Ticks: They’re Everywhere!

By Krystal, RVT

Hello everyone! Entering the new season, Richview Animal Hospital would like to remind you all about the importance of pet parasite prevention.

Ticks are an arachnid species of parasite, similar to spiders. Above freezing temperatures, they are capable of attaching to any living being quite easily. Ticks travel mainly by hitching a ride on another animal, whether it be a bird, dog, or human. They have become an increasing problem in Ontario over the past few years, particularly during the spring and fall seasons with warmer temperatures.

What makes ticks especially dangerous to people and animals is their ability to transmit diseases. For most species of ticks, the adult and immature stages may pass on diseases and/or pathogens during their meal time; they insert a feeding tube into the animal to obtain a “blood meal,” potentially allowing for infectious material to enter the body. The longer a tick feeds, the greater it grows in size. Even worse, ticks are so small (smaller than a sesame seed!) that they often go unnoticed until the adult stage becomes bloated with blood. This means that once you’ve noticed the tick, enough time has passed for it to transmit its potential disease.

While there are ways to help manage and treat the symptoms from tick diseases, it is easier to prevent the diseases from being transmitted in the first place. Many tick prevention products work by selectively killing ticks during their feeding period. It can take from hours to days for the diseases to be transmitted, providing ample time for the products to kill the tick before transmission can occur. However, the product is only effective at preventing diseases if the animal was given the product prior to being bitten. It takes time for the tick-killing agents to be effective; if a tick has been feeding for several days before the product was administered, disease transmission can still occur.

At Richview Animal Hospital, we have begun dispensing tick-preventative products for the year. For us to provide these products to your pet, we do require that they have been examined by one of our doctors within the past year and have an accurate weight assessment on file. If not, we would gladly schedule an appointment for a pet examination and discuss which prevention product would be right for you.

For more information on ticks, feel free to contact us at 416 – 245 – 8805, or email us at [email protected]. For an online resource, Tick Talk Canada provides more information. Hope to see everyone soon to discuss seasonal prevention for the year!