Tick season lasts throughout spring, summer and fall, with May, June and July being the peak months on Cape Cod. The key to your dog’s safety on the Cape, or anywhere else, is prevention. Ticks are commonly found on Cape Cod in the woods and grassy areas. Ticks can infect your dog and may carry lyme disease. Here are some good tips for avoiding infection from ticks.
Use a tick preventative such as K9 Avantix or Frontline Plus. Download the coupon.
Ask your vet for a tick screening at your next checkup.
Talk to your vet about diseases such as lyme disease from ticks.
Check your dog after going outside.
If possible, stay away from tick infested wooded or grassy areas.
Discourage tick harboring animals from entering your yard with a barrier or fence.
Watch your dog for changes in appetite or behavior.
How to Check for Ticks
Ticks are like a creeping, crawling, jumping pharmacy. They release numbing agents and other substances that aid in their survival and make it hard for your dog to detect their presence. This is where you come in.
Brush your fingers through your dogs fur feeling for bumps. If you feel a bump, separate the fur and inspect closely.
Look in the ears, between the toes, under the belly, and around the tail and head. Check everywhere.
If the tick is embedded, it may be appear to be pin-sized. If it has been feeding for a while, it may be the size of a grape. Look carefully.
Removing Ticks
Ticks need somewhere between 24 and 48 hours to spread infection, so if you spot one, remove it immediately. Here’s how:
If possible, put on latex gloves.
Use tweezers to grasp near the attachment point and pull back.
Clean and disinfect the bite area, your hands and the tweezers.
Identify the Tick
Black Legged Deer Ticks are the primary transmitters of lyme disease. The chart below will aid you in identifying Deer Ticks. Place the tick in rubbing alcohol and mark the date.The alcohol will kill and preserve the tick. Mark the date and save the tick in case you need a test later to determine if the tick was infected with lyme disease.
Final Tips
Watch the infected area for a small red ring or rash. A rash could mean that a part of the tick remained inside the skin and will work it’s way out. A red ring could indicate possible lyme disease. Fluid could be a sign of an infection.
Remember, the tick will not back out. You must pull it out. Also, do not use other methods to remove the tick such as burning the tick, using nail polish remover or petroleum jelly. These methods do not work and can cause the tick to release more pathogens into your dogs epidural layer.
My family recently suffered through the loss of one of our dogs. Quilla, our cairn terrier mix was a member of this family for 13 of her wonderful 16 years of life. This was the first time my wife and two daughters have ever been through something like this. Quilla fulfilled many different roles in our family. She was a caretaker to my girls and other dogs. She was a companion and a playmate. Quilla was a loyal friend. Her loss created a void in our family. This article will highlight some of the feelings you may share with us while grieving the loss of a pet. We will also discuss some tips to help your family begin the healing process. Read Quilla’s Story by clicking her photo or here.
The Role of the Family Pet
Our pets fulfill certain roles in your lives. They love us unconditionally, which can make their loss very hard to accept. We develop a bond with our dogs and cats that can’t be explained to non-pet lovers. They may not appreciate or understand our loss. So when we lose a pet, we need to find a healthy way to cope with not only the loss of our companion, but also loss of our shared bond.
A simple search on Google for “grieving pet loss” resulted in over 75 million results. That is because all of us as pet owners will at some point have to deal with this. It is a sad reality that our dogs and cats live much shorter lives than we do, so you may be faced with this ordeal several times in your life.
Stages of Grieving
Guilt – you may feel responsible for your pet’s death. This makes resolving your grief more difficult.
Shock or Denial – you will feel stunned. This is normal and actually helps you get through the first weeks. Many deal with loss through denial. Closing or sealing away your real feelings. It is okay to verbalize or cry. Don’t bottle up your feelings because this will only add more stress.
Anger – you may find yourself directing anger toward your family, friends, vet or even yourself. You will feel less angry by opening up and talking to the people around you.
Depression – usually all of the above stages lead to depression. You will feel emptiness, regret, hopelessness and sadness. This is often the longest stage. Feeling depressed may cause you to dwell on the sorrow.
Acceptance and Healing
Eventually you will accept what has happened. You will recall the great times you shared with your pet. You will cherish your memories. You will begin to heal.
