A radio engineer I know must travel by boat to repair and maintain a transmitter, and in the summertime the fields surrounding the towers are full of ticks. His solution to keep them off his legs is to wrap duct tape, inside-out, around the bottom of his pants to catch any questing creatures that may want to climb aboard and feed on his blood. I call him “MacGyver” for his ingenuity. However, what works for him is not a solution for our furry friends.
Because we had a mild winter, this is a bountiful tick season, according to our friends at North Haven Animal Hospital, and you may have noticed an increase in the number of ticks your pet has been attracting.
Ticks feed on deer, mice, raccoons, and other wild animals, where they tap into diseases such as Lyme and pass them on to our dogs and us.
They recommend you control ticks on your dog with topical products, some of the newer anti-tick collars, or ingestible medications. All are effective and convenient to use, but watch out for online or over the counter drugs, as they can be ineffective and even dangerous.
Before you give your dog any tick treatment, be sure to check with his or her Doc.
Have a safe summer.
– Danny Lyons July 16, 2020
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