# HELP, I think it is a tick



## Tessa's Mommy (May 20, 2011)

Being a Canadian and where I live, ticks are not something I even think about, but we are camping and vacationing in the South right now. Last week we were in Skidaway State Park near Savanah, Georgia and took the dogs for several walks. Each of them got a lot of burrs stuck to them. We are now in Myrtle Beach, S.C. and when I was giving Cooper rubs yesterday, I found a funny lump on him. I didn`t know what it was but I thought it might be a burr. I pulled it off and now I think it was a tick. I may have left the head in him as there is still a bump at that site. I fouind another smaller one also, but I believe I got the whole tick that time. Is that possible and is this something I should be worried about. We will not be home for another week, but I could find a vet here if anyone thinks I should. Thanks for any help.


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## Tom King (Aug 2, 2006)

You don't need a vet for a tick. Find a magnifiying glass if you can't focus close enough on the spot where you think the head might still be in. It will still be right at the surface. There would still be some swelling at the site of a bite for a while anyway.

Ask if tick borne diseases are prevalent where you are, and watch for symptoms. Antibiotics work quickly when symptoms are caught early.

I grew up in the woods of Virginia, and North Carolina, and have pulled hundreds of ticks off of myself and animals. I'm able to keep them out of our yards, but they are a part of life outside in the South.


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## Tessa's Mommy (May 20, 2011)

Thanks for the reply. I have no idea about diseases in this area. We are only visiting for a couple of more days. I will take a closer look though and see if I can find the head.


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## morriscsps (Aug 17, 2010)

Like Tom said, don't worry. 

I just yanked one off of Jack last night. How he got a tick is beyond me. It snowed yesterday. I thought they would be dead.

Anyway, if you get home and Cooper shows symptoms, be sure to tell your vet that Cooper was in the South and got bitten. Here, it seems that every time a beastie limps or shows soreness in a joint, the vets suck blood and check for lyme's.

A "fun" thing to look for. The bite area scabs over and peels off, leaving a perfectly round bald spot until the hair grows back. I have discovered that Jack's hair grows back completely black. Now he has a black streak in his white eyebrows. (Getting that tick off was painful!) @[email protected]


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## Missy (Nov 6, 2006)

One thing I learned fighting Lyme disease myself...is once you get the head of the tick out swap it with hydrogen poroxide, and then dab a bit of bacitricine (plain, not pain relief) on it. It helps the bump to heal and possibly keeps the tick borne bacterias from burrowing into the the host. And it couldn't hurt.


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## morriscsps (Aug 17, 2010)

Ooo! Helpful hint! I will try to remember that next spring. Jack buries his face in any hole and always has ticks on his head.


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## DonnaC (Jul 31, 2011)

There's a lot of mythology about the head staying in. If you can't get it, it will almost surely work it's way out eventually. If he's been exposed to Lyme (unlikely), the damage is already done. Put a good antiseptic on the site to prevent infection. Welcome to the South!


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## Tessa's Mommy (May 20, 2011)

Thanks, DonnaC, love the weather, hate the little critters. just found 4 of the little suckers on my puppy, Tessa. Freaking me out.


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## Carefulove (Mar 20, 2009)

I just found one this week walking over Bumi's face. It was very small and not full at all. I checked him and he seems to have none on him but we put the treatment on him regardless during spring and fall.
DH puts something on the grass that keeps them out, but he hasn't done it since the summer.

PS: I have pull ticks out of my children and myself too. Thanks God we have caught them within hours of getting them so is not a big deal, the problem (at least for humans) is after at least 24 hrs of attaching themselves on you. (or is it 48?)...


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## Tessa's Mommy (May 20, 2011)

I'm a city girl from up north of the border. I have never seen them before this. Disgusting little things, aren't they?


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## Becky Chittenden (Feb 4, 2009)

Not to worry, just look for symptoms but I wouldn't expect any. We live in the woods in E. TN and yes there are ticks. I found none on my dogs this year, but my husband was a tick magnet. Most were just crawling on him, though. I do put down something once a year in the areas my dogs exercise and put flea and tick preventative on them. 
Just a note for the future: if you smear something on the tick like Vasoline and wait about 5 minutes, it's easy to get a tick out with tweezers.


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## Luciledodd (Sep 5, 2009)

I would be more worried about a flea infestation than ticks. Seems everytime that I have ever traveled with a dog, we came home with fleas, especially if they were walked at the interstate rest stops.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

morriscsps said:


> Like Tom said, don't worry.
> 
> I just yanked one off of Jack last night. How he got a tick is beyond me. It snowed yesterday. I thought they would be dead.
> 
> ...


Hey! That's not fair! Kodi's tick bites grow in white, so he has WHITE streaks on his head!


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## morriscsps (Aug 17, 2010)

krandall said:


> Hey! That's not fair! Kodi's tick bites grow in white, so he has WHITE streaks on his head!


ound: too funny! Well, I found another one on his nose. I can't figure out where he found them.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

morriscsps said:


> ound: too funny! Well, I found another one on his nose. I can't figure out where he found them.


Yeah, it has been a relatively tick-free year for us up until the last couple of weeks. Then they came out in force! I doused the cat, but I'm hoping the snow will at least slow them down enough that I can get away withhout dosing Kodi again.


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## eso (Nov 1, 2009)

As I was falling asleep on Sunday night, I felt something crawling on my arm (worst feeling ever). I caught it, put it in a jar, and then proceeded to FREAK out thinking it was a bed bug... 

Well, in the light of the next morning, after some searching on Google, it turns out it is a tick. That explains the weird lumpy scab on my dog that showed up recently... It must have fed and then detached and then was looking for another meal when I caught it. 

Wouldn't have expected this in Vancouver, BC... I have a vet appointment for the dogs tomorrow morning, just to make sure everything is ok - and to get them on some kind of tick repellent.


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