I found a cream tick with black legs. Is it a deer tick?

Question

I was petting my cat, who is possibly FIV positive (he had a false-positive test as a kitten and hasn't been retested yet), and I found a tick embedded in his neck. I know the tick has been there for a few days, as I felt it 2 days ago. I removed the tick and have cleansed the area on my cat's neck with rubbing alcohol and then antibiotic cream to prevent infection. I dropped the tick into an alcohol solution. I believe I got the head. The tick is cream and it has black legs. I looked up Google images, but that wasn't much help as it said deer ticks both were cream with black legs.

Also, should I take my cat to the vet for a check-up or wait for signs and symptoms first? So far, my cat is acting perfectly normal and has a great appetite and is very active. I live in Central Florida and didn't think we had deer ticks around here.

I meant to say that Google images said deer ticks were both cream AND brown with black legs.

PROFESSOR: Yeah, it's smaller than a pencil tip. :( It's a deer tick, I think.

Answer 1

The deer ticks that are responsible for Lyme disease are very, very tiny ticks. Perhaps your health department could identify the tick for you, assuming you still have it. I have posted a link that may help. The link indicates the Lyme disease transmitting ticks are black legged.

If your kitten was checked for FIV before perhaps age of 14 weeks, it could be a false positive due to antibodies from his mother.

Cream colored ticks may very well be dog ticks/wood ticks, and this is in the second link. They are also larger than deer ticks.

Answer 2

Not a deer tick - they are tiny and black/brown. They are not at all cream. Don't bother going to the vet for the tick - s/he won't be able to do anything for the cat until she or he is symptomatic of a disease. It's not likely that your cat caught something anyway.

I may seem kind of apathetic about this, but being from New York, having any pet come in to see my boss (I work for a veterinarian) without a tick is a rare sight. Cats rarely have complications from ticks, while dogs more commonly get diseases like Lyme and Ehrlichia. In fact, perhaps 50% of the dogs at the vet clinuc I work at have Lyme disease, while I don't know of any cats that have it.

Answer 3

It is very difficult to tell the difference between the various tick species just by looking at it. It takes at least several hours or more for an attached tick to transmit disease. The best prevention for cats is topical Frontline. It is safe and non-toxic. If your cat goes outside, get into the habit of checking him over every day for ticks and removing them. Your vet can test your cat for many tick diseases, but they are not routine tests and can be quite expensive. Without symptoms, most would not recommend testing at this time. Deer ticks are not the only species to carry disease.

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=1&cat=1333&articleid=602

Answer 4

It is probably a dog tick.
You can tell from the size. If it is as bigger than a pencil tip (unsharpened), it is a dog tock. If it is smaller, it is a deer tick. You can wait until the symptoms appear. Watch for a red ring around the bite that lasts a while.

Answer 5

Always take your pet to the vet, what type of tick this is I am unsure. It may possibly be a baby tick??? Most ticks are normal size and start out a cream/tan color before they get bigger from attaching to a pet. The vet should be able to help you out more than any of us can.

Answer 6

One sign of lyme's ailment is stiff joints. If he exhibits any limping or discomfort, take him to the vet. that's no longer existence threatening till left untreated. whether, particularly circumstances they gained't coach warning signs. the subsequent time he's scheduled for a time-honored verify up, ask the vet to do a "snap" attempt. This tests for lyme's, heartworm and erlichia (yet another tick ailment). I agree that deer ticks are smaller. some are so small they are able to't be actual seen. in case you reside in the woods, i could certainly use Frontline Plus or benefit, or in case you do no longer in basic terms like the assumption of putting insecticides on your puppy, you're able to do a sprint learn for replace recommendations.

Answer 7

Deer ticks are SMALL! If this one is anywhere near the size of a wood tick, it is not a deer tick. Please keep in mind that other kinds of ticks also carry diseases. I'd call the vet and ask for advice.

Answer 8

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Answer 9

kudos to you for taing care of your cat. you're right take your cat to the vet and make sure he or she's okay