Ticks are fairly common ectoparasites of dogs (and cats). How often you see ticks on your dog and how severe a tick assault will be depends on the region of the country in which you live, the time of year (tick activity varies in warm and cool weather), the habits of your dog, and how and when you use tick control products. Some ticks can infest dogs that spend most of their time indoors, and even dogs that only spend brief periods of time outside can have ticks.

How will ticks affect my dog?

Ticks attach to your dog by inserting their mouthparts into your dog’s skin. Many ticks also produce a sticky, gluelike substance that helps them to remain attached. After attaching to your dog, ticks begin feeding on your dog’s blood. The places where ticks attach can become red and irritated.

Although rare, ticks can consume enough of your dog’s blood to cause a deficiency called anemia. Certain female ticks can also cause a rare paralysis in dogs as a result of a toxin they produce while feeding. More important, ticks are capable of causing many diseases in your pet. 

• Lyme disease, which comes from the deer tick, can cause stiffness, lameness, swollen joints, loss of appetite, fever and fatigue. Your dog may not show signs of the disease until several months after infected.

• Canine Ehrlichiosis, found worldwide, is the most common and one of the most dangerous tick-borne disease organisms known to infect dogs. Caused by the brown dog tick, symptoms may not surface for months after transmission, and can include fever, loss of appetite, depression, weight loss, runny eyes and nose, nose bleeds and swollen limbs.

• Canine Anaplasmosis, also called dog fever or dog tick fever, is transmitted from the deer tick. Symptoms are similar to other tick diseases including fever, loss of appetite, stiff joints and lethargy, but also can include vomiting, diarrhea. In extreme cases, dogs may suffer seizures.

• Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever comes from the American dog tick, the wood tick and the lone star tick. Symptoms include fever, stiffness, neurological problems and skin lesions. Typically the illness lasts about two weeks, but serious cases could result in death.

• Canine Babesiosis is typically transmitted by the American dog tick and the brown dog tick. Causing anemia, symptoms may also include pale gums, weakness and vomiting.

• Canine Bartonellosis comes from the brown dog tick. Symptoms are intermittent lameness and fever. Left untreated, this disease can result in heart or liver disease.

• Canine Hepatozoonosis is thought to be transmitted by the brown dog tick and Gulf Coast ticks. Your dog can be infected if he eats one of these disease-carrying ticks. Symptoms are fever, runny eyes and nose, muscle pain and diarrhea with the presence of blood.

SO what can you do?

Well one option is what the CAPC suggests...these well known veterinary topical/potentially toxic insecticides.

They are moderately effective for ticks, but have a variety of side effects.


Frontline

Consider the widely used Frontline, with the insecticides of fipronil and methoprene

According to the Pet Poison Helpline Adverse reactions in dogs or cats resulting from misapplication can include skin effects such as irritation or redness; gastrointestinal problems such as vomiting or diarrhea; or more serious effects to the nervous system such as trembling, appearing depressed or seizures.

It is very difficult to find databases of reported side effects- the FDA advises reporting pesticides to the EPA which in turn has no published source of side effects.

Here are some additional side effects as reported from 'Fipronil 12 :Third Reevaluation - Report of the Hazard Identification Assessment Review Committee; HED Doc. No. 014400
; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Health Effects Division, U.S. Government Printing Office: Washington, DC, 2000; pp 1-24'


Seizures and seizure-related death, changes in thyroid hormones, increased mass of the liver and thyroid, and kidney effects.

Endocrine disruption ( primary thyroid)

Carcinogen (increased incidence of benign and malignant follicular cell tumors in the thyroid gland


Common Sense Tick Prevention

1. Check your dog regularly and remove ticks. Many of the conventional topicals don't rapidly kill ticks- the ticks still have time to spread the lyme organism before they die.

2. Keep the underbrush is your back yard to a minimum- ticks don't live on the grass

3. Consider a natural repellent, such as one using Cedar Oil spray. Be cautious with any essential oil, and lightly mist your dogs, then use a flea comb to spread it around.

4. Consider diatomaceous earth for ticks..this is a naturally occurring, soft, siliceous sedimentary rock that is easily crumbled into a fine white to off-white powder.

Completely safe

Can be sprinkled in your back yard, and ON your pets

I regularly use it in my garden for slugs.

One local Nelson person I talked to eats it himself (the food grade version), for parasite control..

Regardless, there are many additional options than the conventional insecticides....