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This guide is a home-care support tool. It does not replace personalized advice from your veterinarian. For any questions, contact us at 514 223-1197.
The tools
One good tool is enough to grip the tick. The rest is for disinfecting and protecting yourself. Get everything ready before you start.
Is it really a tick?
A tick is a small parasite with legs, attached to the skin by its head, with its body sitting on the surface. Unfed it is brownish and about the size of a sesame seed (sometimes smaller); once engorged with blood it swells and turns greyish, up to the size of a coffee bean or a small grape. Do not confuse it with a skin tag, a wart, a scab, or a nipple. If you are unsure, do not pull at random: send us a photo, or have it identified on eTick.ca.
Tick hook
Designed to slide under the tick and lift it out whole, head included. The safest option.
BestFine-tipped tweezers
If you have no hook, fine-pointed tweezers will do.
Isopropyl alcohol
To kill the tick once removed.
Mild antiseptic
Dilute chlorhexidine, povidone iodine, or soapy water to clean the skin.
Gauze or paper towel
To dab and dry the area.
Gloves
To avoid direct contact with the tick.
OptionalA tick hook is worth having
A tick hook (Tick Twister or similar, from a pharmacy or pet store) lifts the whole tick out with a simple motion and lowers the risk of leaving the head behind. If you live in a tick area, keep one in your kit.
Mistakes to avoid
How you remove a tick matters as much as removing it. Done wrong, it can actually raise the risk of infection.
Never do this
- Apply oil, petroleum jelly, ether, alcohol, a match, or heat to make the tick let go.
- Crush or squeeze the tick's swollen body.
- Yank it out or twist it (apart from the slight motion a hook is designed for).
- Remove it with your fingernails or bare fingers.
Why? Crushing, squeezing, or yanking a tick can make it regurgitate its saliva and gut contents into the skin, injecting the very germs you are trying to avoid. Remedies like oil, petroleum jelly, or heat mostly just delay proper removal, and the longer a tick stays attached, the higher the transmission risk.
Protect yourself, and act early
Wear gloves if you can, never handle an engorged tick (one swollen with blood) with bare hands, and wash your hands before and after. The good news: the sooner a tick is removed, the lower the risk of transmission (most diseases need many hours of attachment). So act promptly, but calmly and correctly.
Removing the tick, step by step
Settle somewhere calm with good light. If your pet is very agitated or in pain, or the tick is in a tricky spot (eyelid, inside the ear) or hard to reach, let the clinic handle the removal.
Steady your pet
Pick a calm, well-lit spot. Get someone to help hold it if needed, or offer a soft treat to distract it.
Grip the tick right at the skin
With tweezers, place the tips on the tick's head, as close to the skin as possible, without pinching the body. With a hook, slide it under the tick, between the skin and the mouthparts (the tick's “head”).
Lift it out gently
With tweezers: pull straight out, slowly and without jerking. With a hook: make a slight rotating motion, then lift. Check that the tick is whole, mouthparts included.
Clean the area
Disinfect the bite with soapy water or a mild antiseptic (dilute chlorhexidine, povidone iodine), then dab and dry with a clean pad.
Dispose of the tick
Drop the tick into a small sealed container with alcohol to kill it. Before you throw it out, you can also photograph it (or keep it) and note the date you removed it: shown to your vet or submitted to eTick.ca, it can help identify the tick species, and therefore which diseases are possible in your area.
If your pet will not hold still
A tick pull can pinch a little, so a pet that is calm at first may suddenly whip around. If it tenses up, struggles, growls, or tries to snap, stop and do not force it. Keep your face and free hand clear, do not have a child do the holding, and let us finish the removal if needed.
After removal
The bite usually heals without trouble. Here is what to watch for in the days and weeks that follow.
Watch the bite
A little swelling or a small scab is normal for a few days. Call if the area becomes very red, swollen, painful, or oozing.
Check for more ticks
Go over the whole body, especially the head, neck, ears, armpits, and dense-fur areas where ticks like to hide.
Watch the overall picture
Unusual tiredness, limping, loss of appetite, or fever in the weeks or even months that follow? Call us. Ticks can transmit Lyme disease and other infections (ehrlichiosis, anaplasmosis).
In Quebec, stay alert
Ticks carrying Lyme disease are increasingly present in Quebec, especially in the south of the province. And they are not just a summer problem: they can be active whenever the temperature climbs above roughly 4 degrees, including mild spells in fall or winter, which is why year-round protection is often advised. A bite does not mean your pet will get sick, but it is a good reason to monitor closely and keep up suitable tick protection.
What about you?
A tick found on your pet can also bite a person, and removing your pet's tick does not protect you. If you get bitten, or if a spreading rash (sometimes bull's-eye shaped), fever, or flu-like symptoms appear in the following weeks, speak to your own doctor or call Info-Sante at 811. Keep removed ticks out of children's reach, and take extra care if someone in the household is immunocompromised. Our team cares for animals; for your own health, please see your doctor.
When to call us
The bite usually heals without trouble. Get in touch if you notice:
- The bite turns very red, swollen, warm, painful, or oozing (a sign of infection).
- A head fragment stays in the skin and you cannot remove it, or the spot has not settled after one to two weeks.
- The tick is on an eyelid, inside the ear, or in a hard-to-reach spot: let us remove it.
- Unusual tiredness, limping, loss of appetite, or fever in the weeks or even months after a bite.
- You find several ticks, or keep finding them: let us talk about prevention.
Urgent: weakness, an unsteady gait, a changed bark or meow, or trouble breathing after a tick (tick paralysis, rare but reversible once the tick is off), or a cat that trembles or has seizures after a dog tick product. Call us right away.
Call us at 514 223-1197. Outside our opening hours, see our emergency options.
Preventing ticks
The best tick is the one that never latches on. A few habits greatly reduce the risk.
- Check your pet after every walk, especially after woods, brush, or tall grass.
- Keep the yard tidy: mow the lawn, clear dead leaves, trim bushes.
- Use a vet-prescribed tick preventive: a liquid applied to the skin (spot-on), a tablet, or a collar, and renew it as recommended.
- Avoid heavily infested areas if your pet is not protected.
Cats: beware of dog products
Never put a dog tick product on a cat without your veterinarian's advice. Some dog tick treatments (those containing permethrin) are highly toxic to cats and can cause tremors, seizures, even death. Always choose a product made for your pet's species and weight.
Already put a dog product on a cat, or is your cat trembling or having seizures? This is an emergency: call us right away at 514 223-1197 (or an emergency clinic outside our hours). While you arrange care, rinse the product off with lukewarm water and a mild dish soap, stop your cat from licking itself, and keep it warm. Do not wait for symptoms to appear before acting.
Your questions, our answers
The most common situations around removing a tick.
What if the head stays in the skin?
Should I apply something (oil, alcohol) before removing the tick?
Can I remove the tick with my fingernails?
Does my pet need treatment after a bite?
My pet lives in an apartment. Does it need protection?
Related guides
Five moves for a safe removal
Steady your pet, grip the tick right at the skin without crushing the body, lift it out gently (or with a hook), disinfect, then dispose of the tick. After that, keep watch on the area and on your pet. If you are unsure, the head stays in, or unusual symptoms appear, call us. Prevention and regular checks remain the best protection.
A tricky tick, or unsure?
Tick in an awkward spot, head left in the skin, or symptoms that worry you? Our team can remove the tick and examine your pet.