Deer Ticks

Deedar · #1 (**permalink**) 12-05-2011, 07:40 PM

Does anyone know of a way to avoid deer ticks attaching to my dog? I have a tick collar on her which to be honest smells like tea tree, it's brand new but doesn't seem to be working. I have just pulled 5 off her before they attach, but a couple of days ago I actually got one off her that was crawling on her collar... They're a pest and I understand to find the odd tick on the dog but its becoming a nightmare. Our garden is very well kept. Any help would be brilliant. Deedar

Kayleigh · #2 (**permalink**) 12-05-2011, 11:33 PM

Try the spot treatment on the back of the neck it kills the ticks.

Deedar · #3 (**permalink**) 13-05-2011, 04:45 AM

Hi, I use the treatment on her neck also... As I actually live in Germany with the forces I have to have all flea/tick treatments and all jabs and rabies up to date otherwise she goes in quarentine when we leave instead of just coming on the tunnel with us. I am just getting tired of them now, everyday I am pulling them off her, I have heard of people buying alternative treatments however I speak very little german so an unaware of what to look for

Lemars · #4 (**permalink**) 13-05-2011, 06:21 AM

Could you get someone to send you a box of powder, a tiny spoonful of which you mix into their food daily ?

There's a company in Wales which sells this and we've used it on our dogs for years. I have to admit it seems less effective than it used to be, but the ticks are certainly much less of a problem.

Many people here use it with for cats too. We started using this powder when the spot-on-the-neck (all makes were tried - including rotating the makes) failed to work. One of my dogs got pyroplasmosis with the spot system and nearly died.

I'm not sure if the company would post to Germany. I live in France and asked for it to be delivered to the UK address of some friends who were coming over. You could always ask - they're really very nice people to deal with.
I won't post the name and address on here, but would PM you if you're interested.
C

caperwatch · #5 (**permalink**) 13-05-2011, 06:44 PM

We have an Alaskan Malamute and regularly visit a forum, many of the members there suggest trying Garlic powder.
Not sure how much but I'm sure if you Google it there will be quite a bit of info.

Deedar · #6 (**permalink**) 14-05-2011, 06:36 AM

Thanks formthat, I will definatly go and google garlic powder now... And am going to try anything at all. My mother got Lymes disease off a deer tick so I am quite concerned about getting it myself... It didnt look nice at all.

Klaas Reißmann · #7 (**permalink**) 14-05-2011, 08:30 AM

Hi Deedar,

at first: language is always a problem. If you don't speak the language of the country your living in, these "little" problems with your dog can grow to giant problems. But the question in my mind is: what would you do, if your dog needs a vet? You would try to find any and go to the one you find and hope he will understand you and help. In my mind it is important for you to look for a vet before your dog gets ill. So use the internet, a surchmachine, by using the following keywords:

Tierarzt
Kleintierarzt

and the name of the town your living in. For example:

Tierarzt in Frankfurt
Kleintierarzt in Frankfurt

The surchengines will give you adresses and phonenumbers of all those vets in your environment. Than I would visit those vets and have a look which of them speaks English in a way he will understand you.

Germany is a country where many people speak more or less good English. You shouldn't be to afraid to speak English. I no it is a problem. I had to learn to speak in foreign countries (Great Britain, U.S.A., France) when I was young. One is always ashamed to let others know he can't speak the native language or he can't well. Take my mother as example. She is going to eveningschool for many years to learn English. She speaks English very well, but she is still ashamed to speak. She always asks me to translate.

People like to help other people. And Germany in this is a funny country. Even we are still more or less the country of Nazis and a country that killed foreigners in the past, because of all that happened in world war 2 and many people might have their fears, today people here are more proud about knowing they helped a foreigner than in other countries in my mind. So just try it. A vet speaking English would be prowd to have an English patient.

At last: the things that are used most against Deer Ticks in Germany are

Exspot (this is an oily fluid you put on the neck and that works for almost two month)
Frontline (it is the same way working)
Scalibor (this is a neckless that works for half a year)

I prefer Scalibor, because it is more expensive to buy (somewhat around 20 - 30 Euro) but because it works much longer it is cheaper, it works very well against Deer Ticks and it even works against sandmosquitos so I can go on vacation to the mediterranean without any problems.

One thing is important to know: all those things against Deer Ticks does not avoid them. There is nothing, what ever you get told, that really avoids Deer Ticks. Those products fload the skin of the dogs very lightly with a toxic that kills Deer Ticks immediatelly when they try to get into the skin. You will find Deer Ticks, but they are all dead. When your dog is on a product for a longer time, than it seem to avoid Deer Ticks more or less. You will only find Deer Ticks by here and than.

And Important: if you use one of the oily things your dog shouldn't go into water for the first week, because the water would flush it out.

If you need any help, f.e. surching a vet or what ever, I can try to help.

Regards
Klaas

Edit: Sorry for this "novel".

Deedar · #8 (**permalink**) 15-05-2011, 07:08 AM

Hi, thank you so much for all your help.

I have a vet that speaks English but she just told me to use what I already am as its the best out there. But as I said I have heard about a product made in Germany that comes in the form of apparently a necklace, but I havent seen it anywhere. I have also heard that there is a tag that you can put on the dogs collar that sends out a vibration which the ticks dont like, but again this is a German product and I have no clue what to look for. As I said my vet said I am using the best out there, but I find the best is rubbish. She has the liquid on the back of her neck every 3 months, and always wears a flea and tick collar but nothing seems to be helping in the ticks not climbing on her.

As I am sure you're aware being German that there aren't really many products that you are allowed to use on the flora in the country as I believe there is a product that you can spray on the bushes to kill the ticks, so I went to a local Baumarkt and with my incredibly broken German tried to explain what I was after... I had a slight problem as I wasn't sure what tick was in German, I later discovered its zecken. The man said he spoke no English and as I couldnt work out what tick was in German at the time there was a lot of silly movements being acted out in the middle of a very busy baumarkt!! Haha. Luckily a lovely woman was walking past who spoke amazing English and acted as my translator and I was given some stuff to mix with water and spray on the flora in the garden, but when I got home I read through the instructions and discovered that it stopped, fruit flies and other such bugs no ticks. I was quite sad haha.

I would also like to end this message with saying your English is amazing. Thank you so much for your help.

Deedar

Kayleigh · #9 (**permalink**) 15-05-2011, 12:43 PM

Just be aware the ticks will still climb on the dog its when they try to suck the blood they will be killed up 24hrs after being on the dog.
I would try to get some flea and tick powder and give the dog a dusting when you walk it and keep up the treatment of the spot on the neck and you need to reapply the sopt/frontline every 2 months for ticks.

Good luck..

Klaas Reißmann · #10 (**permalink**) 15-05-2011, 03:11 PM

Hi,

the vets around my area all know Scalibor, Exspot and Frontline. So maybe you should be looking out other vets that can help in different things. Your vet surely is not a bad one, but no vet can be fit in all. I think it should be normal to have different vets to look for your dog (or what animals you ever keep). We've got one that is expensive, but he is the best when it comes to an operation, another one is the cheapest and very good in the "normal" things like looking at our old dog, vaccinations and other things and the third is good if our dogs do have something you need experience for (f.e. diabetes insipidus - he found out whereas the others were all looking for the function of the kidney, because the dog drank very much and did a lot of pee).

Regards
Klaas