As soon as the temperature reaches plus 4, ticks are out and about.
Ticks can carry a variety of diseases and should be removed right away.
Dr. Roxanne Neufeld, Veterinarian at the Dauphin Vet Clinic, explains how to remove a tick safely from your pet.
“Absolutely we do want to remove them, so if you are finding ticks on your pet, and they’ve not been given a tick product, then you want to grab the tick as close to the skin as you can and just gently pull them off. It’s preferable to wear gloves when you are doing it, and at the very least wash your hands with soap and water right after handling ticks.”
Neufeld also says they are seeing a few different varieties of ticks in the area such as the Lonestar Tick, but the Deer Tick is the most worrisome because it spreads Lyme Disease.
She suggests you don’t put ticks down the drain or destroy them with your bare hands, but rather put them in a container of alcohol to kill them.
Along with the usage of tick products for pets, Dr. Neufeld recommends people get their pets vaccinated for Lyme Disease, since it is hard to treat.
