for the animals - Chemung County SPCA

6
The Vet’s Corner
Ticks and Fleas:
The Importance of Preventative Care
Interview with Joshua Clay, VMD,
Corning Animal Hospital
Q: How do you tell the difference between
a flea and a tick?
A: Fleas are quite small, narrow and dark
brown or black in color. They also move
around a lot on the animal and you can see
them hopping and jumping.
Ticks are round and they
don’t move once they attach
themselves. They are
most often found around
the head, neck and ears.
Q: Why is it important to
give your animal preventative
flea and tick care?
A: Fleas and ticks are a lot
more than just a nuisance.
The main concern is that they can give diseases
to your pets. It’s a lot better to prevent
the problem than to wait until your pet has a
parasite and have to treat it.
Q: What kind of problems can fleas and
ticks cause?
A. The main disease that ticks cause is
Lyme disease. This is fairly common and
we see 15 to 20 cases every year in our
practice alone.
If you’re not careful, one flea can turn
into an infestation.
Fleas can transmit diseases as well, not only
to pets, but to humans. One example that is
very common is “Cat Scratch Fever” which is
caused by the bacteria that is found in flea dirt.
In animals, fleas can
cause pretty severe diseases.
In cats, fleas can
cause anemia and in rare
cases, fleas can transmit
plague. There are at
least two documented
instances of every year in the U.S. Fleas can
also give your pets tape worm because fleas
carry larva of one type of tape worm inside
them.
You can even develop flea infestation in
your house that can be expensive and time
consuming to clean up.
Q: What kind of preventative treatment
would you recommend?
A: The most effective types of preventative
treatments are topical products. What we
recommend in our practice is Advantage
and Advantix, but there are all different
kinds on the market.
It is important to note that there are a lot of
knock-off products on the market. These
are usually made of older chemicals that
can cause a lot of reactions. Plus, they are
usually only 60 percent effective. Talk to
your veterinarian about proper flea and tick
control and see
what product they
would recommend.
Q: Are there different
treatments
for cats and
dogs?
A: Yes, there are
different treatments
for cats and dogs. For example,
you never want to use Advantix on
a cat because it’s toxic to them. Make sure
to read the directions carefully and consult
your veterinarian before starting treatment.
The most common thing we see is people
who buy the wrong product in the store
and then put it on their cat. This sometimes
requires major treatment to get them well
again.
Q: Can your pet still get fleas or ticks if
you use preventative treatment?
A: We are now confident that these preventative
products can keep fleas off your pet
if used correctly. Tick control is not quite as
effective. In some cases, you may have to
use additional products to treat ticks more
effectively.
If you find ticks on your dog every week,
you should talk to your veterinarian and
may want to consider adding other products
to your preventative schedule. It’s not that
unusual to need to combine treatments.
There are preventive tick collars and other
spray on products that can be used to further
protect your pet. Dogs should definitely get
the Lyme disease vaccine as well.
Q: What should you do if you find a tick
on your animal?
A: The best thing to do is to use a pair of
tweezers, grasp near the tick’s head and use
a steady pull to fully remove it. Sometimes
if you yank, the head will break off and stay
inside the animal, so make sure to pull nice
and steady. Then apply Neosporin twice a
day for a few days. Owners should be on
the lookout for signs of illness and if your
pet becomes sick, call your vet and let them
know about the tick.
Ticks are common enough that you don’t
have to go to a vet every time your pet has
one. If your pet is getting a lot of ticks, talk
to your vet about what
you can do to reduce
exposure. I recommend an
annual screening for tickborne
diseases as well.
This is a simple in-office
test that is especially
helpful because if you
catch a dog that has been
exposed to Lyme disease
Ticks become larger the longer
they stay on your pet.
happening.
before they start showing
symptoms, you can usually
prevent the symptoms from
Q: Can I get fleas or ticks from my pet?
A: You can get fleas from your pets. I
have seen cases where the whole house has
become infested. Fleas can bite people and
cause dermatitis. These are crusty red bite
marks that can be uncomfortable.
Ticks generally stay on the animal once they
have embedded themselves. People whose
pets have tested positive for Lyme disease
might want to monitor their own exposure
to ticks. We sometimes talk to an owner
about how to do a tick check and how to
wear proper clothing to protect themselves.