How to correctly remove a tick from a cat

Veterinarians are often faced with the fact that owners do not know how to remove a tick from a cat, and are forced to eliminate mistakes, which turns into a serious problem for the animal. For some reason, there are a lot of wrong ways among people to get a bloodsucker, despite the negative experience. Therefore, it would be useful to remind you how to remove a tick according to the rules and how not to do this.

Ixodid and Argas parasites dig into the cat's delicate skin to suck blood. The former have a hard shell along the back in males, and in females only in the area of ​​the head. The latter have soft integuments unprotected by the shield. Both species in a hungry state are barely noticeable in the thickness of the fur; we begin to see them when they have already managed to insert the head under the skin, swell in size, and are saturated with blood. Usually in this enlarged state we stretch them out.

Argasid and ixodid ticks

How to detect a tick

A parasite that has not yet become attached can be found by carefully examining and stroking the cat. The suckers are sometimes more difficult to find. Ticks prefer to attach themselves to animals in areas with the thinnest skin:

• ears;
• eyelids;
• lips;
• groin area;
• anal hole.

But ticks can also appear on the cat's neck or back. The easiest way to find parasites in thick fur is by scratching the cat thoroughly.

Important!

Do not stroke the fur, but scratch against the grain. Even a still hungry, but already attached tick under your fingers feels like a hard, mobile tubercle. Having discovered such a tubercle, you need to disassemble the fur and make sure that there is a parasite there. Sometimes an old sore that has begun to peel away from the skin can be mistaken for a tick. On the stomach, the main thing is not to confuse ticks with nipples, which are found not only in cats, but also in cats.

How to detect a tick and what does it look like?

In order to detect and remove a tick from a cat's body, you need to know what it looks like and where to look for it. It is recommended to examine the cat after each walk immediately upon returning home. Since mites can be extremely small (up to 5 mm), it is best to inspect under a lamp or other powerful light source.

Characteristic external signs of a tick:

• drop-shaped or oval body in gray or brown shades;
• 6 or 8 legs;
• small size from 1 mm to 1.5 cm in length after full saturation.

Having positioned and secured the cat under the light source, the owner should carefully examine the entire surface of the pet’s body, parting the fur with his fingers or combing it with a fine-tooth comb. Particular attention should be paid to the areas of the groin, armpits, neck and ears.

It is difficult to detect a tick that has just attached or has not yet attached itself due to its small size and flat shape. But as soon as the flow of blood begins, the body of the parasite will increase in size and can be found simply by feeling it.

Preventive measures

It is always better to prevent a situation than to look for solutions later. To do this, you need to be careful about protecting your cat. You can purchase a spray or collar at any pet store or veterinary pharmacy; they will protect your pet from insect attacks. You can consult your doctor before purchasing.

In order to avoid complications, you should take vaccination responsibly, that is, do all vaccinations in a timely manner. This attitude of the owner towards his animal will protect him from sad consequences. And even with a tick bite, from which no one is protected, the risks of infection are reduced to zero.

How to properly remove a tick from a cat

After identifying the bloodsucker, you can begin to remove it:

• take the cat more comfortably;
• take a closer look at the tick;
• lubricate scratched hands with brilliant green;
• put the cat in a carrier and take it to the veterinary hospital.

Most cats really, at any attempt to manipulate them, begin to fight for their lives as if they know for sure that an order has been received for a hat made from their skin.

But there are ways to remove ticks from a cat at home. If the cat really does not like such manipulations, it can be immobilized by driving it into the sleeve of a jacket so that its head sticks out of the sleeve. After this, all manipulations with the head and in the tail area can be carried out quite calmly.

On a note!

Veterinary clinics have a special “sleeve” that allows you to immobilize a cat and allows access to any part of the animal’s body, depending on the procedures being performed.

How to remove ticks from a cat at home

When removing a parasite, you can use several proven methods.

