The trouble with ticks
Ticks are uncomfortable and annoying for your pet which leads to your cat or dog trying to rub or scratch the tick off. But these are minor irritations compared to the other problems ticks can cause:
- Ticks often cause skin reactions because of the way they attach to your pet
- If a live tick is removed there’s a risk of leaving their mouthparts in place – the embedded mouthparts act as a foreign body and can cause a granuloma (benign lump) or an abscess
- Ticks are second only to mosquitoes in their ability to transmit diseases to humans and animals.
Tick-borne diseases
UK
- Lyme disease – affects humans as well as dogs and rarely cats. In dogs it may cause fever, lethargy, arthritis and occasionally skin disease.
- Anaplasmosis – rarely diagnosed in the UK but symptoms include fever, reluctance to move and general malaise.
Europe
- Ehrlichiosis – a disease that’s seen in the Mediterranean, signs range from mild fever with loss of appetite to severe illness with anaemia and blood clotting.
- Babesiosis – seen throughout Europe but dogs travelling from the UK are more susceptible to severe illness. Affected dogs are pale and weak, have a high temperature and pass red urine. In severe cases the dog may collapse and die.
- Hepatozoonosis – often seen in conjunction with other tick-borne diseases, although many dogs infected show no signs of disease. Signs may include depression, fever, weight loss, lethargy and general malaise or more severe symptoms.
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