Domestic cats are no less susceptible to tick attacks than humans. If the animal often walks on the street, then in spring, summer and autumn it is at risk. The bite of an adult female tick is deadly not only for humans, but also for a fluffy pet. What to do if the cat is bitten by a tick? How to remove a sucked parasite correctly? Tick extraction technology and precautions are presented in this article.
What to do if the cat is bitten by a tick?
Mostly in cats and cats, ticks dig into the skin in the groin, thighs, abdomen, neck and chest, ears. Finding a small creature is almost impossible, especially in long-haired animals.
When ticks are saturated with blood, they change their color and size, their belly swells, becomes white (pink, gray, red). Now on the cat’s body, the sucked arachnid is visible with the naked eye. It resembles a seed or a pea glued to the skin.
The danger of a bite for a cat is that dangerous viruses enter the victim’s body through the pain-relieving enzymes introduced by the tick into the victim’s body. Moreover, the longer the parasite feeds on the blood and lymph of the animal, the higher the chance of infection.
Dangerous diseases for cats spread by blood-sucking creatures are:
- infectious anemia;
- piroplasmosis;
- theileriosis.
Infectious anemia, if detected early, is treated for a long time, but it goes away completely if no complications have arisen against its background.
Pyroplasmosis is rare in cats, however, due to an incorrect diagnosis, the animal can quickly die. This disease provokes an increase in the body temperature of the animal to critical levels, the death of blood cells.
Theileriosis manifests itself in the same way as piroplasmosis, in the form of high fever, apathy and refusal to eat. Then the mucous membrane of the eyes turns blue or yellow in the animal. If you do not start treatment, the cat dies within 3 days from the moment the first symptoms appear.
After removing the tick, the animal must be shown to the veterinarian, and then monitor the pet’s health for 1-2 months
How to squeeze out a tick from a cat? No, the tick cannot be squeezed out, otherwise you can hurt a fluffy household. The bloodsucker is pulled out of the animal’s skin gently, with clean hands or with tweezers or a special hook.
It is impossible to lubricate the tick with oil (alcohol, soap), as this will cause an abundant release of its saliva into the cat’s blood. And this increases the chances of contracting a dangerous disease. Having picked up the parasite as close to the skin as possible, it is twisted clockwise, after which it either crawls out on its own, or is pulled out along with its head and sting.
If the legs or other parts of the body of an arthropod creature remain inside, then skin necrosis may develop. The extracted parasite is burned, and the wound is treated with an antiseptic
To protect the cat from tick bites during the period of their activity after walking, constantly examine the pet, carefully comb its fur. Remember that the health of the fluffy purr depends on your vigilance.