Vampiric Parasites Vant to Suck Your Pet’s Blood

The evil of ticks has spread from the woodsy environs of the Northeast to the pop-culture landscape in recent years — from Bella Hadid ’s battle with Lyme disease to the  CDC tweet of a poppyseed muffin sprinkled with ticks that caused a collectively out by a few years ago (sorry for the reminder!). If you're overwhelmed by all the bad press, don't worry — fleas and ticks are often preventable, and we're here to give you all the tips you need to keep your pet safe.

Risks Posed by Fleas and Ticks

Before we get into how to protect your pup, let's talk about why it's important to do so, starting with our sworn enemy: the tick.

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Ticks use their hooked mouthparts to latch onto skin and embark on a multi-day bloodsucking session. As if that's not bad enough, their saliva can transmit several diseases to pets and people. Lyme disease is the most well-known, but ticks also spread Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Babesia, Anaplasma, Borrelia, and Ehrlichia, to name a few. So, keeping ticks and their terrifying mouthparts away from your dog is a big deal.

Not to be outdone, fleas have their own ways of wreaking havoc. Flea bites can cause itchy skin irritation in people and pets. And for dogs with flea allergy dermatitis (FAD), flea saliva can trigger an inflammatory response that is incredibly uncomfortable. If your dog has FAD, even one flea bite can make them miserable for days. In addition to causing skin issues, fleas are responsible for spreading other diseases, like tapeworms and a little thing called THE PLAGUE.

Assuming you'd like to avoid all of the above, finding the best flea and tick preventive for your dog is a top priority. The good news is there are a lot of products to choose from. The bad news is...there are a lot of products to choose from. Sometimes, having so many options makes it tough to pick the right one. That's where veterinarian Dr. Carla Lerum, DVM, comes in. We asked her to share insights on the most common types of flea and tick preventives.

Topicals

Topical medications are applied directly to your dog's skin. These not only kill fleas and ticks but often act as a repellent to help keep them from biting in the first place. There are many topical products on the market, so check in with your vet before selecting one.

"Different products may contain different active ingredients to protect against certain species of fleas or ticks," says Dr. Lerum. "Your veterinarian can take your dog's lifestyle and risk of exposure into account and recommend the appropriate medication. Also, beware that some topical preventives made for dogs may be toxic to cats. To keep everyone safe, separate dogs and cats for 24 hours after applying the medication."

Another watch-out is that bathing or swimming could reduce the effectiveness of a topical medication. Even if a product claims to be water-resistant, that doesn't mean it will remain full-strength after shampooing your dog or an all-day trip to the lake. 

Lastly, some dogs may have an adverse reaction to topical preventives. Signs of skin irritation from the medication include scratching, redness, and scaling. If your pup turns out to be sensitive to one of the ingredients in the product, bathing them to remove the irritant will usually resolve the issue. More serious reactions may cause tremors or seizures. These reactions are more common in small dogs (and cats).

Collars

Flea and tick collars are a convenient option that works similarly to topical medications. They're easy to take on and off, and they can support a dog's changing needs based on their lifestyle and risk of exposure. But buyer beware — not all products are created equal. 

According to Dr. Lerum, "there are a lot of over-the-counter collars that are not safe or effective for your pet. And many products in this space are highly toxic to cats."

Just as with topical medications, some dogs might react to the ingredients in flea and tick collars. Reactions can include skin irritation near the site of the collar, or in extreme cases, tremors or seizures. 

Chewables

Chewable preventives offer a wide spectrum of coverage. They don't prevent bites the way that topicals and collars do, but they effectively kill fleas and ticks. And, since your dog ingests them, there's no risk of the product losing its efficacy from bathing or swimming. However, Dr. Lerum warns of a different potential challenge.

"Not all dogs take oral medications well. So if you have trouble getting pills down your pup, a chewable preventive may not be the best option."

Another variable to be aware of is that some dogs have a sensitivity to chewable medications. This can cause vomiting, diarrhea, or general stomach upset. Your dog may also have a medical condition (such as a history of seizures) that prevents them from using a particular oral product. As with the other options, your veterinarian can talk with you about the different products on the market and recommend the one that best meets your dog's needs. 

Is Year-Round Prevention Necessary?

Many people think of fleas and ticks as warm weather problems. And it's true that neither can survive in super cold conditions. But warmer winters in the U.S., and more erratic weather patterns (thanks, climate change), have altered the seasonality of fleas and ticks. Unfortunately, that makes determining the precise start and stop dates for giving preventives near impossible. Plus, even if it's freezing outside, it's (hopefully) not freezing inside your house, where fleas and ticks can thrive year-round. 

"When it comes to fleas and ticks, prevention is key," says Dr. Lerum. "Once you have an infestation, it is very challenging to control. It can take months to resolve and can have a significant impact on your pets and your family."

So, while there are certain locations and times of the year when the risk of fleas and ticks is lower, most veterinarians recommend using preventives year-round. It takes away the guesswork and margin for error and keeps your dog (and your home) protected.