Thread

Take a strong, coarse thread and make a loop with it. Place it over the tick, as close to the skin as possible. Gently squeeze both ends with your fingers and begin turning counterclockwise. The tick can easily wriggle out of the skin and can be destroyed.

Hook

This hook in its appearance resembles a bent fork, which has only two prongs. You need to place the hook so that the tick is between these teeth, and unscrew it from the animal’s body. These special hooks can be purchased at almost any pet store.

But in the absence of such an opportunity, there is still a way to remove a tick from a cat at home.

Tweezers or clamp

The shape of these surgical instruments is quite curved, so they can easily capture the body of a tick, preferably right next to the skin of the animal. After the tick is securely captured by the tool, you need to start rotating the tool counterclockwise and pull out the insect. This will require 2-3 full turns.

The main thing when pulling out a parasite is to try to make all movements smoothly and not jerk, since the head of the tick easily comes off and remains in the wound, which can cause suppuration and unpleasant consequences for your pet.

As soon as you have finished removing the tick from the cat’s body, you must immediately disinfect the wound:

• Disinfecting ointments containing antibiotics;
• If the wound does become inflamed, then use a spray with hydrocortisone to stop the further development of the pathology;
• The wound after tick removal can take almost a week to heal;
• Even if everything went well and the wound healed quickly, it is worth observing the animal for three weeks. If your cat exhibits symptoms such as lethargy, lack of appetite, itching and fever, take her to the veterinarian as soon as possible.

After removal, the tick must be properly destroyed. These parasites are extremely tenacious, and even if you flush it down the drain, you cannot be sure that it really died. Do not crush the insect with your fingers or trample it with your feet. Place it in a jar of alcohol or burn it. To be sure, you can take it to the clinic and have it tested to be sure that your animal has not become infected with anything.

If you realize that you cannot cope with removing the attached parasite on your own, then the most correct solution is to go to a veterinary clinic, where a good specialist will be able to carry out this procedure in the safest way for your pet. If the cat is restless, the clinic will place it in a special sleeve and carry out the entire procedure using sterile specialized instruments.

In addition, you can, by watching how the doctor does it, learn how to perform this operation yourself. At the clinic, you can leave the removed parasite for analysis so that you know for sure that your pet is not in danger. Otherwise, it is better to treat the disease at the earliest stage.

Prevention of bites

Cats that live and walk near the forest (for example, in the country) are at risk. To protect them, there are numerous antiparasitic agents sold in veterinary pharmacies. They are designed to repel insects and ticks. Here are the suitable options:

1. Sprays and drops on the withers. The most effective, but are toxic and act for a short period of time. Animals should not be allowed to lick them from their fur.
2. Collars. Thin rubber straps are impregnated with a special compound. Less toxic, but due to prolonged contact with skin, allergic reactions or irritation may occur. It is better to wear them only when walking and take them off at home.

Any owner wants his pet to be healthy. This means that in the warm season you need to pay increased attention to the cat’s safety and use preventative agents against ticks.

How to properly remove a tick

A tick on a cat Do not give in to advice to spray an arachnid that has already attached itself with a flea remedy.
The bloodsucker will die. But not at once. And before death, it will release the contents of the intestines into the blood along with all the infectious agents present in the insides. The dead parasite's proboscis will remain in the animal's skin and will break off when trying to remove the corpse. It is also bad advice to lubricate the bloodsucker with oil/nail polish/acetone/gasoline and other household chemicals. The arthropod will live for another day, suffer and infect its victim with viruses.

Cats have a smaller arsenal of arthropod removal products than humans. But the same tools are used:

• industrial;
• syringe;
• tweezers;
• thread.

Industrial devices include special devices that allow you to remove a tick without squeezing its body. They may look like a mini nail puller or a special loop of thin wire that retracts into a handle holder.

The device is carefully placed under the tick and unscrewed like a screw. To turn the parasite out, it is twisted counterclockwise.

Important!

Under no circumstances should you rudely tear out an arachnid. In this case, it is easy to tear off the head, which will remain in the skin.

