Ticks
Byron's Dog Blog
For Everyone
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Tick bites have the potential to be extremely dangerous. Always consult a vet. This article is not medical advice.
As if there aren't enough things to worry about, what with poisonous chemicals in the water, chocolate and other toxins on the street, and the constant threat of running out of poop bags, there are also ticks. And ticks are a really serious problem.
Every time your pooch rubs against a bush, rolls in the grass or comes into contact with plants of almost any kind, there's a chance a tiny tick will sneak onto that beautiful coat and begin digging into it, looking for a moist place to stick his face into, so he can suck your pooch's blood. As if that wasn't bad enough, some ticks carry bacteria known to cause some extremely serious problems.
Although there are different species of tick, and each has its own set of threats, the general problem is that ticks can pass on bacterial infections that can be life threatening, in a very short time. Some infections can be transmitted in as little as 15 minutes.
What's In A Bite?
For the purpose of keeping this post concise, I'm only going to focus on the Deer Tick, which is distinctive, with its orange back and black legs.
A Deer Tick - Courtesy of Erik Karits, via Pexels.com
This is the tick we're all paranoid about. It's the kind that is known to spread the dreaded Lyme Disease, which is an infection caused by Borrelia bacteria, that gets progressively worse, the longer it goes untreated; it can cause paralysis and even death (it's possible that the victim may lose the ability to control the muscles responsible for breathing). There are many other infections that ticks can transmit, along with the eggs of other parasites, but I will focus on Lyme Disease, because it seems to be the most severe.
Yesterday, I found such a tick on Byron's neck. After removal, the mouth parts were still embedded and the area began to swell and go pink. This is a very bad sign. The formation of a pink-rimmed, pale patch, surrounding a deer tick bite is usually an early symptom of Lyme Disease.
Panic mode.
This is the time to get to a vet, and that's exactly what we did. Thankfully, after removing the mouth parts and disinfecting the area, the vet assured me that there is no cause for worry. Of course, I still need to monitor the area for at least a month, but it looks better, today.
Early Symptoms Of Infection
The early symptoms of Lyme Disease can include any or all of the following, but don't assume there's nothing to worry about, just because you don't see any of them. These symptoms can take anything up to a month to manifest, so you need to keep an eagle eye on the area for at least that long, before you can relax.
If you notice or suspect any of these symptoms, or you feel otherwise unsure about a tick bite, the best bet is to see the vet (or the doctor, if it's you who has been bitten), as soon as possible - They have the ability to look more closely, perform a blood test, etc.. In the worst case, a short course of antibiotics is usually sufficient to deal with the infection, as long as you catch it early.
Because the damage caused by late-stage Lyme Disease can be so extreme, there's no sense in waiting to see if it goes away. You really must get medical care at the earliest possible time. For that reason, there's no point in worrying you with the late-stage symptoms, because you will not let it progress to those extremes (I hope).
Rash
Any rash near the bite is cause for immediate medical treatment, but specifically a target-shaped, or so-called "Bull's-Eye" rash, is pretty much a guarantee of Lyme Disease. It's usually around 2"/5cm wide, but can be much larger, and may be accompanied by scabbing or stickiness. On darker skin, it may appear more yellow in the center. It can be difficult to see on very dark skin, so be extra vigilant. The edges of the ring can feel crusty and the bite can be itchy or painful, or feel like the skin is burning.
"Flu-like" Symptoms
Mild, or even severe, fever, which can be accompanied by chills, muscle and joint pain, tiredness, headache, and swelling in the lymph nodes near the bite.
Difficulty Sleeping
Interrupted sleep, insomnia, night sweats and more. If sleep disorders are already a problem, this could easily go unnoticed.
Dizziness
Possibly accompanied by breathing difficulties or dizziness.
Light Sensitivity
Normal amounts of daylight causing headaches and eye pain, or difficulty focusing the eyes.
Loss Of Co-ordination
Tripping, imbalance, clumsiness, tongue-tied speech.
Pain For No Obvious Reason
Can also be accompanied by unexpected sensations, anywhere on the body.
How will you know if your companion animal is experiencing any of these symptoms? You're going to have to pay really close attention to their behavior. If they are sleeping more than usual, appear to be itching or reacting to unexpected sensations, or if their normal sounds are different, they could be in trouble. Some signs will be more obvious than others, such as an intolerance to light, or clumsiness, but others will be subtle, and it's your job to make sure you spot them.
