During the cold season and also in spring, the problem of combating external parasites among our four-legged friends becomes more urgent than ever. The most dangerous of which for dogs are ixodid ticks, most of which carry Babesia in their saliva, which causes one of the most famous diseases among dog breeders in our pets - babesiosis or piroplasmosis.
Like many other parasitic diseases, babesiosis is more effective in prevention than in treatment. There will be a separate article on our website about what drugs are used to treat this disease. So, let's figure out what methods of protection exist against ticks.
External protection methods
External protection against ticks is the most common way to combat parasites. This includes: wearing animal clothes, examining and combing after walks, applying drops to the withers, wearing insectoacaricidal collars, and using shampoos. Methods of external protection primarily include drops on the withers against ticks for dogs.
In many preparations for the withers, the main active ingredient is a strong insecticide with a wide spectrum of action, namely fipronil. And seeing this component in the first place in the composition of drops for the withers, many people wonder: what exactly is the difference between drops from different manufacturers, because the price for them is sometimes very different?
The whole point is that the principle of action of the drug is based on the absorption of fipronil into the body through the skin of the animal. For better availability of drugs and absorption in the body, excipients are added to fipronil, the composition of which determines the price of the drops.
It is also necessary to note that all drops on the withers are fat-soluble, so if you bathe your animal with shampoo a few days before or after treatment with drops against ticks and fleas, you will not get the desired result, or rather you will not get it at all, and the animal will remain without protection against external parasites.
Therefore, drops on the withers against ticks for dogs are not suitable for those animals that, for some reason, do not have a lipid layer on the skin. Also, drops are not suitable for emergency protection against fleas and ticks, since they need several days to be absorbed into the body.
Washing with special products
If none of the proposed options suits you, you can try washing your pet after each walk with special products of natural origin. This method will protect your dog from ticks and fleas 100%.
Washing is carried out with several means to choose from:
- Tar soap will help remove ticks from your dog that have not yet burrowed into the skin. Disinfection is carried out due to the main ingredient - birch tar, which will not allow ticks or fleas to settle on the animal. This product can be used even on small puppies, and the soap is absolutely harmless to humans. You can simply soap with your hands, without using protective gloves.
- To protect the animal from parasites, after a walk it is washed with regular shampoo, to which essential oils are added, depending on the container. In a standard bottle of 250-300 ml, only 3-5 drops are enough. The product must be shaken well before application, then the effectiveness will be at the proper level.
On a note!
To protect your dog from parasites, it is important to regularly carry out preventive procedures, it is advisable to treat with essential oils and infusions before walks, and wash after walking.
Popular and effective drops on the withers
Drops Bars
The most famous anti-flea and tick drops today are from the domestic company AVZ. The undeniable advantage of this product is its price. Although the drugs from this manufacturer are one of the very first drops against fleas and ticks in our country, the company is expanding its line with new forms of this drug.
So, in addition to the classic “one pipette per 10 kg” for dogs and cats, there are now dosed pipettes for each weight range: 2-10 kg, 10-20, etc. Also, not so long ago, Bars Forte appeared, which has a repellent effect. By repelling blood-sucking insects, it prevents dirofilariasis in dogs.
Disputes about the effectiveness of this line of flea and tick products continue constantly and will most likely remain relevant as long as Bars remains one of the cheapest types of tick drops for dogs.
Frontline combo
Effective drops on the withers against ticks for dogs. A big advantage of this type of drops is the possibility of use in pregnant and lactating pets. The price is rather above average, but it is justified by the quality composition. Frontline was awarded the World Branding Awards as “Brand of the Year 2019-2020”.
Stronghold
The principle of action of the drug is based on selamectin, which is part of its composition, which acts not only on external parasites such as fleas, scabies and ear mites, lice mites. Also, drops on the withers against ticks for dogs Stronghold are effective against internal dangerous parasites, such as heartworms and roundworms.