In the absence of special devices, you can rid the animal of the parasite using tweezers. This is not a very desirable option, since unscrewing a tick with tweezers without squeezing the arachnid’s body is a difficult task.

Tweezers

The tweezers are brought as close to the skin as possible and the head of the ixodus is clamped under the body. Then remove it by also unscrewing it counterclockwise.

Thread

A loop of thread is placed over the head of the arthropod, it is tightened and the parasite is removed, gently swinging it from side to side. With this method, the arachnid's head often comes off.

The cat was bitten by a tick - what to do?

So, we found out how to detect a tick on a cat. Now let's talk about what to do if you find out that a parasite has attached itself to a cat. Your job is to safely remove the tick from your cat. There are two basic rules.

Rule one. You cannot use pseudo-folk methods such as smearing with oil or alcohol, igniting with a hot match, etc. While the tick is suffocating and dying, it will release a lot of saliva under the skin: the risk of infection will increase. You should also not try to remove the bloodsucker using a syringe and vacuum. This method most often does not work, even if you retract the piston very hard. You can watch the video of a man trying to pull out a parasite with a syringe and not succeeding, after which he uses tweezers, but incorrectly, and therefore the body comes off, but the head remains inside.

Rule two. When you pull out a tick, grab it as close to the skin as possible, that is, do not grab it by the butt or the middle of the body. You need to grab it quite firmly, but gently. Compressing the head on both sides will block the salivary flow. At the same time, you should not grab so hard as to provoke the bloodsucker to release a portion of saliva into the blood, as well as to tear his body and leave his head in the skin.

Removal at home: step-by-step instructions

Knowing how to remove a tick from a cat, you can carry out the manipulation with a minimum of discomfort for your pet.

Recommendations to use vegetable oil, dripping it onto the embedded parasite, are incorrect, since they extremely rarely lead to a positive result and take too much time, during which the tick’s saliva continues to enter the animal’s body.

The tick must be removed immediately after detection and the matter cannot be put off until a trip to the veterinary clinic. This reduces the risk of your cat contracting diseases.

You can remove the parasite using 3 devices. It is optimal to have special lasso handles or tick twisters, but if they are not available, tweezers will do. To ensure that the tick's head does not remain in the skin, it must be pulled out carefully.

A special veterinary lasso is a plastic stick with a tightening loop at the end. The principle of use is as follows:

• the lasso is thrown over the parasite extremely close to the victim’s skin and, after pulling it up, it is fixed;
• Having brought the device into a vertical position, it is turned clockwise, unscrewing the attached parasite.

It is not enough to have a tick-twister - you also need to know how to properly remove a tick using this tool. It looks like a curved stick, one of the ends of which has a slot (similar to a small nail puller). The device makes it easy to pull out even a deeply embedded tick without tearing it into two parts. Manipulations must be carried out in the following sequence:

• a tick-twister on the skin is placed under the head of the tick;
• then pull it out with rotating movements directed upward.

Tweezers are used as a last resort. It often crushes the parasite rather than removing it completely. The remaining head has to be pulled out separately at the veterinary clinic to prevent suppuration. The sequence of actions is as follows:

• Use tweezers to clamp the tick tightly, but not too tightly, so as not to damage its body;
• then the bloodsucker is twisted out. The parasite can only be removed using rotational movements. It is strictly forbidden to pull it out, as otherwise the tick will leave a detached head in the skin. After the death of the bloodsucker, saliva from its head continues to be released for some time, poisoning the victim’s body. Also, a foreign object in the skin causes a purulent process, which is dangerous with serious consequences.

The best solution if you find a tick is a trip to the veterinarian. An experienced specialist will be able to quickly and efficiently remove the parasite, send its body for testing and prevent possible diseases of the animal.

If you still decide to remove the tick yourself, this can be done at home using several methods.