Tick Varieties
If you've just removed a tick from your companion animal, or even from yourself, there's a website that can help you to identify the kind of tick you're dealing with, which can help you to known if there's any cause for concern. This website focuses on North America, but these ticks can be found in many other places, besides.
See TickCheck.com.
How To Remove A Tick
Tick Tweezers
There are many types of tick tweezers on the market. Discount the plastic ones, immediately. They're flexible, at best, and may snap under pressure. Worthless. Stainless steel is the only material you should consider, because it's strong and easy to clean. Besides that, get the type that you press to close, not to open. Press-to-open is needlessly complicated, and it depends on a spring to do the actual squeezing, which means that you have to hope the spring is strong enough - which it usually isn't.
Plastic, spring-powered, press-to-open tweezers. A waste of time and money.
Stainless steel, finger-powered, press-to-close tweezers. The real deal.
Unlike tweezers you find in a cosmetics store or pharmacy, tick tweezers are hooked at the end, which makes it much easier to see what you're doing, get a good grip, and not squash the tick, which could result in infected blood from their previous victim being pumped into your best pal. Don't mess about. Get the proper tool for the job.
Pay Attention
The first time you try to remove a tick, you'll be shocked at how well-anchored it seems to be. You pull, and it's like tugging at the leg of a donkey. This can lead to a variety of experiments, such as twisting and bending, tugging fast, pulling slowly, and whatever else you can think of to try to dislodge the creature. But the reality is that most of those movements are going to cause the mouth parts to break off and remain embedded in the skin. If that happens, there is a slightly increased risk of infection, not just with Lyme Disease or other pathogens, but also the type of general infection that comes from skin being open to the elements.
When I removed the tick from Byron, yesterday, I followed the instructions of the packet of the tick removal tweezers, and it turned out to be the worst possible advice. Ever. Ignore whatever advice you find on the packaging of your tick tweezers, and do only this:
Prepare
Get your steel tick tweezers, anti-septic wipes / alcohol / peroxide water / other disinfectant suitable for open skin.
You may need a magnifying glass, as some ticks are really small. I use a camera lens to get a really detailed view.
And... Action
- Place the tweezers as close as possible to the skin.
- Squeeze them very hard.
- Pull the tick directly out, very slowly.
- Check the tick still has its mouth parts (use the lens to look closely)
→ If not, try to remove the mouth parts from the wound, but don't damage the skin any more than necessary, digging around. The body will expel the mouth parts, if they are left there. - Flush the tick, to remove the risk of contamination.
- Use the alcohol or other disinfectant to clean the area thoroughly.
- Inspect the area again (with the lens or magnifying glass), to make sure it looks clean.
Prevention
Preventing tick bites is a multi-million dollar market. And that seems to be pretty much all it is. I have personally tried the 30 euro tick collar, and it has not prevented ticks. I've tried the pills, and they have not prevented ticks. I've tried the brewer's yeast, and that actually did seem to help, but none of these things can stop ticks from ever interesting themselves in a tasty snack.
And there's also the case of toxic chemicals to think about. When you put pills in your dog's food, the chemicals it contains are designed to kill ticks. That means they contain poison. And you feed them to your dog. Think about that. And then the collars. They are coated in tick-killing poison. Even if you can pretend to yourself that these chemicals won't seep into your best pal's skin, how long is it before they are completely wiped off that rubber/plastic collar? Not like, I think. As for brewer's yeast? Well, it was more effective than the other options, at least for me, but how much yeast do you want to feed your dog? Isn't there a point at which you risk giving him a yeast infection, which can also be rather serious?
As far as solutions from the Burt-Cave, I'm all out. The best thing I can suggest is to try to keep your dog from going into the bushes, and give him a good check over as soon as he finishes rolling in the grass. Of course, if your dog's got thick or matted hair, this is going to be much more difficult, in which case, it's up to you to decide if they should have a haircut.
At the end of the day, or ideally, at the end of each walk, spend a bit of time inspecting that shaggy coat and make sure to remove any insects you find, immediately, whether they appear to be ticks or not.
Summary
I haven't got all the answers, but I hope I've answered some of your questions. If you have anything to add, please leave a comment in the section below, and I will add any useful info to this post. Thanks!