how to remove a tick from a long haired puppy's head(ANSWERS NEEDED)?

Question

my 10 wk oldlabradoodle with a fleece coat has a tick on her head, just on the brow, how do i remove it?

thanks all, i got it out, nast little bugger! she (puppy) wasn't happy bout me pocking at her head, but she stayed still enough!

Answer 1

If you're going to attempt to remove the tick youself, , DO NOT apply petroleum jelly, a hot match, or alcohol will NOT cause the tick to 'back out.' In fact, these irritants may cause the tick to deposit more disease-carrying saliva in the wound.

To remove an attached tick, use a pair of fine-tipped tweezers or special tick removal instruments. These special devices allow one to remove the tick without squeezing the tick body. This is important as you do not want to crush the tick and force harmful bacteria to leave the tick and enter your pet's bloodstream.

Grab the tick by the head or mouth parts right where they enter the skin. Do not grasp the tick by the body.

Without jerking, pull firmly and steadily directly outward. Do not twist the tick as you are pulling.

After removing the tick, place it in a jar of alcohol to kill it. Ticks are NOT killed by flushing them down the toilet.

Clean the bite wound with a disinfectant. If you want to, apply a small amount of a triple antibiotic ointment.

Wash your hands thoroughly.

Please do not use your fingers to remove or dispose of the tick. We do not want you in contact with a potentially disease-carrying tick. Do NOT squash the tick with your fingers. The contents of the tick can transmit disease.

Once an embedded tick is manually removed, it is not uncommon for a welt and skin reaction to occur. A little hydrocortisone spray will help alleviate the irritation, but it may take a week or more for healing to take place. In some cases, the tick bite may permanently scar leaving a hairless area. This skin irritation is due to the irritating and destructive tick saliva. It is not due to the tick losing its head, literally. Do not be worried about the tick head staying in; it rarely happens. The swelling is due to toxic saliva, not toxic heads.

Answer 2

If its not in too deep, you can still see the head, you might be able to pull it out. Grab it carefully with some type of tweezers or hemostat and try to pull it out. If it looks like the head is going to come off, stop. You might need to see a vet. If you can see the tick moving, and its not in too deep, you can try a match. Get all the hair away from the tick, have someone hold the dogs head. Light a match and shake it out. Immediately, while it is still red, hold the match as close to the ticks bottom as you can without actually touching it. The tick might let go of the puppy and you can grab it with a tissue and flush it.
Hope this helps.

Answer 3

There is a cool little tool - a tiny 'spoon' with a slit in it that allows you to remove the tick, head & all, without touching it. Pet-Medic Tick Removing Kits
http://www.petco.com/Shop/Product.aspx?R=4363&Nav=1&N=0&Ntt=tick&cp=3&Nao=24&sku=630187&familyID=14800&FamilyID=14800&sku=630187 There are various versions, they all are similar and work.

I have used it: get one, keep it handy, Use it! then get your pets on a good tick /flea preventative, like Frontline, and keep 'em on it!

Ticks can carry Lyme Disease as well as other diseases that can be passed on to YOU as well as your pets. If at all possible, you want to remove the tick before 24 - 48 hrs have passed, before it swells enough for body fluids to exchange much. For that reason, you do not want to handle the tick, tear it apart, or squish it. the blood it has sucked up can pass disease even if the tick is removed.

Once you remove it - to make sure it is dead, put it in a plastifc baggie with some rubbing Alchohol - to kill any germs or disease - and show the baggie to your vet. (drowning completely in alchohol WILL kill and disinfect the bug, but you can't 'drown' it while still attached!) The Vet can tell you if the tick is a type that can carry Lyme disease. Make sure you wash your hands thoughroughly after removing the tick, wash the dog's head, & anything you used, as well. Even if you get all the tick, before 24 hrs, & it isn't a 'Lyme" tick, your dog can still have an irritated itch or allergic reaction to the bite. clean well!

The Alchohol, vaseline, hot match/ needle, etc are all "old" remedies that are outdated because they never worked very well, and before people really knew about Lyme disease, etc. (If someone put a hot match to your butt, would you let go? or dig in deeper to get away from it? and what about the poor dog? he gets the hot match, too?)

Answer 4

The removal of a tick can be difficult. Take your pup to the vet if this is your first time dealing with ticks. You can watch what they do and learn for the next time. Good Luck.
P.S. You might want to think of using a pre-treatment program if you live in an area that has lots of ticks. Talk to your vet about different products that are available to you.

Answer 5

If you find a tick on your dog, you should first find the spot and hold a cotton swab full of mineral oil against the tick completely. This will begin the process of easing the release of the tick on your dog. Then you’ll want to use tweezers to pinch the tick off your dog. With the tweezers you should pinch the skin around the tick. The tick grasps its head against the dog’s skin face first. So you need to grab the head of the tick deep in your dog’s skin and lift it out.

The tick removal process can be very painful for your dog. You need to be aware of that. Because this is so difficult for a pet, you should certainly give your pet a treat as soon as the entire process is over, so it won’t be as scared when it has to be done again.


You should take some steps to make sure your pet doesn’t get as many ticks. You can do this by getting a tick collar that is designed to keep ticks away, walking your dog in a clear area as ticks like wooded areas, and check out you and your dog regularly for ticks.

Answer 6

I use a Q-tip to apply flea and tick shampoo directly to the tick (no water). They hate it and start kicking their legs around. I then use tweezers to pull the tick straight out. I can burn it then without worrying about putting a hot match so close to my dog's skin. This has worked every time for me, and never leaves any part of the tick behind.

Wash the tick bite with warm water (the shampoo is already there) and that should be it.

Answer 7

Use fine-tipped tweezers to grasp the tick at the skin surface. If tweezers are not available, use a tissue or paper towel to protect your fingers from possible exposure to the tick's body fluids. With a steady motion, gently pull the tick straight out. Do not twist, jerk or crush the tick's body. After removal, clean site and hands with soap and water.

Answer 8

Push the dogs hair down on either side of tic and using tweezers, or your fingernails, grab the tick by it's base and pull up. Make sure not to leave the tic's head behind in the dog's skin. Sometimes, it will break off while pulling it's body out.

Answer 9

This is how I do it. first light and blow out a match. touch the hot end of the blown out match directly on the tick to kill it. use rubbing alcohol to swab the tick and area where it is attached. using tweezers grasp the ticks mouth as close to the skin as possible. now with gentle constant pressure pull the ticks mouth parts straight out....be gentle so you dont break off the tick under the skin.

Answer 10

There is a product called Campho Phenique.
Put some on a cotton ball and apply to tick. It will come off right away. Then burn tick with match.
Put peroxide on spot where tick was. Do Not use this method on humans. It can cause tick to put more toxin in human and cause severe irritation and or Lyme disease.