How to Check Your Dog For Ticks & Why It is So Important

Why is it important to check my dog for ticks? 

Ticks can carry diseases that they pass onto the dog they bite, most commonly being Lyme disease. The ticks your dog brings inside could also fall off and attach onto a human, transmitting the same diseases.

How do I check my dog for ticks? 

Ticks are most likely to be found on the warmest parts of your dog’s body, due to their love for warm temperatures. This includes around the tail, eyelids and ears as well as between the front and back legs. 

This diagram should give you a better understanding of which spots to look for ticks: 

How do I remove ticks from my dog? 

1. The correct way to remove a tick from your dog is with the use of fine point tweezers. Using this tool will help prevent tearing the tick’s body and spreading whatever infections it has around the open area. 
2. Part your dog’s fur so you have a good visual of where the tick is attached. 
3. Grasp the tick with the tweezers as close to the skin as possible and pull upward gently and slowly. 

Here at ohDEER, we have created the initiative T.I.C.K9 which stands for Take Initiative Check Canines. Our goal is to educate people on how to check their dogs for ticks and raise awareness about the importance of doing so! We understand that pets are like family and want you to be able to spend as much time with them as possible.