The best way to protect your cat from ticks is to prevent ticks from using your cat as a food source. Many solutions exist to prevent their appearance, but how to remove a tick on a cat when it is deeply embedded?
Many cat owners use prescription medication to prevent ticks, although there are natural options that can also reduce the risk of tick bites for cats. Whichever method you choose, your cat needs protection against ticks. If your cat is an outdoor cat, this is particularly important because it will inevitably come into contact with parasites, especially in tall grass.
How to remove a tick from a cat? What there is to know
Veterinarians agree that it’s important to remove the tick as soon as possible, but there are certain methods you should follow to protect yourself and your cat. Removing it too quickly could lead to additional complications for you and your cat.
Here’s how:
Find the tick
Ticks can look different depending on how long they have been on your cat. They love to burrow under your cat’s armpits, between their ears, between their toes, and other cozy, warm places.
If a tick has been on your cat for a few hours to a few days, it may look flat.
Ticks that have been around longer — and therefore have had more time to feed on your cat’s blood — will be round and full.
Protect yourself well
Ticks are dangerous not only for your pet, but also for you.
These parasites carry a myriad of diseases, such as Lyme disease, which can be transmitted to humans through breaks in the skin or even through mucous membranes, such as touching your eyes or nose after handling them. a.
Wear protective gloves when inspecting the infected area and removing the tick, otherwise, you too could end up infected with the tick.
What you should not do
There are several key elements to successfully removing a tick from your cat.
Ticks dig their heads under the skin to feed. Do not twist or squeeze it when removing it, as this may cause the mouthpiece to remain nestled in your cat’s skin.
It could also cause the engorged body to burst and spill its fluids on you and your cat, and these fluids may contain disease-carrying organisms.
Tick removal
Tweezers or tick remover are your best bet for removing a tick from your cat.
Using gloved hands can be tricky and lead to the tick bursting, causing its bodily fluids to spill onto your cat. Place the tweezers as close to your cat’s body as possible to ensure you remove every part of the tick.
Remove it at head level. Pull slowly until it comes off.
Once the tick has been removed
Sometimes, even if everything is done well, some of a tick’s mouthparts can get stuck in your cat’s skin.
If the area does not appear inflamed or red, the best thing to do is to disinfect the area and monitor it carefully. A warm compress can help small lumps come out, but trying to dig them out with tweezers will only irritate the area further.
Disinfect the tweezers or tool with rubbing alcohol or warm soapy water and wash your hands well.
Throw away your gloves and wash any towels your cat may have lain on while you removed the tick.
The process of elimination
It may seem like a good idea to throw a removed tick in the trash or down the toilet. But these arachnids are tough little insects, and they will come back to you and your cat.
The ASPCA suggests using a jar of rubbing alcohol as storage for a tick you’ve removed. Alcohol will kill her.
Watch your cat carefully
Over the next few weeks, be sure to monitor the bite area closely for any signs of irritation or infection.
If the area was already inflamed when you removed the tick, be sure to take your cat to the vet as soon as possible with the tick for evaluation.
Ideally use a hook
To avoid cutting the tick but leaving the head stuck in your cat’s body or to avoid hurting him, a cat hook is ideal. It will also be much easier to remove the tick with this dedicated accessory.
What to know about ticks
Ticks are animals that live in tall grass, and are mainly present in autumn and spring and will attach themselves to your cat to feed on their blood, necessary for their laying. But more than the bite, it is above all their proliferation and their possibility of being infected that makes them dangerous for your cat.
For example, your cat can catch lyme disease or other serious illnesses if an infected tick sucks its blood. And concerning their proliferation, ticks can when they are numerous cause anemia in your cat, also putting his life in danger.
Ticks, once removed, can always come back, so remember to kill them by putting them in the toilet, especially not in the trash.
Prevention for the future
Once the ticks have been removed, make sure to prevent their reappearance with suitable solutions such as an anti-parasite collar or tablets. If your cat has access to the outdoors, prevention is better than cure.
And finally, brush it well with a special brush so that the ticks are no longer on its coat, it is better that it does not swallow them when it licks itself to clean itself.
How to remove a tick from a cat? The final word
Removing a tick from a cat can be done at home, as long as everything is done methodically, removing the tick is easily achievable.