We suggest you read: Treating an area for ticks in Chekhov

There are several options for removing the parasite:

• Using thread. Take a coarse thread and make a loop out of it, then wrap it around the tick’s body as close to the animal’s body as possible. You need to squeeze the thread and carefully unscrew the tick by turning it counterclockwise.
• Special hook. In pet stores you can purchase special hooks designed to remove pests. Outwardly, it looks like a curved fork with 2 prongs. The tick needs to be secured between them, then also begin to unscrew.
• Removal with tweezers. Thanks to its convenient shape, the tweezers allow you to grab the animal as close to the trunk as possible. You need to pinch it and then pull it out of the skin with rotational movements.

What is the most effective way to remove ticks from a cat? Using a hook gives good results even for beginners, thanks to the well-thought-out shape of this tool, but not everyone may have such an item in their household, so after using it, tweezers will be the most convenient way to remove it.

Previously, we listed the main methods of removal, each of which is based on the same principle - grab the pest as close to the cat’s body as possible and reach it with rotational movements. Using the example of removal with tweezers, let’s take a closer look at how to remove a tick from a cat:

1. Preparation. Take the tool, calm the animal and secure it so that it cannot escape during removal. Be sure to wear protective gloves to prevent infection from coming into contact with a tick.
2. Take tweezers and grab them near the head, as close as possible to the point of penetration into the skin. Under no circumstances grab this parasite by the body!
3. Using gentle rotational movements, begin to twist the parasite out of the body. Usually after three turns you can remove the tick.
4. Be sure to wipe the bite area with an antiseptic. Monitor your pet's condition for several weeks after the bite. If you notice alarming symptoms, take your cat to the vet immediately.
5. The removed tick should be burned or placed in a container with alcohol. In the second case, you can also take him to the laboratory and find out whether he was a carrier of infections.

What not to do:

• On the Internet you can find a lot of advice that the tick needs to be lubricated with alcohol, oil, and sometimes gasoline before being pulled out. Experienced veterinarians do not recommend doing this. The parasite will definitely begin to experience discomfort from this, but in addition to weakening its grip, this will lead to increased salivation, which increases the chances of infection.
• Do not crush ticks on your cat's body.
• Pick out the tick with a needle or simply pull it out with your fingers.

If you were unable to remove the tick completely and its proboscis broke off, the remaining part of the body must be carefully removed from the body using the same tweezers or a pin. Be sure to wipe the tools with alcohol.

Now you know how to remove a tick from a cat and can perform this operation yourself!

Now you know how to remove a tick from a cat. But after removing the parasite, do not forget to additionally treat the bite site with an antiseptic. Carefully monitor your pet’s condition for several days, check to see if swelling has appeared at the site of the removed tick, or if there is a rash on the skin. If there is a reason, consult a doctor, not forgetting to tell him about the tick you removed. And follow the recommendations exactly when giving your cat the prescribed medication.

Ears should be cleaned regularly with cotton swabs containing hydrogen peroxide.

How to remove a tick from a cat - step-by-step instructions

Once a parasite is detected, it must be removed immediately. If you decide to carry out the removal procedure yourself, you should follow simple rules.

1. The procedure is carried out wearing rubber gloves - this will protect against accidental infection.
2. It is necessary to secure the pet so that it does not move during the procedure. It is better to ask a second person for help.
3. Under no circumstances should you pull out the parasite abruptly.
4. Pull out the tick in a circular motion, clockwise.
5. Before the procedure, treat your hands, instruments and the bite site with a disinfectant.

Extraction Methods

There are two ways to properly and safely remove a tick from a cat. The first method is extraction by hand , thread or tweezers . Regardless of which tool you choose, the algorithm of actions is the same. Use your fingers or tweezers to grab the insect as close to the proboscis as possible. You need to pull it out slowly, smoothly turning the body clockwise or rocking it from side to side.

