If I find a tick on my dog, should I remove it? If so, how?

A. There are two important reasons for removing ticks as soon as you discover them on your dog. The first involves the transmission of Lyme disease. It takes between 24 and 48 hours for ticks to transfer the bacteria that cause Lyme disease. So, early removal will prevent the disease from taking hold. The second reason involves the bloated female ticks. The ticks we most commonly encounter are known as three-host ticks. This means they find a host, take a blood meal, drop off to molt and repeat this cycle three times. On the third host, the mated female engorges herself with blood, swelling to 20 times her normal size. She then drops off, lays between 1,000 and 2,000 eggs, and crawls off to die. So if you don't remove those bloated ticks, you may have to deal with over 1,000 babies in your house looking for host number one.

Although there are many suggestions on how to remove ticks, I will give you three choices. Personally, I grab ticks and squeeze them between my thumbnail and the nail of my index finger. This usually will cause them to release their hold as I pull them off. If you don't want to touch them, a second tip is to simply cut them in half with a pair of scissors. The third choice is to purchase a tick removal kit at your local pet store or vet office. Most look like tiny crowbars that you place under the tick and pull off.

The tick's anticoagulant will cause some swelling and scab formation after forceful removal, but nature will take care of the healing. Happy hunting...

Any letters to the editor maybe?

Did you see the four Google sponsored ads spread across the bottom of the page? Here is what I could copy. Note that two of them call it "Lyme's"
The Mosquito repellent is 100% Deet which is very dangerous! You should never put more than 30% deet on your skin.

[quote]
Ads by Google

Deer Tick Killer
Kill Deer Ticks that Carry Lymes Disease www.yardiac.com
This one is for Bayer Lawn and Garden advanced insect killer, not specialized for ticks.

Mosquito Repellent - Deet
100% Deet bug repellent spray stops mosquitos, deer ticks, fleas & more www.amazon.com [See above]

Treat Lyme Disease Fast
Stop Eliminate Suffering Now Learn How To Heal Yourself
trustedmolocureamp.com
This website doesn't mention Lyme disease, has two unidentified guys in white coats pictured at the top and lots of colon pics further down. Here is the prominent ad at the top:
"Trusted MoloCure AMP is a great new all natural product, powerful concentrate of aloe mucilaginous polysaccharides (AMP) used to help those with digestive and immune disorders.
BUY 2 BOTTLES AT $99.97 EACH

GET A THIRD BOTTLE FREE FOR A FRIEND"

New Treatment for Lyme's
Condition Specific Supplement New hope for Lymes Sufferers!
alohamedicinals.com/lyme-aid.htm
This one is the largest producer of medicinal mushrooms. Their product is:
"RIDOXOLAN PLUS is made from a mixture of more than 200 structurally different Beta-Glucans and other polysaccharide immunomodulators, which are specially extracted and purified through the proprietary process developed by Aloha Medicinals. In addition to these different Beta-Glucan compounds, there are also unique Nucleoside and Deoxy-nucleosides which are found only in hybrid Cordyceps species. These deoxy-nucleosides are collectively known as HEAA (hydroxyethyl adenosine analogs), and are the latest weapon in the arsenal for optimum immune function." Sells for 50dollars a bottle.

I think I am going to contact Google about this if I can figure out how.

Ann - OH