The cat has a tick head, what to do and why it is necessary to remove the parasite completely: current advice

What ticks are dangerous for cats

Ixodes ticks are dangerous for cats. These insects carry infectious diseases that, under adverse conditions (for example, weakened immunity of the animal, small or old age), can cause the death of a pet.

Places where a cat can pick up an insect

Ticks like to be in places with high humidity, in the shade. Often they wait for the victim, sitting on tall grass, leaves of shrubs. Domestic cats do not walk in the forest, however, a meeting with a bloodsucker can occur in a landscaped yard area, in a park area, in a country cottage. In addition, the parasite can get into the apartment, clinging to clothes or shoes of a person, on the fur of other pets.

When are ticks most active?

Where do ticks most often bite?

Parasites do not bite as soon as they are on the body of the victim. The insect is looking for the most secluded place. Cats are most commonly bitten in the area behind the ears, chest and neck.

How to protect yourself from ticks

Currently, there are many products on the market for the prevention of tick bites. All of them have a repellent or acaricidal effect. The former repel insects with a specific smell, the latter destroy them thanks to the chemicals in their composition. Death occurs so quickly that the insect does not have time to stick to the victim. The most common and effective means to protect cats are:

• collars;
• sprays and aerosols;
• drops on the withers.

In addition, inspections after a walk should not be neglected: the cat's body must be carefully examined, pushing the hair apart with your hands, especially in those places where bloodsuckers most often dig.

Diseases carried by ticks

Parasites carry many infectious diseases, but not all of them are dangerous for cats. The most common cat diseases that are spread by ixodid ticks are:

Tick ​​bite symptoms

It happens that the owner does not notice the tick on the body of his pet and within a few days he disappears on his own. You can suspect a bite if you have the following symptoms:

• refusal of food, loss of appetite;
• temperature increase;
• pallor of mucous membranes;
• yellowness of the skin;
• discoloration of urine;
• nausea, vomiting, diarrhea.

If the above symptoms appear, you should immediately contact your veterinarian and tell about your assumptions.

Ways to detect ticks in cats

Cats that are often outdoors should be checked daily. The easiest way to find a tick that has already stuck to the skin - after drinking blood, it increases in size. However, in this case, the risk of infection is much higher than if the tick is just on the coat.

First of all, you need to look for a bloodsucker in the following places:

• ears;
• neck;
• armpits;
• inner surface of the thigh;
• stomach;
• armpits.

For inspection, it is necessary to move the hair apart with your hands, since the parasite is small and can be overlooked. If you managed to find a tick, you should not stop searching, there may be several of them on the body. If the attached tick was not found, it is necessary to look for it on the wool.

To do this, it is recommended to seat the animal on a white cloth and comb through with a fine comb. Thus, if the tick falls out of the wool, it will not be able to go unnoticed - it will be clearly visible on light-colored matter.

How to remove a tick from a cat at home, depending on the tools and substances used

Most experienced and prudent owners know that there are several devices and tricky ways to extract a tick at home.

With the help of insecticide drops

Insectoacaricidal drops have a detrimental effect on various types of parasites. They can also be used to remove a stuck tick. To do this, it is necessary to apply the drug pointwise to the bite site. If after 20 minutes the parasite does not disappear, you need to remove it with the help of special tools.

Special fixtures

There are special devices for removing ticks - tickers and lasso loops. They can be purchased at both veterinary and regular pharmacies. Advantages of extraction with these tools: The parasite does not experience fear and does not try to hold on with all its might. Before starting the action, it is necessary to wear rubber gloves, treat the bite site with an antiseptic. The procedure is as follows:

• place the device on the flat side of the tick's body;
• pick up the insect in the slot and fix it;
• lift the tool, turn it three times counterclockwise;
• remove the insect.

After removal, it is imperative to disinfect the instrument and the bite site.

Tweezers

If special devices are not available, tweezers can be used, but only a tool with flat, inwardly curved edges will do. Precautions must be observed: disinfect the bite site, do not work with bare hands. You need to act as follows:

• grab the tick with the tool as close to the skin as possible;
• slowly loosen it from side to side until it comes out of the skin with a characteristic click;
• treat the bite site with an antiseptic.

Thread

In the absence of other improvised materials, you can try to pull out the bloodsucker with a thread. To do this, wrap the body of the parasite with a thread and tie it tightly. Then slowly and gently begin to stretch, without making sudden movements and without pulling sharply upwards. When performing the procedure, do not forget about the precautions listed in the paragraphs above.

What to do if the head of the tick remains in the body of the pet

Despite following the rules and being careful, the head of the tick can remain under the skin of the cat. In fact, this will not have serious consequences. Sooner or later, the skin itself will reject the foreign body. To prevent secondary infection, it is recommended to treat the bite site with disinfectants: 70% alcohol solution or iodine.

How to get a tick out of a cat depending on the location of the parasite

It is quite possible to pull a tick out of a cat, the main thing is to act confidently and quickly.

Savant Providence

It is advisable to prepare for the extraction procedure. For this you need:

How to get a tick out of your ear

If the tick has stuck shallowly in the auricle, it can be removed using the methods described above - with a special tool or tweezers. If the parasite has made its way deep into the ear, you should not try to remove it yourself, you should immediately contact the veterinary clinic.

How to remove a tick under the eye

You can remove the parasite from this area in the same way as from other parts of the body. The difficulty lies in the fact that cats do not like it when they get into their eyes, so you need to be extremely careful during the procedure - you can accidentally poke a pet in the eye with tweezers or a tool. You also need to be careful when treating the bite site with a disinfectant - you should not allow it to get into your eyes.

Actions after removing the parasite

After the insect is removed, it is important to take a few more steps so that all efforts are not in vain.

What to do with a tick

The extracted tick must be sent to a special laboratory to detect its infection. If this is not possible, then it must be destroyed by burning.

In no case should you just throw it away: it can break free and bite someone else.

Before being sent for research, the insect is placed in a jar or container with a tight lid. If the tick is dead, it is necessary to place a wet piece of cotton wool with it in the container.

What to do with a cat

As mentioned above, the bite site must be treated with an antiseptic. Further, within 3 weeks, it is necessary to carefully monitor the condition of the animal and, if alarming symptoms appear, immediately show it to the veterinarian. It is also advisable to pierce the course of immunoglobulin, but this is not a guarantee that the cat will not get sick. This measure is aimed at increasing the body's defenses.

Common Mistakes

There are several folk methods for extracting a tick, which in reality can seriously harm. Among them:

• an attempt to extract the parasite using a chemical (acetone, dichlorvos, etc.) - this will not remove the parasite, but will only burn the pet's body;
• an attempt to burn a tick on the body of an animal - such an attempt will not work, the cat will most likely get burned;
• an attempt to remove the tick with bare hands - most likely, the tick will be crushed, the contents will fall on the wound and the animal will get sick;
• pour oil over the insect before removing it - many believe that the tick will suffocate and fall off, in reality it will really die, but before that it will regurgitate the contents of its intestines into the wound, which will cause infection.

Complications after being bitten by ticks

The most dangerous complications of a tick bite in cats are the development of infectious diseases - borreliosis, tularemia, and so on. In severe cases, the disease causes the death of the animal or significantly reduces its quality of life. Also an unpleasant consequence is the secondary infection of the wound, the appearance of abscesses, inflammations, ulcers.