Proceed carefully, making sure that the head of the tick does not remain under the skin. After removing the parasite, you need to treat the bite site with an antiseptic (iodine, brilliant green, alcohol) so that the cat does not develop bumps on the skin. After removing the insect, it should be destroyed immediately.

The second method is removal using a syringe . To do this, you will need a new medical syringe and a knife (preferably a stationery knife).

You need to take a syringe and cut off the part from the side of the needle with a knife. The edge should be smooth. Then press the syringe tightly to the place where the tick sits. Slowly pump out the air. The difference in pressure should pull the insect out.

After the procedure, you need to destroy the tick and treat the bite site.

This method is rarely used. If the tick is firmly attached, the vacuum inside the syringe will not pull the insect out, but will only provide additional blood flow.

The tick is torn

A tick on a cat If the parasite is not carefully removed using tweezers or thread, the head often remains in the animal's skin. It looks like a black dot if the cat's skin is white. If the skin is black, it is impossible to see the proboscis. If the tick's head remains in the cat's body, there are 2 possible options:

• wait until it comes out on its own;
• remove with a needle.

In the first case, usually no complications occur. Sometimes, in place of the proboscis remaining in the skin, a hard tubercle appears, which disappears on its own after some time.

In the second case, to remove the head of a tick from a cat, take an ordinary disinfected needle and pick it out like a splinter.

Important!

The cat will definitely not like this manipulation.

What to do with a tick after removal?

You shouldn’t flush it down the toilet, much less throw it out the window. It is necessary to ensure that the dangerous insect is destroyed. There are two options: put it in alcohol or burn it.

Of course, you should remove it as soon as possible. The ixodid tick itself does not pose a serious problem, but the infection it can carry can have dangerous consequences. Of course, not all insects are carriers of infections, but still, treatment should not be delayed.

There are different types of mites, with different symptoms, however, the treatment methods for all of them are almost the same. It is important to understand that before you try to remove a tick from a cat, you need to get all the necessary information about how to do it. Self-indulgence in treatment can cause serious harm!

It is quite difficult to confuse a tick with other insects, but if you have never encountered one before, here are their distinctive features:

1. Their body looks like a drop, which can have the following colors: black, gray or brown. It is especially easy to detect a parasite that has drunk blood; its body grows several times and it is not difficult to notice the parasite.
2. Three or four pairs of legs protrude from their body.
3. The parasite has a proboscis on its head. Ticks bury their heads down and it is impossible to notice them in this state. If the tick has just landed on the cat’s body, is tangled in the fur, or has not yet had time to attach itself, then you can easily understand what you managed to protect your pet from.

Before the parasite drinks blood, the parasite's body will be small in size, which will significantly complicate its search on the pet's body. Some characteristic signs of a tick bite, such as itching, can help.

It would be a good idea to check other parts of the body, such as the back. Just because a tick prefers soft places doesn’t mean it can’t attach itself to other places. However, in soft places, as close to bare skin as possible, it is much more common.

A more effective detection method is to comb the cat's fur. Run the comb through the fur, but very carefully and slowly so as not to accidentally disturb the tick and not give it a reason to crawl deeper.

What not to do

The Internet is full of “helpful” tips on methods for removing ticks, and sorting through them all would take forever. But this is not necessary, if the cat was bitten by a tick, then first you need to understand a few simple points:

1. Do not let your cat scratch or bite you in the affected area. The insect may burrow even deeper into the cat's skin, making it more difficult to remove the parasite.
2. Do not try to reach the tick with your hands. This is pointless and will lead to deeper burying.
3. A very popular folk method of getting rid of a tick is to drip an oil solution into the parasite so that it dies without oxygen. The tick will indeed die, however, the process of getting it out will not become any easier. In addition, the tick will not die immediately, and will continue to secrete infected saliva until its death.
4. Do not try to remove a tick with a needle. By piercing an insect with a needle, you are unlikely to be able to kill it with one hit, but you will help it begin to burrow deeper.
5. It is a very bad idea to try to squash a parasite. By squashing a tick, you can encourage the remains of its body to fall into the open wound after the bite, which can cause infection. In addition, if you crush a tick, its head will remain in the cat's body.