Content
- Risk factors
- Purpose
- General information
- Operating principle
- TOP 5 best anti-tick tablets for dogs
- 1) Anti-tick tablets “Bravecto”/ “Bravecto”
- 2) Anti-tick tablets “Inspector Quadro Tabs”
- 3) Tablets against ticks "Simparika" / "Simparica"
- 4) Tablets against ticks “Frontline NexGard” / “Frontline NexGard”
- 5) Anti-tick tablets "Nexgard Spectra" / "NexGard Spectra"
- Features of using anti-tick tablets for dogs
- As a conclusion
Anti-tick tablets for dogs are a popular means of protection. Every year the number of their consumption in the world only increases, as dog breeders strive to protect their pets as much as possible from the serious risk of infectious, including viral, infections. Although there are still ongoing debates about the safety of their use. The main advantage of using anti-tick tablets is long-term and permanent protection.
In this material we will consider the most popular anti-tick tablets for dogs in practice. We will conduct a comparative analysis (manufacturer, purpose, active substance, side effects, protection periods, etc.). The final decision on taking the drug should be made after consultation with a veterinarian.
Tick collars
Collars are similar in their principle of action to drops on the withers, but are a safer method of protection against ticks and fleas, since they are absorbed by the body gradually, according to the degree of abrasion of the active layer on the collar.
In other words, the principle of operation of a tick collar is friction between the skin and the collar itself, and it is important that the collar is tightly tightened and does not hang around your four-legged friend’s neck, otherwise you will not achieve the desired result.
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Effective Collar Brands
Bars tick collar . In addition to inexpensive drops for the withers, the AVZ company also produces collars for dogs of three types - sizes: small, medium and large dog breeds, again to save money for owners of small breed dogs. The effect is definitely worth the money. Wearing an inexpensive collar is better than not treating your pets at all.
Tick collar Inspector. An effective method of combating not only ixodid ticks, but also ear mites, lice eaters, fleas, as well as nematodes of the gastrointestinal tract. The price is closer to average, which cannot but please dog owners. There are several types and sizes. Provides 4 months of flea protection, 3 months of tick protection and 2 months of helminth protection.
Foresto tick collar . Provides reliable protection against fleas and ticks for up to 8 months. The unique matrix of this collar allows you to maintain a minimum dosage of the substance entering the body, which makes the collar very safe for the health of your beloved pet. In addition, due to the uniform distribution of substances throughout the coat, ticks should die from contact with the dog without biting it. Of course, Foresto is much more expensive than other effective brands of collars, but it is a very effective way to fight against ticks and fleas.
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Demodexes
They are called hair mites because they parasitize hair follicles. Causes the disease demodicosis. Hair mites are very small. One bulb can house a whole colony of them.
These parasites are considered conditionally pathogenic, since they do not manifest themselves as long as the animal has a sufficiently high immunity. If the dog is weakened, for example after illness or surgery, the tick develops vigorous activity, causing hair loss. The disease can appear in one area of the skin or throughout the animal's entire body.
Canine demodicosis does not spread to humans. Rottweilers, dachshunds, German shepherds, collies, and boxers are most susceptible to it.
Ointments “Yam” and “Parmethrin” are used for treatment. These remedies are considered the best if the disease is localized in certain areas of the dog’s body. In the generalized form, doctors prescribe tablets “Ivermectin”, “Milbemax”, as well as drops “Advocate”, “Advantis” and others.
Ticks are very dangerous blood-sucking parasites. Dog owners should carefully examine their pets after each walk, take preventive measures, and if the animal becomes infected, begin treatment on time.
Anti-tick sprays for dogs
Sprays are suitable for those people who need to get results “here and now”, because this is the fastest way to protect against ticks and fleas. Ease of use and the ability to treat a room are a big advantage of this processing method.
How sprays work
Sprays are divided into 3 groups of action: repellent - repel ticks, acaricidal - kill ticks and insectoacaricidal - combined agents that repel and kill ticks, respectively. Once on the fur, they provide instant protection against parasites.
