Ticks.

[whitey]

Well it looks like a bad year for ticks.Harley came up yesterday and I noticed something near His collar.It was a freakin huge pumped up blood sucking tick.I thought WTF..Holy SH!T.. :yike:What to I do.
So I grabbed him in a head lock and started to heat the blod sucking Boaster up with a Bic  ..It started to come at then stopped.So then I grabbed a twig and got it on fire and started to heat its A$$ up again..He just stayed in there..So I thought screw it and grabbed the little Focker and gave it kindof a twist and pop out it comes.
I removed 2 others..

So what is the best way to remove this nastey buggers..The head lock wasnt really the best.The flame thrower not very good.The fire on the stick thing didnt really work all that well.
Tips please.
Thanks,
Whitey..

[bobcat]

Pull them out with tweezers, or there's a special tick removal tool that I have, similar to tweezers, that works really well. I've never had any luck with any of the other methods.

[Mr56Jeep]

Tweezers... There is a thing about a slight counter clock wise rotation while pulling... Not sure why you rotate CCW and not CW  but a vet told me that one time and I have gone with it since.

[Curly]

Harley must have thought you'd gone nuts or something and were trying to choke and burn him.......   Glad you got those blood suckers out of him. 

[croix]

From a doctor:

The best way to remove a tick is to pull it off gently, leaving the tick and its mouth parts intact. This can be difficult because some ticks cement their mouth parts into the skin. Every effort should be made to remove this cement if it does not come out with the tick. Applying heat, alcohol, petroleum jelly or fingernail polish to an embedded tick is not effective. The following is the recommended procedure:

Use blunt curved tweezers or a thread.
Grasp the tick as close to the skin surface as possible and pull upward with a steady, even pressure.
Do not twist or jerk the tick because this may cause the mouth parts to detach and remain in the skin.
You should pull firmly enough to lift up the skin.
Hold this tension for 3 to 4 minutes and the tick will back out.
DO NOT squeeze, crush, or puncture the body of the tick because its fluids may contain bacteria.
Immediately dispose of the tick. If you have any concerns, put the tick in a plastic bag and freeze it. If you get sick you can take the dead tick with you when you see your provider.
Immediately wash your hands and the affected area with soap and water.

[whitey]

Curly
The look on His face was "WTF" it was priceless.
The beer factor might have added a touch of "WTF" to the situation..
Those things gross me out.
How long to You think it had been on him?the other 2 were kind of small but the 1 was "Tickzilla".

I also took a gave Harley a break while I went and got more beer and some rubbing alcohol..
I jumped on the Computer and looked up "Tick removal".It said to apply Rubbing alcohol and then apply (Like Mentioned) a Counter Clockwise presure and pull the tick out.They said the C/CW twist makes the little Focker release. . As soon as I finished the removal I took Him down to the river to hopefully wash any of the ones that might have been on him but not inbedded yet.
Im going to get some of the front line stuff for him today..
Thanks fellas.
Whitey..

[Curly]

Curly
The look on His face was "WTF" it was priceless.

  I bet.  I was picturing the look on his face.  I love the looks they give sometimes..........it's like they are mind melding you.

[whacker1]

Yes, we have removed a couple of ticks from our dog this year.

[quadrafire]

I have pulled a million ticks over the years. I have never used anything other than my fingers with a gentle pull. No need to twist. Definately don't want to play with fire that close to your dogs coat. That would be a picture wouldn't it, douse the sucker with alcohol then get out the bic

[whitey]

quadrafire
You know how they get their butts real low to the ground and haul A$$ around the yard..Well He made a bunch of laps around the Yard once I put the flame thrower and the flammable fluids away.
He only came out of it with 1 bald spot the size of a soft ball..
What the heck it was "Tickzilla"The thing was huge..
 
I will check him again today,thats after I catch him with My head lock..
The one good thing about this is a tic cant hide in a bold spot..

[quadrafire]

Now thats funny right there! You may never get him in a headlock again.

[whitey]

Come here Harley..Look what I have..Flame thrower,beers and flammable liquids..

Miles
I tried the "Tick Whisper Thing" with no luck.But thats as close as my mouth is coming to a tick.

[Mr56Jeep]

YouTube has a number of good and bad examples of how to pull'em.   

[whitey]

YouTube has a number of good and bad examples of how to pull'em.   

That was grossing Me out.I think I will just stick to the "head lock and flame thrower"At least You dont have time to really think about how gross it is

I watch like 2 minutes of 1 and that was enough for me..

[whitey]

More freakin ticks..
I said screw it and went and got some frontline..I will see if that works..
I have no idea where they can be coming from.Maybe the dog house..Shavings must be the shavings??

[Skyvalhunter]

Frontline worked for me. I had a krap load of ticks last year.

[whitey]

Hey SkyVal was Your dog getting them on this side of the hill.
If so were they coming out of the yard or dog house or just picking them up everywhere..
I cant figure out where Harley is getting them..It drives Me nuts.
Is the Frontline water proof?
Chuck at the feed store said He "Thought" it was.
I havent taken Harley swimming since I applied it for fear it would wash off.
Poor dog it must suck to be as "Black"as an Ace of Spades.
Thanks, Brother Man..
P.S
Have You been over to Grouse Camp yet this Year?

[Stickerbush]

I noticed one on my lab once in the house so I tried to grab her and pull her to me real quick. She was on ear meds at the time and thought I was trying to squirt the solution down her ears (which she hates), so she takes off and I'm trying to get her and she runs right past me and the tick falls off onto the kitchen floor. I had her on frontline and the tick seemed like it was dying or else it wouldnt have fallen off. Frontline seems pretty good.

My best way is just gently with tweezers straight out or even needle nose plyers, dont want to burn the tick because when they are burned they can puke in the bloodstream and put a bunch of nasty stuff in there.

[stumprat]

A little Kerosene works wonders to get ticks to back out. Works for dogs and people

[Curly]

Is the Frontline water proof?

Yes it is.  I believe it lasts 30 days or something around there if your dog has been swimming.

[arintime]

•Waterproof: effective even after swimming, bathing and grooming. This was off of http://frontline.us.merial.com/prd.asp. I thought it absorbed into the dog skin and worked like that. You probably only needed to keep your pup out of the water for a short amount of time to be effective.

[ladyelkslayer]

I've used Frontline for the past year on my lab, and it works wonders!! We kept checking our dog for ticks, and thought we had the majority of them, but as soon as we put the frontline on him, the next couple of days we were finding dead ticks everywhere! it's disgusting, but Id rather have the dead ticks than the live ones!

As far as being waterproof, don't let the dog swim for 24 hrs after applying.  After that, he/she is good to go! Just make sure to apply it once a month. We dont apply it from September-February since it is colder.

Good Luck!!

[whitey]

Found a "Tickziila" tonight on the floor.I thought it was a piece of gravel..
And I agree.Super yuck.
Bring on winter.

[floatinghat]

I haven't tried it yet but was told pour a little veggie oil on the tick.  I guess they can't breath and back out to get some air?  Hell everyone has veggie oil in their kitchen.

[Wingin it]

Are your dogs actually picking up ticks on the wet side?

[whitey]

Wingin it
Yes Sir.
I think He was picking them up in the chips in His kennel.So I cleaned the whole thing out and Bleached it..He hasnt been back in there since.

I have had Gun dogs most My life and have never had a tick on any of them..
Dont know..
But they are freaking nastey little S.O.B's