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NORTH DAKOTA (KXNET) — The risk of Lyme Disease is getting to be higher than ever, but there are ways you can keep it from spreading to your furry friends.
According to a report from the Companion Animal Parasite Council, this increase is because of rehoming pets, changes in wildlife populations, and climatic changes. Ticks can be brought into the house very easily, which brings a risk to companion animals and pet owners. Thankfully, the team at veterinarians.org is sharing six pieces of information on removing ticks from pets.
Identify the tick as soon as possible, as they feed on blood and transmit diseases within three to six hours.
Don’t use your fingers to remove a tick, as it puts you at risk of disease and can squeeze additional infectious material into the bite area.
Using a tick removal tool, like a tick twister, is a simple way to remove ticks from pets. If you live in a tick-dense area and walk in nature a lot, having a tick twister in the car can be useful.
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Clean the tick bite and affected area as soon as the tick is removed. Use an antibiotic ointment or topical disinfectant spray and keep that in the car.
If the tick is engorged, and you’re concerned it was on for too long, you can preserve it for your vet to identify. You can do this by putting the tick in rubbing alcohol and in a container, then marking it with the date and general location of where the tick originated.
Keep an eye out for any tick disease-related symptoms.
You can find more information about tick prevention, diseases, and symptoms here.
