Ticks on Cats - Removing Cat Ticks in 3 Steps

Whether you have a cat, dog or rabbit, finding ticks on pets can be a potentially serious issue, especially when left untreated for an extended period of time. Ticks are resilient pests that carry many different diseases that affect animals as well as humans. If you happen to find ticks on cats or especially ticks on kittens, it’s very important to deal with it as soon as possible to prevent further damage or infection.

What are Ticks?

Ticks are small external parasites that live on the skin of animals and humans. They burrow their mandibles into the skin of the cat, kitten or even human and proceed to suck the blood for nourishment. Ticks generally begin quite small and slowly increase in size as they feed on blood from their host. The main problem with ticks is not the fact that they feed on the host’s blood, but the venom they inject into their system through the mandibles and open sore. It’s the venom that carries any number of disease along with neurotoxins from some tick species.
Since there are over 800 types of ticks found all over the world, it’s important to know the most common signs and symptoms along with potential dangers that your pets may face if ticks are left untreated.

Symptoms and Problems

Ticks, larvae through adulthood, carry many pathogens that cause a series of symptoms and problems that vary from minor to severe. One of the most common diseases that ticks pass on to hosts is Lyme disease, which can cause severe problems over time.
There is a very high chance of totally exterminating these problems if treated during the early stages, however, the longer it takes for treatment to begin, the worse the symptoms become, making it more difficult to cure.

Some of the most common symptoms are:

• Skin irritation 
• Fever 
• Pain on their body 
• Loss of appetite 
• Lameness 
• Swelling of the joints 
• Body inflammation 
• Lethargy 

Steps for Proper Tick on Cats Removal

• You will need: 
• Surgical gloves 
• Fine tip tweezers 
• Small container of alcohol 
• Alcohol Swab 
• Cat hydrocortisone cream 

First, it’s important to put the surgical gloves on to protect yourself from contact with the tick. You must also have someone help you firmly hold the cat until the procedure is complete.
Next, take the tweezers and firmly grasp the tick by the head –not the body. If you grasp the body, you may leave the head behind, which is the source of the symptoms.
Lastly, place the tick in the container filled with alcohol and leave it in there for at least ten minutes to ensure it perishes.

Once the tick has been removed you can leave the cat or kitten on their own or clean the affected area with an alcohol swab followed by a pet safe hydrocortisone cream. You must also remember to thoroughly wash your hands with soap and warm water.