It is important that treating a dog against fleas and ticks should be carried out outdoors, and the spray should also be dosed, which is quite difficult to do, but many manufacturers indicate the number of pumps of the product per area or square meter.
Popular brands of tick sprays
There are a huge variety of sprays for treating animals on the shelves of pet stores and veterinary pharmacies, but we will consider only two:
Spray Blokhnet . Quickly acts against ticks, fleas, lice, lice and mosquitoes. Suitable for treating care items and places where pets stay, can be used for cats. One cannot but be pleased with the low price of this product compared to analogues. The disadvantage is the specific smell after application.
Spray Bolfo . It is the choice of most dog breeders and has a pronounced insectoacaricidal effect. After treatment, the product is effective for 1 week, then application can be repeated. Can be used together with anti-tick tablets. We will look at them below.
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Choice of product
Dogs are more vulnerable to parasites, including ticks. There are several ways to simplify this - periodic treatment for prevention. To do this, you can use ready-made purchased medications that your veterinarian will recommend. But it is worth understanding that chemicals will have a negative effect on the pet’s body.
This is why most dog breeders try to protect their dogs from ticks using folk remedies. Dogs can be treated with various substances of their own production; it is important to strictly maintain the proportions and apply the products strictly according to the recommended schedule.
Important!
Folk remedies against ticks are less concentrated, so in order to protect your pet, treatment will need to be carried out before each walk.
You can prevent the appearance of parasites using several types of means:
- essential oils;
- infusions;
- tar soap.
Each of them can be used either individually or in combination before and after walking your four-legged pet in the fresh air.
Shampoos
Sooner or later, any dog owner is faced with the need to bathe his pet, and most prefer shampoos with an insecticidal composition. They protect against ticks and are used as a treatment for flea dermatitis. The big advantage of shampoos is that they have almost no unpleasant odor, unlike drops or collars. They can be used during pregnancy and from 5 weeks of age.
How does anti-tick shampoo work?
Unlike drops and collars against ticks and fleas, shampoo is less toxic, its effectiveness is lower than that of the above products, but this does not mean that it is inferior to other treatments.
For example, shampoos are well suited for people with allergies or those who have children or other animals in contact with their animals. Shampoos are suitable for weakened and old animals, but only under the supervision of a veterinarian. Shampoos act as a repellent against ticks, and it is better to use it together with other means of protection for a lasting effect.
Popular shampoos
Shampoo Faithful friend. This is the least expensive tick and flea treatment for dogs available today. The price varies in different regions from 100 to 180 rubles per 300 ml bottle. This is undoubtedly a lot of shampoo for very little money. The manufacturer promises a repellent effect for up to 3 days. Consumers themselves are skeptical about the product.
Shampoo Lugovoi AVZ. By tradition, it is one of the most budget-friendly external treatment products on the market, not counting Faithful Friend shampoo. A 180 ml bottle is enough for an average of 7 treatments of 10 kg dogs. The shampoo has a predominant aroma of herbs, at the same time, the shampoo neutralizes unpleasant odors from the animal, provides lasting protection against ticks and fleas for three days. Suitable for cats.
Shampoo Rolf Club. The advantage of this shampoo is that it helps well against lice, a 400 ml bottle is enough for a long time of use, and the shampoo also provides reliable protection against ticks and fleas for three days.
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Overalls, vests, bandanas, is there any sense in such protection?
Nowadays, wearing clothes by animals of various styles and even brands is actively gaining popularity. All this would not have been such a success if not for beautiful photographs for social networks and the Internet. But in addition to the aesthetic views of pet fashion, clothing for animals also has practical advantages. One of them is protection against ticks and fleas.
The clothing itself, when worn by the animal, physically prevents ticks from getting onto the animal's body. In most cases we are talking about overalls. Also, often the clothes themselves are treated with sprays against ticks and fleas, while the animal’s body does not come into contact with the drug, without causing allergies or other reactions to the components of anti-parasite products.
