Camping and hiking is a lot of fun, especially when enjoying it with your dog. It’s great to be outside, getting lots of fresh air and exercise while seeing the many amazing things that nature has to offer.

One of the worst parts of camping and hiking with your pet? Biting insects. Ticks are the first ones I think of when I’m trying to keep my dog safe, but there are other bites that can be just as painful for your pet.

I’m sure we can all agree that mosquitoes are annoying and their bites are very itchy.  However, even though we have to be concerned with West Nile virus, mosquitoes are definitely not as bad as many other insects. Deer flies and black flies can really cause some large welts on dogs. They focus on the dog’s underbelly, where there is often less fur. During a trip to Restoule Provincial Park many years ago, Maya was bitten many times on her belly because she wasn’t protected. We have since found a natural product that works so well, we often think we should use it for ourselves.

To protect your pet from biting insects, we highly recommend Animal Legends’ Flicks Horse and Pet Spray. The spray is made up of a variety of natural oils and lanolin. It has a nice smell, doesn’t make your pet’s fur oily and doesn’t have to be reapplied after moderate swimming or rain. The spray actually moisturizes their skin while repelling flies, mosquitoes, gnats, fleas and ticks.  Surprisingly enough, it goes a long way because it is sold in a concentrated formula. Did I mention it doesn’t contain any pesticides or insecticides? Speaking from experience, this stuff works! We were wearing insect repellent containing 28-30% DEET and the bugs were still bothering us but they just flew toward her, gave it a smell and then hovered or left without biting. That’s why I think I should start using it! We didn’t find a single deer or black fly bite on her belly this summer. You do have to make sure that you spray everywhere though. We missed her chin once early on and she got a tick, but that was an oversight on our part. Spray your pet liberally and then spray your hand and rub it onto the more sensitive or hard to reach places – chin, nose, eye area, etc. Shop around for the best price. We found it at a Tack Shop north of London, Ontario in 2010 for about $20 and we are only now just looking to buy another one (the concentrate makes about 32 oz. of spray).

Ticks are the worst.

Ticks have 8 legs and can be various colours depending on the species.

Ticks are arachnids, which means they are like spiders. These tiny bugs feed off of blood and some of them carry diseases, like Lyme’s disease or Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. Ticks have eight legs and can be several different colours: black, brown or tan. Prevention is the best advice for avoiding tick bites. Here are some things you can do to try to minimize the chances of you or your pet getting bitten by a tick:

After being outside it is important to check yourself and your pet for ticks. Check between your dogs toes, inside their ears, in their “armpits” and around the neck. This will be significantly harder on a darker coloured dog.

Source: PetMD

Splinter Picker / Tick Remover by Adventure Medical.

Once you’ve found a tick it is important to remove it quickly and properly. Get everything you’ll need before attempting to remove the tick.

1. If you are planning on having the tick tested, get a screw top plastic container and place a paper towel in it. To send it for testing in Canada, please follow these instructions.
2. Put on rubber or latex gloves so that you do not  come in contact with the tick or the bite area in order to prevent any infective agents from entering your bloodstream.
3. Whenever possible you’ll want to have someone to keep your pet from moving around or squirming while you are trying to properly remove the tick.
4. If you are using tweezers, it is preferable to use ones that come to a point, instead of the usual ones you might find in a makeup kit. We use these tick remover / splinter remover tweezers that came in our MEC Adventure Medical Kit. Using the tweezers, grab the tick as close as you can to its mouth without grabbing your pet’s skin. Do not grab it’s swollen belly because you could either break the tick’s mouth off inside or squeeze toxins into your pet’s bloodstream. After you have the tick, gently pull it straight out until its mouth lets go.
5. If you weren’t successful at getting the mouth out in one piece, use a warm compress to help the body expel it. Whatever you do, do not try to dig the parts out with your tweezers.
6. Using rubbing alcohol, disinfect the area. Be sure to wash your hands and to disinfected the tweezers too.
7. Keep an eye on the area for the next two weeks. If there are any signs of infection take your pet to the veterinarian for an evaluation. Also watch for symptoms of tick-borne diseases: sudden arthritis or lameness that lasts three to four days, swollen joints, fever, fatigue, loss of appetite and neurological issues. Again, if you notice any of these, you should take your pet to the veterinarian.

Source: Fix.com