Ticks! Bleh! Help!

[bigorangemenace]

I gave elliot a bath today with this special vet shampoo to help with his dandruff. I was brushing him and scratchign his neck when I noticed he had something on his neck. I thought maybe it was just an owie from playing with aerowyn, so I took a look at it and it was a nasty tick!

I got some hydrogen peroxide and put it on the tick, and poked it with a q-tip for a while, because there is no alcohol in the house?? Anyways then I resorted to taking the tweezers and trying to pull it out gently, and this little sucker (no pun intended) just didnt want to give up! So I pulled gently for a little bit longer and it finally came out! Poor elliot was such a good trooper! BUt then I looked back at the spot and noticed there was something still in there that was black, so I put a bit more peroxide on it and tried to get it out with the tweezers, but they were too big, so I tried to squeeze it out a bit, didnt work. Then I got a pair of fingernail clippers and very carefully pulled it out. It still looks a bit grey under there, but I think that what was left in there was the icky mouth parts.

Anyways what I wanted to ask was the myth of ticks. If the head/mouth parts are left in there, will it eventually burrow a hole in my cats skin, eventually causing death? My mom always told me that if I didnt get the head parts out it would make a little hole in me! Gross! I think I got all of it out, poor elliot the area is red.. I washed it out and gave him a treat. I think I got the whole tick out, but anyone have any advice for a "next time" and what an easier way to get the tick out would be for elliot? This is the first one he has had all year yet. I burned the rest of that little sucker on the stove

the pop was satisfying

Look! NO faces!! Woot!

 

[hissy]

You really should get your cat to the vet. Pulling up a tick by tweezers is a no-no because it leaves the head buried, and it sounds (to me anyway) that you didn't get all the head out. This can lead to a nasty infection for your cat and some major health issues. Next time, keep on hand some Frontline- you can get it from your vet. Using a q-tip put some frontline on the q-tip and put that on the tick, the tick will feel itself dying and will raise its head to get out of the situation. Once it raises its head, nab it with a pair of tweezers and plop it in a jar, sealing the jar shut- it will die in a few minutes time.

 

[bigorangemenace]

I went online to look at pictures of ticks when they are whole. They look exactly lik ethe tick I had, except my tick was missing its left pincher thing, and that is what I pulled out of Elliot. So he should be fine. I will watch him, and we have to go back in on tuesday anyways to see about his giardia.
He's only ever had one tick besides this one, and my mom got it out. I was aware of the danger of leaving thehead in, and moved him to a well lighted area and made sure to push the tick out a bit with the q-tip... the evil little fang was all that was sticking in. I just checked it again and it is fine. there is nothing else in there.

It was a common dog tick by the way, not a wood tick. Gosh i wish there was a way to get those rabbits and deer out of our yard! Sigh.. maybe they just wont be able to go outside on leashes anymore

Gosh I hate bugs like ticks and mosquitoes, what do they do for the environment anyways?

IT makes you afraid to go outside with west nile and lymes disease

It makes me so sad to have to keep them inside though...

 

[jennyr]

I would mention it to your vet when you go - my Persil caught the erlichia parasite from ticks - a slow growing disease that attacks the bone marrow if left but easily treated. Frontline kills ticks as said, so keep your cats protected from them with regular applications. I had no idea about this till a blood test for something else showed it up.