Those of us who enjoy a multispecies household understand the need to protect our dogs from ticks. This is also true for our outdoor kitties and ‘tis the season.

I saw my first tick when I was about nine; I was in the bathtub after a day of hiking in Rattlesnake Canyon and it was attached to my arm. I didn’t know what it was, but I yelled for my mom to come take it off.

There are nine species of ticks found in our state. Although most of these do not commonly feed on humans, dogs or cats, the others do and can pass on disease with their bites. Therefore the need for protection is warranted.

Ticks are most often encountered during the warm, dry months of the year, though they are present all the time. There is even one called “the winter tick” which feeds on horses and deer from fall to early spring. Unlike other species, these do not drop off after engorging but remain on the host to feed again so you are unlikely to see one of these on a household pet.

On several trapping occasions I have found ticks on cats and kittens, and of course I have found them on my dog after walks through tall grasses and along wooded trails. On those occasions I check myself as well since any warm body is just as good as another to these blood suckers.

A cat’s natural grooming technique often dispatches any onboard tick that is within reach, so be sure to examine the face, ears, neck, armpits and between the toes for any holdouts. If you find one, remove it carefully. Prompt removal also helps prevent infections of tick-borne diseases.

Males are flat and do not attach themselves to a host but may be seen scuttling away. It is the female that feeds after mating and before dropping off to lay her eggs. This is the easiest time to catch one as it will be stationary.

Wearing gloves, use blunt-nosed tweezers, grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible and pull gently until it releases. Be careful when removing a feeding tick to prevent leaving mouth and head parts behind in the skin as they can cause a local skin infection.

If you don’t have tweezers with you or prefer not to pull on the tick, try this. Using your finger, begin circling around the parasite, continually brushing it as you go until it backs out of the skin. I watched a vet do this on my dog, and upon trying it myself, found it works quite nicely. It sometimes takes a bit of time, but it does the job and you’ll know nothing was left behind.

Do not pinch or crush the tick as any released blood may be dangerous to you. Instead, seal it in a small container with rubbing alcohol. Ticks can survive an alcohol dunk and toilet flushing and live to infect another animal, so put it in the garbage outside.

Tick-borne diseases come in three forms: viral, bacterial and parasitic. We are all familiar with Lyme Disease and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever which affect humans, but your cat or dog can also be infected with these and others.

Protect your animals with species specific products and yourself as well with a repellant containing DEET (for the skin) or permethrin (for the clothes). If you suspect your yard of being infested, treat it too and keep the tall grasses and shrubs cleared in the areas frequented by your pets.