I Removed A Tick From My Cat Leaving The Head In

I just removed a tick from Tiggly that was on her neck. It was nearly half an inch in size! Poor kitty -- She loved it though. She relaxed and stayed on my lap while pumping her paws. I think she believes I am part of her clan, so she was quite content to let me mess around with the bug that was irritating her. haha

The bad news is the tick's head broke off. I poured antiseptic over the wound and massaged it into the area in the hopes of preventing infection. I can see the head and there is a piece of skin next to it that might uncover the head if I pulled it off.

I was trying to pull off the piece of skin, in the hopes of getting the head, but Tiggly squirmed her way away from me by then. It was probably hurting. Maybe I'll try another day. Or should I just leave it alone now? Any ideas?

by Jessie

Read about Tiggly in an earlier post

Hi Jessie.. Tiggly trusts you completely. I wrote an article ages ago about the ghastly tick.

Book 1 of my references says that "if the mouth parts remain fixed to the skin, don't be concerned. In most cases, this causes only a local reaction that clears up in a few days."

Note: There is a disease that can be transmitted to cats by the tick. It seems to be reported from the southern USA (Oklahoma to Florida). It is transmitted by ixodid ticks. It is a nasty disease. Signs are high fever and dehydration.

Ticks can carry diseases that are dangerous to people by the way - Lyme disease for example.

I Removed A Tick From My Cat Leaving Head In