Ticks are a very small pest that can be inhabiting your yard and your trees, as well as other structures around your yard. These tiny pests carry a powerful disease called Lyme disease. It can affect humans and animals alike, including your pets. Prevention is key, but so is keeping a close eye on your pets and their bodies to see if they have any of these pests in their fur or on their skin. Ticks can be found just about anywhere, but they are usually more prevalent in areas with a lot of trees and other foliage. To prevent tick bites on your dog, there are a number of things you should know. Read on for helpful information.

Give Your Dog A Tick Preventative

Giving your dog a tick preventative medication to help repel the bites of these pests and keep them at bay is the best thing you can do for your pet. Your dog may still end up with a tick on its body, but the tick will not be able to infect your dog or bite your dog. You may still end up with ticks being brought into your home, which can be bad for you and your family, which is why it's still important to inspect your dog for ticks when they have been outside in tall weeds or grasses.

Keep Your Lawn And Trees Trimmed

These pests like tall weeds, grass, and trees. They can climb onto your pet when outside in these areas, or they may fall onto you or your pet when outside beneath trees. Trim back tree limbs that are hanging low to the ground and trim your lawn so it isn't overgrown. Keep your dog out of heavily wooded areas whenever possible, and if you cannot, keep a close eye on your pet and inspect it for ticks.

Inspect Your Dog Often

You should be inspecting your dog often for ticks. If you didn't give your dog the preventative medication, there's a good chance your dog could be infected with a tick. You need to be very meticulous when inspecting your dog's fur and skin, especially if it has thick fur. If the tick has embedded itself into the skin already, you may only be able to see part of the body. The entire tick will have to be removed, especially the head. It's best to take your dog to the veterinarian to have it removed properly.

Ticks carry Lyme disease that can be very harmful to your dog's health. If you suspect your dog has been bitten by a tick or has one embedded into its skin, take your dog to the veterinarian right away to have it removed and to test your dog for Lyme disease.

Contact a veterinary service like Clovis Veterinary Hospital P A to learn more.