How to Remove Ticks from Pets
Ticks are a form of parasitic spiders who live in long grasses and woody, bushy areas. They also like living off your pet. Ticks can carry Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain fever and other diseases that can affect both animal and man. They can also transfer to other animals and pets, and they can multiply quickly if left unchecked. It’s important that we check our pets regularly for ticks and remove any ticks as soon as we can. Here’s how.
Materials
Surgical gloves
A jar with kerosene
Antiseptic cream
Hand soap
Newspapers
Procedure
Spread old newspapers on the spot where your pet will lie down while you remove the ticks.
Get your pet in a comfortable position. For larger animals like big dogs, you may want a friend to help you keep your pet in place.
Put on surgical gloves or latex gloves. Don’t use your bare hands to remove ticks from your pets as ticks have diseases that can be passed on to humans.
While some guides may say that you should use tweezers, don’t. It’s easier to remove ticks by hand and will cause less discomfort for your pet.
Use your hands to check your pet’s fur or their skin. Ticks may feel like small bumps on your pet’s skin, like a lump, a pea or even a grape. Inspect the bump. If it’s dark and grayish with a smooth surface, it’s a tick.
Use your fingers to grip the tick very tightly, as close to the skin as possible–now is not the time to be grossed out! Hold it firmly and twist and turn the tick in a counterclockwise direction. Pull it out at the same time in a straight direction. Doing all of this in one swift motion is ideal so it will cause less pain for your pet, especially one with long hairs.
Some people recommend squishing the tick with a rock, but for a less disgusting way to get rid of it is to drop the tick in a jar half-full with kerosene. The kerosene will effectively kill the tick and keep it in one place. You can later pour the kerosene with the ticks on a newspaper and burn them to make sure they’re dead.
Apply the appropriate antiseptic cream on the area where you found a tick. Ticks usually leave small puncture wounds on the skin, which can lead to infection.
Remove your gloves and dispose of them properly.
Wash your hands thoroughly.
If ticks are a recurring problem for your pet, you may want to invest in tick powder, tick shampoo or a anti-tick cone which your pet can wear for a limited amount of time. Visit your neighborhood vet to know more about ticks and how to get rid of them. You may also want to investigate your surroundings and keep your pet away from places where it’s likely for your pet to get ticks.