Steps Toward Healing
Once you accept and recognize how much that pet meant to you, the healing process begins. You’ll celebrate their life and the happiness they gave you. Follow these helpful steps:
Give yourself permission to grieve
Accept that your pet meant a lot to you
Place a plaque, picture or memorial to your pet somewhere
Surround yourself with positive friends and family or people who have a similar experience
Be healthy – eat, exercise and treat yourself right
Recognize you will relapse, but realize you will get through it
Lean on your family and provide them comfort too
Helping Your Children Cope
Children are very resilient and often heal first. However, this may be their first encounter with death. You know your family better than anyone, but these are some tips that helped us cope:
Be honest about the circumstances. They probably have fears and misconceptions about death. Sit them down and talk to them openly. Don’t tell them the pet “ran away” because they will always be waiting for them to come home.
Explain what the terms mean. You “put your dog to sleep” may have a different meaning to children. Tell them about euthanasia and explain that your pet’s suffering and pain will end.
Show sorrow. It’s alright to let them know you feel the pain too.
Have short discussions often about your loss.
Teens often share the same feelings as adults. Be there for them, because it takes a while to get though this loss together.
Listen to what your family has to say. Share the loss together and talk about all of the good times and playful behavior your pet showed.
A friend at work gave me a poem Rainbows Bridge to read to my kids. It put the loss in a different perspective.
I hope this article helps you cope with the loss of a pet. Nobody can take away the pain, but these tips will help you get through it. Your companion will always live on in your memory.
Four Things that Helped the Most
I talked with the loving staff at our pet shelter in Falmouth – The Friends of Falmouth Dogs. They have encountered loss many times and can provide helpful advise that is very touching and meaningful!
We talked with our vet. South Cape Vet here on Cape Cod has a wonderful staff. They helped us as a family, every step of the way.
We looked at old pictures together. This helped guide the discussion for us on coping with loss, and reminded us about all the great memories.
I wrote this blog! Writing seems to help me sort out my thoughts. I’ve opened up this blog for comments, so feel free to tell your story. Write what is on your mind! It helped me and I hope it can help you too!
Our “Cape Cod Pets” of the Month for February 2009 are Rocky and Rosie Rosbach. This mis-matched pair of pooches love to do everything together, so a kennel was out of the question for the family. They considered having a friend care for, feed and walk their Cape Cod pets. A major concern was finding someone reliable who could meet the unique exercise needs of these two. After thinking it over they considered a pet sitting service that included a high demanding fitness and exercise program – K9 Cardio.
Rocky and Rosie’s owners left Cape Cod behind for the warm beaches in Hawaii during February vacation, feeling happy and comfortable with the decision to leave their two dogs under the care of CapeK9Cardio – a Bonded & Insured Pet Sitting and Dog Walking company that handles walks and runs! Each day with these Cape Cod pets was a new adventure. Rocky – a one year old male Boxer and his crate-mate Rosie, a three year old female Pug. Rocky’s high energy level required daily exercise and runs with CapeK9Cardio. Our Pet Taxi service would transport Rocky to a nice path, so his high energy could be burned off. This made Rosie happy too.
To say that these dogs really enjoy their feeding ritual would be an understatement! Like a pair of wet vacs, these dogs worked in tandem to eliminate every last morsel of food. It was a contest to see who could eat faster.
Rocky is tall and goofy and Rosie is short and has a loud distinguishing snort. Rocky loves to play frisbee and Rosie will do just about anything for a treat! Two very different looking dogs with very contrasting traits and personalities. It’s amazing to watch the special bond that these two Cape Cod pets have. Rocky and Rosie not only get along great, but they love the companionship that they provide one another! We can’t wait to see this special pair again!
Our professional dog walkers can make a difference in your dog’s life too! Call or visit our Pet Sitting website today and remember, “A fit dog is a happy dog!”
New Clients: we will be away March 5th - 15th. If you Contact Us or leave a message 877-592-2734 for new service, we will get back to you as soon as possible. If you already have a reservation, don't worry, our employees will ensure you receive uninterrupted service.
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Rocky is tall and goofy and Rosie is short and has a loud distinguishing snort. Rocky loves to play frisbee and Rosie will do just about anything for a treat! Two very different looking dogs with very contrasting traits and personalities. It’s amazing to watch the special bond that these two Cape Cod pets have. Rocky and Rosie not only get along great, but they love the companionship that they provide one another! We can’t wait to see this special pair again!
