Ticks on dogs

[Scotty]

What's the best way to remove ticks from your dogs? I've heard a lot of suggestions from stubbing it with a fag to smothering it with petroleum jelly, I've also heard that this can cause it to burrow in deeper.

[Gary]

Ignore all those stories Scotty - muppets who never go near a bush let alone get a tick!

Best way is to pull it out in the opposite direction it went in - us a pair of tweezers and gently pull it back out.

I generally rub a spot of alchol gel on the spot after to steriles just in case but in the army we used to use salt mixed to a paste with a little spittle.

You can buy a special tool for tick pulling but its just an expensive tweezer designed to catch the gullible as well as the tick!

[Scotty]

Yeah that's what I've been doing so far, sometimes the head gets pulled off but I've been told the body will get rid of it over time anyway - just wanted to check really so I or my dog don't end up with lyme disease.

[BorderReiver]

Nip round your local vet and buy a set of tick removers.

Think they're called "O'Tom" or somat.They are like tiny green hockey sticks with a groove in the foot part.Work a treat.

[Missy Mycelium]

We always use the special tick pliers (the plastic type are the best and cost pennies.... we have a few pairs and always have a set on us at all times). These attach onto the tick and allow you to spin the tick off. If you just simply pull it you will remove the body from the head which is then left burrowed into your pooch. If it does happen just keep an eye on the area as it usually scabs up and you can pick it off. We always dab a bit of tee tree oil on after we've taken off the tick. These pliers are also great to get them off yourself. We have a lot of these where we live and the guys are often crawling with them, they seem to to brush into nests of the little blighters! I know you can get your dogs protected against the Borreliose (Lymes disease in English) here in Germany , don't know bout the UK.

[cryptocypher]

Out in Germany we have a big tick problem, especially around my area. As Gary said you can by an inexpensive tick removal tools, but a set of tweezers is just as good. However you can make a copy of a tick remover which is on sale in Germany for absolutely no cost.
Get and old plastic container and cut a strip of plastic from it about 3 inches by 1cm. At one end cut into the plastic a small triangle. Once the tick bites slide the tool under the ticks head and rotate slowly at the same time apply upward pressure to remove the tick.

As for putting Vaseline on the tick or burning it. This makes the tick panic as it would if someone covered you in Vaseline so you couldn’t breath or burn you with a cigarette. The tick’s reaction is to vomit, which potentially passes all the S*** that it has consumed in the last day into your blood stream.

Crypto

[Gary]

Originally Posted by Gary

You can buy a special tool for tick pulling but its just an expensive tweezer designed to catch the gullible as well as the tick!

[Missy Mycelium]

Originally Posted by Gary

You can buy a special tool for tick pulling but its just an expensive tweezer designed to catch the gullible as well as the tick!

Having tried household tweezers for tick removal on a number of occasions I find the 50c special Tick pliers are far surperior. No faffing around, it's off in a matter of seconds. It's like all things.....the right tool for the right job.

[Phil]

The old fashioned way was a dab of parafin on the body of the tick.
It would fall off about 5 mins later-worked a treat.


Phil

[BorderReiver]

Originally Posted by Phil

The old fashioned way was a dab of parafin on the body of the tick.
It would fall off about 5 mins later-worked a treat.


Phil

Not a good idea Phil,the tick does fall off but it regurgitates it's stomach contents into the hole in your skin.That then increases the risk of Lyme disease.

The mechanical twist and pull method is much safer.