Unfortunately, even the tick protection measures that many dog owners take often do not help to minimise the risk of tick infestation. Two studies by the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna have shown that almost every second dog had a tick-borne infection in the year studied. One reason for this is that many dog owners do not regularly refresh their tick protection or only apply it once they have already found a tick on their dog. It is therefore important that dog owners regularly check their dogs for ticks and inform themselves about effective tick protection measures. In addition to using tick collars, drops or sprays, this also includes the use of special tick removers. This is a good way to ensure that man's best friend is protected from tick infestation and the associated risk of disease.

Scanning a dog for ticks is an important part of regular pet grooming. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to check your dog for ticks and which areas are particularly favoured for tick infestation.

Check your dog immediately after the walk. Speed is of the essence with ticks. Many pathogens are only transmitted after some time, which is why it is important to remove the tick quickly. Start at your dog's head and systematically work your way down his body, using your fingertips to gently stroke through the fur to check for protruding nodules. Search especially in the following areas:

• Head and neck: Ticks are often found in the ears, around the mouth, on the forehead and on the neck of the dog.
• Belly: The belly area is often covered by grass and other plants that are a perfect habitat for ticks.
• Armpits: Ticks love moist and warm environments, so the armpits are another favourite place for tick infestation in dogs.
• Groin area: The groin area is often covered by tall grasses and bushes that can harbour ticks.
• Paws: The spaces between the toes and the pads of the paws are also places where ticks are frequently found.

Once you have found a tick, you should remove it as quickly as possible. To do this, use tick tweezers. You can find instructions on how to remove a tick correctly in our blogs. Grasp the tick as close to your dog's skin as possible and pull it out straight and evenly. Make sure that you do not crush or squeeze the tick when pulling it out, as this can cause it to release pathogens into your dog's body.

After you have removed a tick, you should observe your dog for at least a few days to make sure he does not show any signs of infection. If you notice redness, swelling or spreading redness around the bite site, you should see your vet.

In the Vienna study, 90 dogs in Austria were examined to see when different tick species become active and which parts of the dog's body they favour. The dogs were divided into three groups: "untreated", "treated with an acaricide/repellent" (permethrin) and "treated with acaricide only" (fipronil) and were examined for ticks in their natural habitat. The number and type of ticks appearing during and outside protection were recorded over an 11-month period and the places where the ticks bite on the dog's skin were noted.

The preferred sites for ticks to bite were the dog's head, neck, shoulder and chest. This distribution on the dog's body was not affected by the use of medication, although overall fewer ticks (22.5% of all ticks) were found in dogs with protection. Interestingly, there were differences in the infection rate over the year between the treated and untreated dogs. The acaricide-treated dogs had a higher infection rate in April, May and September, while the dogs in the acaricide/repellent group had a higher infection rate in March, July, October and November.

Overall, the study showed that different tick species become active at different times of the year and favour different parts of the dog's body. The use of acaricides leads to a significant (p < 0.01) reduction in the number of ticks, but does not affect the distribution of ticks on the dog's body.

Sources

• Duscher GG, Feiler A, Leschnik M, Joachim A. Seasonal and spatial distribution of ixodid tick species feeding on naturally infested dogs from Eastern Austria and the influence of acaricides/repellents on these parameters. Parasit Vectors. 2013 Mar 19;6:76. doi: 10.1186/1756-3305-6-76. PMID: 23510263; PMCID: PMC3621693.
• https://www.esccap.de/v2/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Web-Flyer-Ekto_2_2018-1.pdf