Symptoms of tick bites in dogs

Tick is a common name for a arachnide in the Ixodoidea family of insects, they feed off the blood of a variety of animals including mammals, birds, and when able reptiles and amphibians.  Ticks can carry many diseases like Lyme disease, Colorado mountain fever, Q fever (which is like pneumonia), Tularemia, and a few other different diseases.  The young stages of a tick it will have only 6 legs, but when they reach adulthood they will have 8.

As far as symptoms of tick bites in dogs there are a few you should watch out for.  Prolonged exposure to ticks can be deadly for dogs, in some cases just one tick feeding off a dog can cause it to become anemic or even paralyzed.  Though it is rare and you will see symptoms of tick bites before that happens it is something to take into consideration.  Some of the symptoms of tick bites in dogs are listed here.

• Loss of appetite
• Becomes lethargic
• Fever
• Pain and tenderness in dogs legs and body
• Arthritis or swelling of the dogs joints

If you notice any of these symptoms take your dog to the vet. immediately, whether it is from a tick bite, or something else your dog is still sick and will need medical attention.  One of these symptoms alone might not be from tick bites but a multitude of them could be signs, specially if your dog is outside a lot and plays in tall grassy areas.

There are a lot of tick repellents on the market today, not only for dogs but also humans as well.  Here are a few that you might thing about during the spring and summer when ticks are at their most active. 

Tick collars for dogs are a popular, because they are very convenient.  They are so because all you have to do is just put the collar on and it works.  They also are nice because they work from 1 to 6 months, the only downside of collars are that some of them only work for ticks.  That means if you would use one for fleas too that would be two different collars on your dog.

Topical treatment is a good idea because it covers the whole body, it works well when the dog is in an area where there are a lot of ticks.  Another good thing about Topical treatments are that some of them are waterproof and work after being bathed, swimming or whatever else they get into to get wet, no need to re-apply.  Frontline Plus is a good brand of Topical treatment, they are highly recommended by most vets.

Sprays  won't prevent fleas and ticks, but if you already have an infestation they are the best way to get rid of them the fastest.  Frontline also makes great, fast working flea and tick sprays that kill them fast.

You should regularly check your dog for ticks even if they are not showing signs of being bit.  This will help them stay healthy and might get the ticks before they even show signs.  If you happen to find ticks on your dog, you need to follow steps to insure that you get the tick out in whole.  Don't not just pull the tick out because the head may become detached and they bite wound would get infected and cause more harm to the animal.  There are many sites on the Internet that tell you the proper way to get rid of ticks off of dogs. 

Here are a few good tips to get ticks off your dog, If you see a tick do not just grab it with your fingers, if it has lyme disease or some other kind of disease it may get under your nails or in crack in your skin.  Do not ever try to burn the tick while it is still feeding on your dog.  It will release what is inside it into your dog and all the bacteria that it may be carrying, and could make your dog even more sick.  Another mistake is just squishing the tick while its still on your dog, this does the same thing as burning it, and will do more harm then good.

If you have any questions about symptoms of tick bites on dogs please contact us, we would like to hear any suggestions or comments you may have about this subject.