After removing the tick, you need to properly treat the bite site. Since the treatment is being done at home, you can get by with the remedies that are available in every home: iodine, brilliant green, hydrogen peroxide, alcohol. It is important to treat around the wound, and not the wound itself, so that there is no burn or tissue damaged by the bite.

Prevention of bites

Anti-tick medications for cats in the form of sprays are considered the safest, but their duration of action is very short. Collars that use truly effective products are not recommended for long-term wear.

The most effective tick repellent for cats is drops. The best brands of drops sold by veterinary pharmacies include: “Clandestine”, “Stronghold”, “Bars”, “Inspector”.

As an additional precaution, you can get vaccinated. If your cat has been bitten by a tick and has contracted the infection, vaccination will help develop immunity against the disease.

Many people mistakenly believe that the parasite can simply be pulled out. But in this case, the head with the proboscis almost always comes off, remaining under the skin. In addition, there are many other mistakes that should not be made:

• do not crush the swollen body of the tick on your pet’s skin;
• do not burn the parasite with a cigarette;
• do not pick out the tick with a needle;
• do not water the insect with caustic liquids;
• do not pull out the tick.

We suggest you familiarize yourself with Treatment with green soap against aphids

Having seen a tick on his cat, the owner immediately begins to remove it. Often the cat twitches and escapes, which leads to sloppy work and crushing the parasite. It is recommended to calm the animal here. The cat will feel itching and pain at the site of the bite. To eliminate discomfort, it is recommended to treat the affected area with a spray that contains hydrocortisone. It would also be a good idea to use the help of a second person to hold your pet during the procedure.

Do not pour oil on the tick, blocking its respiratory tract. This will scare the parasite and cause it to release the contents of its stomach into the cat's blood.

After removing the tick, a small but open wound remains on the cat’s body. To prevent infection from getting here, it must be treated. Of course, the animal will react negatively to iodine or alcohol. In addition, such treatment can injure tissue, cause chemical burns, and cause unpleasant consequences. It is better to use solutions of furatsilin, chlorhexidine or other similar products.

As for the tick itself, you need to make sure that it is not infected with dangerous viruses. This can only be determined in laboratory conditions. Moreover, only live parasites are accepted for analysis. If the tick is dead, there is no point in taking it to the laboratory. To prevent the bloodsucker from dying during transportation, place it in a jar with a tight lid and place a piece of moistened paper there.

If the result is negative, you will have peace of mind that your pet will not become infected. But at the same time, pay attention to the state of his health for some time. If the results are positive, you should immediately contact a veterinarian, even if there are no symptoms of the disease. The specialist will prescribe the most appropriate treatment.

After removing the tick, you should carefully examine the animal's skin. If the head of the parasite remains, you will immediately see it. The severed head of a tick looks like a small black dot. You can remove it in two ways:

• Lubricate the bite site with 5% iodine. Wait until the head or proboscis falls out of the wound. Treat the affected area of ​​skin with a disinfectant again.
• Treat the bite site with alcohol. Hold the sewing needle over the fire until it becomes sterile. Wipe the needle with alcohol and gently pry the head of the tick with it. Act carefully and carefully: as if you were removing a splinter.

It is necessary to remove the tick's head from the wound as quickly as possible, since the salivary glands of the insect contain the main concentration of the virus.

For several days after the cat has been attacked by the parasite, you should monitor its well-being. If your pet becomes lethargic or refuses to eat, take her to the veterinarian to be tested for dangerous pathogens. The sooner you contact a specialist, the sooner the animal will “get back on its feet.”

