Found A Tick On A Foster Boy

[Tracey]

This morning I found a tick on our fawn foster boy, Rufus. I looked before when they got here but I missed this one until today. I didn't see any on either of them before, but now that I've found one I didn't see before, I wonder am I missing more?

 

I did remove the offending creepy crawly. I used some tweezers and was sure that I was able to get the whole thing. It was definitely alive when I pulled it off and since I wasn't exactly sure what to do with it to kill it, I cut it in half with a knife and then smashed it.

 

Now I know no one's going to pick up a tick here. We have snow on the ground and have never seen a tick in our yard or neighborhood in the 11 years we've been here. But what do I do about any potential hitchhikers that I have yet to find? And what about Chase and Morgan? Should I be concerned for them?

 

Thanks for any advice. I'm sure this has been covered, but in typical fashion I don't tend to pay attention to medical information until I need to know it.

[Batmom]

If you can lay hands on some Frontline spray (for the dogs), it's great stuff.

 

I would give everybody a good comb-over with a flea comb if you have one, and double check between toes and paw pads with a good flashlight.

[Guest Energy11]

I LOVE Adams Flea and Tick Mist. If it were my crew, I'd get some and mist them all really well, and repeat again in seven to nine days. WE had ticks early in the summer. We figured out they came from the straw we bought for the front turnout pen. Good Luck! Ticks are NASTY!

[Guest Greyt_dog_lover]

personally I use Revolution for monthly flee/tick/heartworm/hookworm/roundworm control. I would second the fine-tooth comb of all the hounds in the home.

[Trihounds]

Great advice above. We've managed 5-6 'cling-ons' without additional sprays before but we gave our newcomer more than a 'once over'. The nooks and cranny's like between toes / pads are great hiding spots for the little critters. Good luck and have fun with Rufus!

[Guest LindsaySF]

Agreed with checking between the toes. I use Frontline too.

[Guest MomoftheFuzzy]

Six years of having Speck and I only found one tick on him once. Luckily, (IIRC) Rufus is a light-haired boy so finding ticks should be easy, if there are anymore and if you plan on doing (another) body check. They say the nooks and crannies of a dog (under the tail, at the shoulders/joints and the underbelly, etc.) are likely places for the buggers to affix themselves. I guess do the same for your two. Good luck.

[ahicks51]

I'm not normally much for pesticides if I can help it, but Frontline wouldn't be a bad idea if you find another one.

 

Be forewarned- it's one of those weird paralytics; they come off, and then will be found around the house in their dazed death throes. Much disgustingness, but it beats the heck out of live ticks, and TBDs.

[Wonder]

When I get fosters, they are frontlined, capstared and dewormed

yuck

Edited December 14, 2009 by Wonder

[Tracey]

Thanks for all of the suggestions. I had limited selection at Petco and a salesperson who kept trying to sell me something other than what I was looking for. I kept telling him I had gotten suggestions from people who do this all the time and he wouldn't back off. I didn't even ask for help in the first place.

 

Anywayyyyyy, I got the Adams Flea and Tick Spray (no Frontline spray carried in the store) and while I was at it I got the Adams Flea and Tick Shampoo as well. I figured couldn't hurt, might help, yadda yadda yadda. By the way, before the bath we did another tick check. Nothing else found on Rufus but we found two on Reggie, one on his neck and another next to his berries.

 

Bathing Rufus was, well, a challenge . Reggie wasn't thrilled, but he was pretty good once I got him in the tub. I think they would have been happier if I'd given them a bath instead of a shower, but years of experience tells me I just can't get a dog as clean and rinsed off as well with a bath as I can with a shower and a pitcher.

 

On the plus side, since I had to help them upstairs to the shower I also had to help them back down and both boys, after just three days have already almost gotten the hang of walking down the stairs. All I have to do is hang onto their collars and they do the rest. Yay!

 

Thanks again for everyone's help!

[Guest Energy11]

Nope ... the baths couldn't hurt! LOTS of work, though. You should be fine with the ticks. IT IS WEIRD being so cold where you live, that you are even seeing them! I stopped spraying my dogs the middle of Oct. You have HARDY ticks up there! Good Luck! p.s. Frontline Spray is only available at the vets or online.

[Guest GreysAndMoreGreys]

If you gave them a bath with the Adams I would wait a day or so before putting the spray on them.

 

You are using chemicals and sometimes more is not always better.

If you already sprayed them then I'm sure everything will be fine but I just like to give a day or more rest in between chemical treatments.

 

Even with the Frontline spray they recommend that you wait 24 hrs after giving the dog a bath before applying.

And I'm sure the little bugger was a hitch hiker from FL

[Guest sc1911cwp]

My Greys are on Frontline. Just a short story. This past Spring I took my guys for a quick walk in the woods on wide trails, less than five minutes. When I got to the car I noticed a tick on me so I decided to check my two Greys. To make it short, I checked then 3 times within an hour and found 32 ticks betweent the two of them. a lot were between the toes. To date there have been no ill effects. However, you need to know two things. 1. Some preventitives DO NOT prevent a tick from latching on, they kill when they do and you may find a dead one on them. 2. Be aware that using more than one preventitive may be bad to your dog. Check with your Vet for their advice. Remember, they are insecticides and could harm them as well as yourself.