# A tick fell off my dog



## berkeleyfreebird (Apr 21, 2015)

Last night I noticed a huge tick on my dog's ear. I didn't have any tweezers so I was planning on purchasing a tick tweezers from a vet today. When I woke up this morning, I noticed the tick wasn't on her ears anymore. I checked her bed and there it was. It was still moving so I put it in a cup with a little rubbing alcohol.

It either fell off because it was there long enough to get full or the dog scratched it off. Should I be worry for lyme disease or other kinds of diseases associated with ticks?


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## katieliz (Mar 29, 2007)

I sure would be, but you should ask your vet what you can do. sooner the better, I would think.


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## EJQ (May 13, 2003)

The blood test would confirm the presence of Lyme one way or the other - I do not know how soon after a bite the condition could be detected. Ask your vet


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## David Taggart (Nov 25, 2012)

Encephalitis and piraplasmosis in dogs - both are viral deseases, both are carried by ticks. and very common. Read about them, better to know the symptoms. The best thing to do at the moment - to monitor your dog's temperature and observe her if she isn't sluggish, sleeps too much or refuses food. Adress to vet if you noticed.


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## sabre1106 (May 26, 2014)

That is a strange looking tick. Where are you from?


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## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

Go to this site and identify the tick. Different ticks carry different diseases. It fell off because it was full and it was going to lay eggs. Select your region to get the appropriate list of ticks.

Tick looks normal to me; just upside down. You will need to flip over to ID.

TickEncounter Resource Center > Tick Identification

The CDC has a list of tick diseases and which ticks carry it. During tick season it is important to check daily or more and pull off ASAP as the longer they are on the dog, the more likely they will transmit a disease. There is a lot of other good info on the CDC page.

CDC - Tickborne Diseases of the U.S. - Ticks


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## berkeleyfreebird (Apr 21, 2015)

I'm from the bay area in California. From the chart, it looks like a brown dog tick.


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## Traveler's Mom (Sep 24, 2012)

That's what it looks like to me to. I am very (did I say VERY) familiar with these guys. They are the only tick that can live in homes. It was an Alfred Hitchcock nightmare getting rid of them. 

I tried all the herbals and homeopathic remedies to keep from having to use a one drop flea and tick killer on the dog but it was a no go. Ended up with K9 AdvantixII and Frontline Plus in rotation.

My warning to you is to try your best to stay on top of it before you get caught unaware like we were. Twice a day tick checks. Our walls are light colored and these ticks have no problem hanging out in the seam between ceiling and walls. Cedar oil kills on contact.

Lynn & Traveler

Lynn & Traveler


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## Chip18 (Jan 11, 2014)

Food grade Diatomaceous earth works well in the home and is worth investing.
Learn How Dogs and Cats Can Benefit From Diatomaceous Earth

We are from San Jose Ca. and we solved our flea and tick "problem" by moving to NV! Kinda of expensive but it worked!


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## Girl_Loves_Hydraulics (Apr 13, 2014)

Man that thing got its grub on! I detest ticks total ick factor.


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## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

Good site to bang around - this page gives you a close up of the head part - 


TickEncounter Resource Center > Tick Identification > Tick Identification Guide

and the tick activity page tells you which ones are being most reported during the current time

TickEncounter Resource Center > Current Tick Activity


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

Once (in Europe) I saved one of these engorged ticks in a jar and after a few days, hundreds of tiny ticks were crawling around (no eggs) Indeed Hitchcock-level horror. Glad you found that tick.


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## Traveler's Mom (Sep 24, 2012)

Chip18 is right about the DE. I used so much it looked like it snowed inside my house. Dust clouds as you walked over my carpet. Not good. It may be non toxic but breathing in snootfuls is not healthy. I have since moderated to a light dusting only baseboards and under furniture.

If you find you have them, vacuum and vacuum some more and tick check the dog twice a day so you can stop the influx.


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## llombardo (Dec 11, 2011)

Traveler's Mom said:


> Chip18 is right about the DE. I used so much it looked like it snowed inside my house. Dust clouds as you walked over my carpet. Not good. It may be non toxic but breathing in snootfuls is not healthy. I have since moderated to a light dusting only baseboards and under furniture.
> 
> If you find you have them, vacuum and vacuum some more and tick check the dog twice a day so you can stop the influx.


I did the same thing with the DE in the house, never again I put it in their food now.


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## LisaT (Feb 7, 2005)

Personally, my biggest regret was not treated the engorged tick that was found in my dog's head. I believe it produced lots of head and eye issues as he aged, though he never tested positive for anything, but also needed to be on doxy for most of his later life as the only way to keep things in check. In such a vital area as the ear, I would treat with doxy. 

I believe that many of the tick diseases in CA aren't found with any of the tests out there, and if you have a dog on the west coast bit by a brown dog tick, it's a crap shoot what might happen. 

My dog's bite started swelling and bruising at about 4 weeks post-bite (earlier found an engorged brown tick on her inner leg). She's unique because she has a skin condition and her skin is kinda translucent, so it could be more readily seen than on a normal dog. Which tells me that I bet we miss a lot of issues with regular dogs.


