ANTELOPE VALLEY, Calif. -- While tick season isn’t one of the biggest worries in Southern California, the most recent winter and all that rain combined with rising temperatures are a cause for concern, especially for our furry friends.
With the warmer weather comes spending more time outside and while your dogs may be loving the extra play time, they might not love a tick as much.
Here in the Valley, people might think they aren’t a threat. However, this past winter helped create a climate that ticks enjoy.
“There’s been a little more this year because of all the rain we had. Environment has to be right for those ticks to propagate so we’ve seen a few more of them this spring than normal,” said Antelope Valley Animal Hospital Dr. Jim Nyholt.
Ticks are incredibly dangerous for not just animals, but people as well.
“People even get ticks. Of course that’s the main concern because there are certain diseases like Lyme disease and so forth that are transmitted by the tick that people can get,” said Nyholt.
A new life threatening disease carried by ticks has recently been found, called Powassan. So how do you avoid a tick? Dr. Nyholt recommends treating your pets with medication and constantly checking them, especially if you go hiking or if your dog walks through tall grass. According to health professionals, the biggest key to keeping your pet healthy is prevention. If you take the proper steps now, your pet will be less likely to get them in the height of tick season.