Vests are more often processed, sometimes these can be bandanas, for example, when the animal is not used to wearing clothes. In addition to all of the above, there are overalls from the Osso company, which are designed with tick traps, namely these are many folds in places where ticks like to be on the animal’s body, from where it is impossible for ticks to get out, and they die.
Of course, clothing cannot be a complete method of protection against ticks and fleas, but in combination with other means it can provide reliable protection for your pet.
Preparations for oral administration, protection as prevention
Oral tablets against ticks and fleas are a popular way to protect dogs and are the choice of a large number of dog breeders. A very effective way to prevent ticks. The parasite can land and bite into the animal, but will die before the dog gets sick with piroplasmosis. Of course, none of the drugs provides 100% protection against external parasites, but tablets are still considered one of the most effective ways to protect against ticks.
There is also information about giving tick tablets at the moment when the tick has already attached itself to the dog in order to cure piroplasmosis in the early stages. This, of course, is a myth, and it is not advisable to do so, since giving pills if piroplasmosis is suspected makes it difficult to diagnose using a blood smear, masking the symptoms of the disease.
Effective Pill Brands
Although tablets are considered an effective way to combat ticks, their choice is not at all large: Simparica, Bravecto, Nexgard and Comfortis. Let's take a closer look at each of them.
Simparica . It is effective 12 hours after giving to the animal and provides protection against ticks, ear mites, sarcoptic mange and demodectic mange, as well as helminths for up to 35 days or 5 weeks. At the same time, as when giving other tablets, there are no restrictions on bathing; it is easily tolerated by a large number of dogs. Due to the need to repeat the administration of the tablet more often than Bravecto, it has a pronounced antiparasitic effect.
Bravecto . Bravecto begins its action 4 hours after administration and acts in such a way that it is activated after a parasite bite and causes the death of fleas after 8 hours and ticks after 12 hours. The duration of the drug is a record 12 weeks. Can be used from 8 weeks of age and does not cause side effects in recommended doses.
Nexguard Spectrum . It begins to act within 3 hours after giving it to the animal, providing lasting protection not only from ticks and fleas, but also from helminths such as roundworms, hookworms and whipworms. Prevents dirofilariasis, which causes mosquito bites. Nexgard must be used monthly.
Comfortis . A drug from the UK that is rarely found on store shelves. This is due to the high cost and standard characteristics of tablets against ticks and fleas.
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Traditional methods of treatment
When it was not possible to protect the pet, signs of subcutaneous mites are detected, treatment is necessary. Many pets react negatively to drug therapy options, and for some breeds they are generally contraindicated. It is in such cases that folk remedies are used. They are used depending on what type of tick the dog has.
Protection against ixodid ticks
Ixodid ticks appear on your pet's body after a walk; they can be removed by bathing with tar soap or shampoo with the addition of essential oils.
If the tick is deeply ingrained into the dog’s skin, then essential oil in its pure form will help remove the parasite. The problem area is generously lubricated with one of the above oils and the parasite is removed using tweezers in a circular motion.
Washing the dog
Subcutaneous mites
These parasites can be eliminated without the use of medications. There are several options:
- An infusion of celandine roots will be irreplaceable; the washed and purified raw materials are poured with sunflower oil in a 1:1 ratio. Maintain at a temperature of 50 degrees for at least 4 hours. The strained infusion is applied to problem areas daily.
- Juniper berries and sour apples are crushed into puree, mixed well and applied to the affected areas.
- Sour cream or kefir with black sulfur also have healing properties; the ingredients are mixed well in a 3:1 ratio.
- Birch tar will cope perfectly with the problem; the product is applied directly to the affected areas daily.
According to reviews, all of the above methods are effective, but before using them you should consult a veterinarian. This will allow you to choose the most suitable treatment option and not harm the dog.
Vaccination, for what purpose is it performed?