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## Hineni7 (Nov 8, 2014)

Seems like ticks are bad this year... In 10yrs of living here I have never seen a tick on any of my dogs.... Until this year... Have found 3! Started rose geranium oil and will see how that works.. Rosemary oil is proven to work, and have that ordered... Praying I don't have to go to chemicals..


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## Findlay (Jan 8, 2015)

EJQ said:


> The blood test would confirm the presence of Lyme one way or the other - I do not know how soon after a bite the condition could be detected. Ask your vet


Finn got the Lyme vaccine and I Frontline him monthly.
Does the vaccine actually prevent lyme disease?


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## sourdough44 (Oct 26, 2013)

You will never find all ticks visually, you need a treatment. Spring, like right now, is HIGH time for ticks.


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## WesS (Apr 10, 2015)

I absolutely abhor ticks. I hate them. I hate them. I hate them. Spent 3 hours last night looking through every inch of fur. And I am looking to try find more today. God I hate ticks. It is the season. And nothing I do seems to rid them. I am constantly looking for hidden ticks. They absolutely disgust me. I get paranoid each time I see the dog itch. I know it's the ticks. Oh... Did I mention I hate them?


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## Nikitta (Nov 10, 2011)

****, I'm going out to frontline both mine again.


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## afigueroa101486 (4 mo ago)

Wow clearly none of you live on a farm lol. Pinch it off, throw it away, pop it, or torch it...I've had 20 dogs all lived well into their teens. None of them were off beat. I do highly believe ticks have instilled fear into people and are much less a threat than assumed.


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## afigueroa101486 (4 mo ago)

Oh my God people relax clearly none of you have lived in a farm. Wild dogs and coyotes have been living in existing for thousands of years in the woods and swamps full of ticks. It's not going to kill your dog and the odds of it killing you are very slim.


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## pebble41 (May 17, 2021)

This is a 7 year old thread...


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## Dunkirk (May 7, 2015)

In my country, ticks can kill dogs.

Paralysis ticks are found along the eastern coast of Australia from North Queensland to Northern Victoria. In Sydney they can potentially occur all year round, but the main season begins in spring and finishes in late autumn.
Ticks are generally found on animals that live near or visit bushland or the beach. They can be carried into your yard by visiting possums and bandicoots which are relatively immune to the effects of the toxin. However, the toxin does affect the nervous system of dogs and cats and causes progressive paralysis which is a potentially fatal disease.
A tick will crawl onto an animal, bury its head deep into the skin and latch on using its barbed mouth parts.
When a tick first attaches to your pet it is very small, and will spend some time sucking blood before injecting enough toxin to cause signs of illness.
*Studies have shown that even with treatment there is a 5% death rate.*

*What are the Signs of Tick Paralysis?*


Appearing wobbly, uncoordinated and weak – this usually is most notable in the hind legs, progressing to the front lets
Change in bark or voice
Difficulty breathing or panting or grunting
Retching, coughing or vomiting
Progressive paralysis and respiratory failure
Symptoms of tick intoxication start 48-72 hours after tick attachment, but can take up to one week before symptoms develop.


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## WNGD (Jan 15, 2005)

We had 3 ticks early this Summer and I thought it was going to be a bad year...but that's it so far, fingers crossed. I don't sweat it, they're just a reality and better than fleas!


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## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

Mr. Figueroa, perhaps you have never had the bad luck of having a dog infected with Babesia, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Lyme, or any of a host of other very serious tick diseases. Me? I've got many thousands of dollars of vet bills for dogs who nearly died from tick diseases. We take it so seriously now that when we rescue dogs that are covered in ticks, we're sending off tick titers and probably starting them on Doxy while we wait for the results. Our rescue's vet is convinced that our practice of using a high dose of Doxy for 4 weeks for heartworm disease is actually tamping down a lot of subclinical tick disease in the same dogs -- it's rampant. When the tick disease turns clinical, it takes a lot of money, weeks of care, and sometimes a vet clinic with a 24/7 ICU to pull some of them through.

I'm happy for you that your animals haven't gone through that sort of illness -- and you might live in an area where there is a low rate of tick disease -- but for many people who live in areas with high rates of tick disease, ticks can be dangerous for both human AND companion animal health. Your farm's experience likely can't be extrapolated to different parts of the world with high tick-disease burdens. The incidence of tick disease seems to be rising too, in people and pets: It Is Always a Bad Year for Ticks: Update on Ticks and Pathogens

There's a fabulous map of incidence that can be examined county-by-county in the United States here: 





Parasite Prevalence Maps | Pets & Parasites: The Pet Owner's Parasite Resource







www.petsandparasites.org




And in Canada: Parasite Prevalence Maps | Pets & Parasites: The Pet Owner's Parasite Resource

We've had other threads discussing research finding Bartonella (another tick disease) inside hemangiosarcoma tumors.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Our Athena recently had a high fever with vomiting. The vet said her temperature was over 105. Two nights in the hospital; tests showed she had Anaplasmosis. Just finished a 28-day dose of doxycycline, and she’s feeling great.

We definitely take ticks seriously.


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