How to Check Your Dog for Ticks: Vet Approved Guide for 2025 🩺🐶

By Dr. Duncan Houston BVSc

Ticks are tiny arachnids that latch onto your dog—often in hidden areas—and can carry serious diseases like Lyme, ehrlichiosis, and tick paralysis. Regular inspections after outdoor activity are your first line of defense. Here's a step-by-step vet-approved routine for 2025:

1️⃣ Run Hands Over the Body

Gently feel your dog’s coat from head to tail. Look for small bumps or nodules that may signal attached ticks.

2️⃣ Focus on Common Hiding Spots

Ears & eyelids: Ticks love warm, moist, thin areas.
Neck & collar line: Easy attachment points after outdoor walks.
Armpits & groin: Dark crevices where ticks often feed.
Between toes & paw pads: Small ticks can lodge in webbing.
Base & underside of tail: Another hidden hotspot.

3️⃣ Part the Fur & Inspect Close

If you feel a bump, gently part the hair and inspect the skin. Ticks range from pinhead size to small grape-like engorged forms.

4️⃣ Remove Ticks Safely

👉 Use fine-tipped tweezers or a tick tool. Grasp the tick close to the dog’s skin and pull straight out with steady pressure—no twisting! Disinfect the site and your hands afterwards. Avoid folklore methods like petroleum jelly, which only increases risk.

5️⃣ Save the Tick

Place the removed tick in a sealed container with rubbing alcohol. This helps your vet identify it and test for diseases if needed.

6️⃣ Monitor Your Dog

Over the following weeks, watch for:

Fever, lethargy, stiffness, lameness
Swollen lymph nodes or enlarged joints

These symptoms may signal Lyme, ehrlichiosis, or tick paralysis and require veterinary evaluation.

7️⃣ Prevention Is Key

Speak with your vet about year-round tick preventatives—oral or topical—and consider environmental measures like yard treatments and keeping bushes trimmed.

📊 Quick Tick-Check Overview

Action	Where/How	Why
Hand run	Head→tail	Feel bumps
Inspect hotspots	Ears, toes, groin, tail	Common tick areas
Part fur	At bumps	See attached tick
Remove tick	Tweezers/tool	Prevent disease
Save tick	Alcohol jar	For vet testing
Monitor pup	Next 4 weeks	Early symptoms
Use prevention	Vet-advises	Reduce risk

🔍 Final Thoughts

Daily tick checks after outdoor activity can catch ticks before they transmit disease. With careful inspection, safe removal, and prevention strategies, you can keep your dog healthy and tick-free in 2025 and beyond. 🐕❤️

Need help choosing the right preventatives or identifying tick-borne symptoms? Download the Ask A Vet app—24/7 access to expert vet advice, always. 📱🩺