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Permalink Reply by James on May 6, 2008 at 11:17pm

Get a Lyme vaccine from the vet as soon as you can and keep him out of tall grasses and such. You can check him when he comes in from outside as well, and mabye consider changing him from Advantage (or whatever flea control he is on) to something like Revolution, which I think is Fleas/Ticks/heartworm in one. Ticks are nasty little things, be sure to get that Lyme Vaccine if he is going to be in the grasses and such. Might want to buy a tick-scoop, it makes removing them (if they are biting) very easy.

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Permalink Reply by Carlie on May 7, 2008 at 10:16am

I agree with James, get he Lyme Vaccine a.s.a.p. but also get a flea treatment that is topical. One like Frontline or Advantix, our vet told us is the best defense against ticks, b/c it gets into the dog's skin and when fleas and ticks take a bite, they normally don't like the taste, and jump off. Good luck!

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Permalink Reply by CorgiPants on May 7, 2008 at 2:38pm

We are in central IL and fleas and ticks are definitely a problem. Where did you move from that they aren't a problem? I want to live there! :) I LOVE Frontline Plus. We took a roadtrip to southern IL/Kentucky/Indiana a few years back and did a lot of outdoors stuff, hiking, etc. My husband and I had ticks on us every night and had to check each other. Our corgi on the other hand never ONCE had a tick on him. (And believe me, after picking them myself every day of the trip, I checked him obsessively) The only ticks I saw near him were two dead ticks, one in his bed and one on a blanket hat he lays on in the car. So that stuff WORKS! We had a mild winter so they are already out there, ready to bite. I generally use Frontline Plus from March through October. And don't forget your heartworm medication too! Those mosquitoes are out in full force already too! (We do year round heartworm prevention but just thought I'd mention it in case that was not an issue where you lived before.)

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Permalink Reply by Lindsay on May 7, 2008 at 11:14pm

Ticks generally search their host 24-48 hours before attaching. It is very likely that it was an American Dog Tick - also known as dermacentor spp., they're quite common. While I do highly suggest the lyme vaccine, rest assured that American dog ticks very rarely if ever, carry lyme disease! It is usually Ixodes scapularis (the black legged tick) that carries lyme disease. Sorry, can you tell I just had parasitology this semester?!

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Permalink Reply by Cosmo & Wall-E on May 9, 2008 at 6:16pm

I don't doubt Lindsay, but regardless of species of tick (dog tick or black-legged tick), if you live in an area with any ticks you should use a flea/tick preventative treatment AND get a vaccine. My parent's Corgi, Rocki, recently passed away from kidney complications due to Lyme Disease that went undetected, as her symptoms were not obvious and delayed for quite some time. She lived for a few years after receiving treatment, but still passed before her time and it was very sad. This can be avoided! Get the preventative meds and a vaccine! Good luck :-)

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Permalink Reply by Bella on May 21, 2008 at 11:51pm

I have Bella on Frontline Plus-year round, but is there can anything else help. I always find blackish/brownish thing in her fur, but its just on her fur not her skin. I'm always paranoid its is a tick, while my husband thinks its blood from the play fights she has with the cats. Where we are moving to (miami fl) they are having a huge tick problem, the lady across the street from my new apartment shaved her dog to make sure-but I've heard you can't do this w/corgi's. Does the preventative collar work- or can curious corgi's somehow get it off themselves???

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Permalink Reply by Ivy & Bryson on May 22, 2008 at 2:41am

Oh no! I know how you feel as we have our icky encounter with ticks with Bryson last spring! Eeeek!

I don't mean to scare you, but if you found one, there might be more... make sure you check his armpits, coz that's where we missed one (even after bathing him and combing through all his hair, and removing like dozens of them and soaking those in oil... *shudder*).

We were 1st time dog owners, and so I was shocked to find this grayish tick the size of the eraser on a pencil's head in his armpit 3 days later! And the area also got infected... We tried to remove the tick but the head was stubbornly lodged in his skin (we ended up pulling just the body out, a big no no). The vet prescribed antibiotics, which resolved the infection. But to this date, I think there's still little tick parts under his arm pit. *double shudder*

We've switched to K9 Advantix since and thanks goodness haven't had more problems. Hope your little guy doesn't have to go through what Bryson did!

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Permalink Reply by Bella on May 22, 2008 at 5:36am

Oh that's horrible...its such a nasty thing to deal with. It's just hard to tell if they are really ticks because they aren't stuck to her skin, just on the fur at least a quarter of a centimeter away from the skin, and when we cut the fur, there are no legs. So I'm hoping they are just scabs from playing rough with the cats.

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