04/08/2025
It's getting warmer out... and that unfortunately means ticks are out and about. So make sure that after you have been outside that you give yourself and your pets a quick look for them!
They are about the size of a sesame seed before the start feeding, and the blacklegged ones (the ones that carry Lyme disease) are a reddish brown with dark legs. They can attach anywhere, but their favorite spots on people are the neck, armpits, and groin, and on pets they like to be in the armpits and behind the ears. I found this one on my dog on Sunday! You can see it's swelled up some, so it was attached for maybe a day before I found it.
If you find one, get some tweezers and grab it by the head as close to the skin as possible. Then pull up firmly with steady pressure. Don't jerk or twist, or squeeze the body, and it should come out. If the mouthparts stay stuck in it's usually not a problem and they will come out on their own later, but it's possible to get a local infection.
If the tick was attached to you for more than a day, give us a call. We can help prescribe some prophylaxis antibiotics to reduce the risk of getting Lyme disease.
Stay safe out there, and sorry for the gross picture!
