When Are Dogs More Likely To Pick Up Ticks?

According to a new study, it may be slightly later than expected.Spring means the start of the tick season, both for pet parents and their pooches.A new study by Georg Duscher and colleagues at the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna has shown how much more likely it is for pets to pick up ticks when the temperatures go up.

Georg Duscher and colleagues analysed data for 700 ticks found  on 90 dogs, that were frequently walked in a particular area in eastern Austria.Of all the three species of ticks most often found,the most common one-Ixodes Ricinus, mostly infected dogs in April and May, although a second peak in infection occurred in September,Dermacentor Reticulatus was largely found during the months of March/April, with much lower numbers in October.Meanwhile Haemaphysalis Concinna seemed to favor the summer months-June/July.

So although the species of tick that your furry friends are most likely to encounter will vary according to the season, dog parents need to pay special attention to the possibility of ticks throughout the year, most especially from March through November.

The scientists also discovered that the number of ticks per day on animals treated with an acaricide, either alone or together with a repellent, was not significantly lower than untreated animals.Disturbingly, the ticks in question are capable of major tick-borne diseases.

Dogs in central Europe are at risk of four granulocytic anaplasmosis:

canine babesiosis

canine granulocytic anaplasmosis

canine borreliosis

tick-borne encephalitis

Michael Leschnik of the Vetmeduni Vienna’s Small Animal Clinic was able to show that over half of the 90 dogs in the study had become infected with one or more of the pathogens during the study period. He found that the chance of being infected did not seem to be reduced by the use of an acaricide, either alone or with a repellent.He also thought that the poor performance of the acaricide may be due to pet parents only applying the spot-on drugs after finding the ticks and that they did not use the drugs often enough.” The efficiency is much higher under laboratory conditions, so we should try to raise the owners’ awareness of how to apply the products correctly,” says Leschnik.

Duscher also found that the ticks preferred to be on the heads, shoulders and chests of dogs .”their body shape makes it difficult for them to crawl through dense fur, so ticks probably attach close to where they arrive rather than risking being knocked off by vegetation,” says Duscher.

Claudia Bensimoun

© Copyright 2013