you can see from the image above there are a lot of common parasites in Dogs, but we want to focus on just two: Ticks and Fleas. More information regarding other parasites can be quickly found here.
Facts About Ticks:
Known to carry a variety of potentially dangerous diseases; most commonly Lyme Disease
Not every tick carries disease, but the threat is real
Live in forests, wooded areas, shrubs, tall grass, and leaf piles
Active in temperatures above -4 degrees celsius (important to remember when we have warmer winters and edge seasons)
In Southwestern Ontario the Blacklegged Tick (a.k.a. Deer Tick) is most common
Latched ticks tend to be found in warm, moist, and dark places on a dog (i.e. ears, in arm-pits, base of tail, etc.)
Ontario Lyme Disease Risk Area Map 2021
Facts About Fleas
Can transmit several diseases
There are several species of fleas, but the one that most commonly dogs is Ctenocephalides felis (a.k.a. the cat flea)
Their flat body is designed to easily navigate through pet hair and they have legs designed for jumping great distances
Found on both living and dead animals
Have an irritating bite that can trigger an allergic response (i.e. dermatitis)
How to protect your dog from these pests?
Before your hike:
Keep your dog well groomed so spotting parasites post-hike will be easier
Apply a dog-friendly bug spray to your dog
Add a natural supplement or vet prescribed medication to lower the risk of infection if a parasite latches successfully
There are many factors that go into finding the best option for your dog, so do your research into the best option for you!
After your hike
Check your dog for ticks and fleas with a fine toothed comb
If a tick is latched:
Use fine-tipped tweezers to grasp the tick as close to the skin’s surface as possible
Pull upward with steady, even pressure. Don’t twist or jerk the tick; this can cause the mouth-parts to break off and remain in the skin. If this happens, remove the mouth-parts with tweezers. If you are unable to remove the mouth easily with clean tweezers, leave it alone and let the skin heal
After removing the tick, thoroughly clean the bite area and your hands with rubbing alcohol or soap and water
Never crush a tick with your fingers. Dispose of a live tick by putting it in alcohol, placing it in a sealed bag/container, wrapping it tightly in tape, or flushing it down the toilet
If you discover a flea infestation:
Sanitation - Clean areas where fleas breed (i.e. washing bedding, rugs, dog bed, and vacuuming carpeted areas/ along the edges of walls)
Pet treatment - Give your dog a soap bath (or you can use a flea specific shampoo if recommended by a veterinarian), then comb them with a flea comb focusing on face, neck, and tail
Home treatment - Similar to sanitation, however invite a professional to treat outdoor areas or purchase a dog friendly pesticide to apply
Follow-up - Fleas have a complex life cycle and some stages can be resistant to insecticides and other flea control products. In order to get rid of fleas in all stages of the life cycle, two or more follow-up treatments within 5-10 days after the first application are needed
Don't Be Scared. Be smart!
All you need to remember is it's better to be proactive than reactive! If you do your own research into medications or homeopathic pest repellants that's great, but also set aside the time to do wellness checks after each outing with your dog regardless.
Now that you’re informed, interested in enrolling your dog in pack walks?
Sources
C. (2020, May 1). Tick season in Saskatchewan: Steps to reduce the risk of tick-borne diseases. Global News. https://globalnews.ca/news/6889090/ticks-precautions-lyme-disease/
Health Canada. (n.d.). Blacklegged (deer) ticks - Canada.ca. Government of Canada. Retrieved April 19, 2021, from https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/pest-control-tips/blacklegged-deer-ticks.html
How to Check Your Pet for Ticks | Healthy Pets, Healthy People | CDC. (n.d.). CDC. Retrieved April 19, 2021, from https://www.cdc.gov/healthypets/publications/check-pet-for-ticks.html
Johnston, C. (2020, November 10). Homemade All-Natural Tick and Bug Spray (That Actually Works!). Wholefully. https://wholefully.com/homemade-natural-tick-bug-spray/
Preventing tick bites on pets | CDC. (2018, December 21). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/lyme/prev/on_pets.html
Public Health Agency of Canada. (n.d.). Risk of Lyme disease to Canadians - Canada.ca. Government of Canada. Retrieved April 19, 2021, from https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/lyme-disease/risk-lyme-disease.html
Tick removal | CDC. (2019, September 6). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/ticks/removing_a_tick.html
What Are Dog Fleas? Flea Bites on Dogs Control & Info. (n.d.). Pest World. Retrieved April 19, 2021, from https://www.pestworld.org/pest-guide/fleas/dog-flea/