If the tick's head remains in the wound, you will definitely notice it when you carefully examine the bite site. When it remains, you will see a small black dot on the skin. To get rid of it, you can resort to two methods:

• lubricate the wound with iodine solution. Now you need to wait until the remaining fragment of the parasite falls out on its own and disinfect the wound again;
• The head remaining in the skin can also be removed using a needle - for this, an ordinary sewing needle is heated over a fire, and a piece of the remaining head of the parasite is used to pry it off, as is usually done with a splinter.

When you finish removing all the elements remaining in the scalp, all you have to do is destroy the insect. And if there are several answers to the question of how to remove the parasite, then with its destruction everything is much more clear - the tick must be burned. These insects demonstrate amazing vitality, and by flushing them down the toilet, you unwittingly contribute to the spread of a possible infection.

To prevent your cat from getting a lump, be sure to treat the bite site with any available remedy - iodine or brilliant green. Over the next few weeks, carefully monitor the animal’s condition: at the slightest sign of malaise or increase in body temperature, contact the clinic immediately.

Now you know how to remove a tick from a cat with the least risk to your pet’s health.

Cats / Dogs → Removing ticks from animals

From the beginning of April to the end of August, parasites such as ticks appear on the streets, especially in parks, plantings and forests. For animals, ticks pose an immediate threat and danger, as they are carriers of diseases: piroplasmosis, sarcoptic mange.

There are several ways to remove ticks from animals. Moreover, they can differ only in the “tool” itself with the help of which this procedure is performed.

Surgically

The most convenient way is to remove it with a surgical clamp or special curved tweezers. When you extract one of these objects, you need to grab this pest as close to the proboscis as possible.

After which the tick must be pulled very carefully and at the same time rotated counterclockwise. After making about 2 or 4 turns, you can remove the entire tick along with its proboscis. But if you try to simply pull it out, you create the possibility of rupture. Part of the tick will remain inside, which can cause other problems for the animal.

Special equipment

To remove a tick, you can buy a special hook that looks like a curved fork with two teeth. Here the plier must be inserted in the middle of the teeth and also unscrewed. To remove ticks from both humans and animals, there are many different tools in the world, but many of them are simply impossible to find, so you will have to get out on your own. We also recommend, if possible, that you consult a veterinarian for professional tick removal and wound treatment. Your animal will also undergo all necessary tests.

Using thread

A loop can be removed from coarse thread if tools are not available. Here we first grab the tick closer to the skin, and only then we squeeze both ends of the thread with our fingers and turn it counterclockwise.

After removing the tick

The tick will not remove its proboscis if you try to apply oil to it. It will only kill him when it clogs his breathing holes. You can moisten the tick with oil before the removal procedure, but you will still not be able to avoid the removal itself. The oil will cause the pest to regurgitate the contents of its abdomen into the wound, thereby increasing the risk of infection. In this regard, it is advisable not to use oil in this case.

But the ixodid tick can die from one application (application) of Malavit, and do this without dilution, taking into account the time for 7-10 minutes.

Attention! The drug Malavit is intended for people and is sold in pharmacies.

When the tick is removed, you will need to immediately treat the wound with Malavit, or any other antiseptic intended for the skin (iodine is contraindicated for cats). Treating the wound in the area of ​​the bite with undiluted Malavit can prevent the secondary effect of serious infection from occurring. You need to completely moisten a cotton swab (cotton swab) with Malavit, and then apply it to the tick or to the bite site itself - about 8-11 minutes, only 3 procedures will be enough on the day the bite itself occurred.

Do not forget to thoroughly wash your hands and the instrument itself after the tick removal procedure.

There will be nothing dangerous or terrible if the head and proboscis remain in the wound itself. A proboscis left in a wound will be no worse than an ordinary splinter. You can remove the tick's proboscis at home by simply squeezing it with ordinary tweezers and unscrewing it, unless, of course, it sticks out strongly from the skin, and if it is deep inside, then use the services of a surgeon at the nearest clinic. If you leave the proboscis in the skin itself, then within one or two days a small abscess will appear, and after that it will come out naturally.

