Well, it never really left us, but with the warm weather and longer days more and more people are going outside. That means that everyone should take some simple precautions to minimize the chance of our dogs and/or ourselves getting bitten. For our dogs a good tick preventative applied monthly will kill most ticks. After each outing physically inspect your dog. Start with the head and shoulders because that is the first part of the dog to go into the tall grass, go over every body part carefully, check behind the ears, the collar area and elbows, work your way back over and under the body. Brush the hair back and look at the skin to see if any ticks are there. Take your time and remove the ticks you find. You may not find a tick the first time so keep looking for 24 hours after you come inside.
For ourselves, we can take some simple precautions before we walk into the tall grass. We can tuck pants into a pair of long socks, wear high boots and spray our legs with a good tick spray that contains DEET. These steps should do the trick in the field. After getting home and when you are finished inspecting the dog remove your clothes and inspect your own body. Go over every part carefully.
If you suspect your dog was bitten or find an engorged tick on the dog, get to the vet and tell the vet your suspicions. The quickest and simplest test is the Snap 4 test by Idexx, should your dog test positive your vet will most likely prescribe Doxycycline for a minimum of 4 weeks based upon the dog's weight. Follow the directions and monitor the dog during this time. Remember do not feed the dog any milk products while it is taking the antibiotic.
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