There are a number of remedies, such as: Nobivak Piro, Eurikan Piro and Pirodog, aimed at smoothing out the symptoms of piroplasmosis. When an animal is bitten by a tick, an acute form of piroplasmosis is not observed. It is believed that vaccination is not very well tolerated by internal organs, as it is relatively toxic.
One way or another, if the symptoms of piroplasmosis are pronounced, the administration of the antidote will have to be repeated. This treatment method is suitable for dogs with a wandering lifestyle in tick-prone regions.
What if you launch a bite?
Just imagine what will happen to a living creature if it is bitten by a tick. It seems that an active animal will always be like this, but even the smallest insect, which is several times smaller than a one-year-old dog, could well kill a pet.
- Firstly, this is a colossal damage to the dog’s health.
- Secondly, a decrease in activity.
- And thirdly, a tick bite can lead to the death of a pet if you do not worry about it in time and do not carry out appropriate prevention for the animal.
This is why it is important for every dog to be vaccinated and monitored by a professional veterinarian from birth. Vaccinations are an extremely necessary thing, because only with them will your pet feel great. If you administer the vaccine just once, there will be no result, but by carrying out such procedures periodically, you can protect your animal from the terrible insect. In no case should you ignore the bite, because this matter does not go away just like that. The tick introduces an infection that will become more and more difficult to get rid of every day.
Folk remedies for treating and controlling ticks in dogs
There are an exhaustive set of recipes for homemade products on the Internet, here is one of them:
- Lemon juice;
- Tincture of chamomile or geranium;
- Peppermint oil.
Mix these ingredients and place in a container with a spray bottle. The prepared mixture can be used to treat the lawn, kennels and enclosures of your pets. It is also considered effective to scatter boric acid powder over your area. Folk remedies are only suitable for treating objects and areas and are in no way suitable for applying them to the body of an animal.
Types of ticks and signs of their bites
Before you look for where to buy dog tick repellent, you need to find out what types of these parasites there are. In most cases, pets are bitten by 3 types of bloodsuckers. Each of them suffers different diseases, accompanied by many unpleasant symptoms.
Dangerous types of parasites and signs of their bites:
- Subcutaneous. This type of tick is most often found on the dog's body. It digs deep into the skin and becomes very difficult to remove. The subcutaneous bloodsucker carries such dangerous diseases as demodicosis and anemia, so animal owners need to identify the pest as quickly as possible. The main signs of its bite are itching, hair loss, and high fever.
- Itchy. This tick is considered one of the most dangerous. It constantly moves along the animal’s body, periodically biting it and leaving characteristic marks called “white holes.” This bloodsucker infects dogs of different breeds and carries dozens of diseases. Its attack on a pet can be detected by falling fur and a red rash on the skin. In addition, the animal develops severe itching, the temperature rises and sleep is disturbed.
- Pyroplasmic. This parasite bites dogs quite often. It suffers from various blood diseases, the lack of timely treatment of which leads to serious problems with the pet’s kidneys and liver. You can determine the presence of a tick on a dog’s body by high temperature, lack of appetite, severe itching and general lethargy.
How to treat a dog's kennel or enclosure against ticks
There are a number of specialized preparations for treating household items against ticks and fleas, such as: Force Site, Cypertrin, Ixoder, Yurax, Gardex Extreme, etc. All of them have a repellent and destructive effect on insects. Their method of use is quite simple. It is necessary to dilute the contents of the bottle with a certain amount of water and spray the desired surfaces. It is important to take into account the weather forecast when processing the site. The product should not be exposed to precipitation for four hours.
Mistakes in protecting dogs from ticks
An animal is a big responsibility; it is necessary to take into account the characteristics of the dog’s breed and health when choosing means of protection against ticks and fleas. Do not use the drug without reading the instructions. You cannot combine several tick protection products without consulting a veterinarian. And remember that the health of your four-legged friends directly depends on your care for them!
Anton Zhidkov
Author of the article and current specialist at the veterinary clinic in Voronezh
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