When you remove a tick, do not:

• Apply any caustic liquids to the bite site - gasoline, kerosene, ammonia and others;
• Burn the tick with a cigarette;
• Try to pull out the tick with sudden movements - it will simply break off;
• Using a dirty needle to pick at a wound;
• Make different compresses and apply them to the bite site;
• Try to crush the tick with your fingers or something else.

Remember that the tick you removed can not only be destroyed, but also placed in a jar so that veterinarians in the laboratory can perform special tests for various diseases.

If everything is in order, the wound left by the pest can heal within a week.

Vet

If you can’t remove a tick from a cat yourself at home, and the owner himself needs medical help, there is only one way out: a visit to specialists. How much it costs depends on the region and level of the clinic. In Moscow you can get a tick for 150 rubles, in Dzerzhinsk for 50 rubles.

At the veterinary clinic, the cat will be immobilized in a “sleeve” and the parasite will be pulled out, using industrial tools to extract the arachnids. At the owner's request, the parasite can be analyzed for the presence of infectious diseases. If the ixodus has been infected, it is better to start treating the cat as early as possible.

What to do with a tick?

Experts advise taking the caught tick to a laboratory, where it will be tested for carrier infections. It is clear that this is not necessary, but it is advisable:

• firstly, it will help to establish the epizootic situation in a specific area;
• secondly, the owner will know what to do with his four-legged friend if the tick suddenly turns out to be infectious.

Before shipping, the insect is placed in a container with a tightly screwed lid, which will not allow it to escape.

If there is no desire or opportunity to take the parasite anywhere for research, then it is destroyed by burning! There is no need to release the prisoner so that he does not attach himself to someone else.

Prevention of infection

In the first month after a tick bite, you need to carefully monitor the animal’s condition, tracking any changes in its behavior. This is how long the incubation period of infectious diseases carried by ixodid parasites lasts. In addition, allergies may develop. The following signs should alert you:

• poor appetite;
• lethargy;
• weight loss;
• dull coat;
• presence of itching;
• heat;
• change in urine color;
• problems with stool.

Cats are vaccinated against encephalitis - preventive immunoglobulin is administered. The vaccine is paid, but the safety and health of your beloved pet is worth it.

The animal is not given

If the cat’s character is such that it cannot be immobilized on its own or placed in a carrier for a trip to the veterinary hospital, there is only one option left: to let everything take its course. If you don't remove a tick from a cat, usually nothing bad happens. The parasite either falls off on its own after drinking blood, or the cat scratches it off. In this case, scratching is possible at the site of the bite. But the cat’s immune system most often copes with this problem on its own.

Since the arthropod will fall off onto the floor of the apartment, you must be prepared for the fact that the house will soon be filled with hordes of larvae.

Syringe

The syringe is used very rarely. The fact is that it will be ineffective when the blood sucker is sucked very tightly, the vacuum created will not be able to remove it. Also, the syringe is rarely used, due to the wool, which prevents the creation of that same vacuum. If you decide to try this method, you will need to trim the hair at the site of the bite.

You need to take the syringe and cut it off from the needle side. This needs to be done as carefully as possible to get the smoothest edges possible. Next, place the syringe against the skin at the site of the bite and pull the plunger several times, thus creating a vacuum, which pushes the bloodsucker out of the wound. After the procedure, do not forget to treat the wound.

What to do after removing a tick

Place the tick removed from the cat in a test jar (a baby food jar will do), a test tube, or a ziplock bag. Place paper soaked in water in the container. This will help the tick survive while you take it to the clinic for examination (for dangerous infections). It is advisable to do this within 48 hours. It is also necessary to show your pet to a veterinarian. If you do not have the opportunity to go to the clinic, burn the tick. The tick itself is not as dangerous as the pathogens it carries (for example, piroplasmosis).

Also thoroughly treat the bite area (with alcohol, iodine or hydrogen peroxide). Wash your hands and tools thoroughly.

After removing the tick, place it in a suitable container and take it to the clinic for examination.