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My dog had a fat tick I thought was a scab. What should I do?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Silky Terrier | Female | unspayed | 5 years old

Pulled a very fat looking tick from my dogs back fur after several days, thinking it was a scab. What should I do now?

3 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on November 2nd, 2016

It's very important to make sure you removed the head of the tick, and if you think you didn't, I would take Lady into the vet to get it removed. Clean the area with an antiseptic wash, and keep an eye on the area for signs of infection. If the area becomes red or inflamed, take her into the vet. Also monitor her for signs of fever, anorexia, reluctance to move, swollen lymph nodes, lethargy, I would take her into the vet right away.

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    Answered By Tomasz Wnuk

    Veterinarian

    Published on

    You need to monitor the skin where the tick was for the next few days for signs of redness, bruising, pain. If you see any of them, please, take your dog to your local vets right away. Red, inflammed skin around the spot where the tick was suggests presence of tick-born disease and your dog will need a course of antibiotics.

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    Answered By Daniel Fonza, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on September 7th, 2018

    Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. It is difficult to say for sure what the bite could be from. As long as it is healing and Sky is not showing any other symptoms I would just recommend monitoring her for now. If the area becomes infected, does not resolve or new bites similar to the original begin to show up, then I would recommend having a veterinarian examine her so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

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We just pulled a tick off of our dog, there is nothing coming out of where the tick was but there is a large bump under her skin. What should we do next? We've cleansed it with rubbing alcohol and put Vaseline on it. What more can we do?
The first thing to check would be if the tick's head came out with it when you removed it from Malley Bo Bailey. If it did not, then the body is going to try to push it out and she will get an infection. Depending on where you live, Bailey may need to go on antibiotics. Tick borne disease are common in certain parts of the US and her veterinarian would be the best person to contact so to decide if she needs medication. Sometimes the spot where the tick was attached can become inflamed. You did a good job cleaning it and now watch it for the next 24-48hrs. If the swelling goes down then thats good. If not, then take her in to see her doctor. The bite can still get infected so monitor it closely. Best of luck!
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I noticed on my dogs head a bump. I think it is a small tick but I wanted to be sure before anything like removing it. Could someone help?
That looks more like a scab than a tick. Examine the area closely. If it's a tick, you will be able to see 8 tiny legs (4 on each side). If it's a scab, hair will be attached to the lesion. Look online at pictures of attached ticks. If you are still not sure, run Lucy by the vet's office. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.
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My dog had a tick on her head a week ago and we removed it promptly. The head wasn't left in and as far as I know nothing else was either. Afterward, we found a small lump on her head. It has been over a week and the lump has grown. It is white and
The lump is likely a small abscess or infection where the tick was. This not a huge concern, but the diseases that ticks can carry and transmit to your dog are a much more dangerous issue. Visit your veterinarian for a prescription for Advantix or Nexguard so your dog will be prevented from disease transmission like Lyme disease. The lump will likely go away as the small skin infection resolves, but if it doesn't then have your vet look at this as well when you are getting your tick prevention meds.
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I'm very worried about my dog. He has a bump on his neck. It is kind of hard, not really movable and it's not like a perfect shape. I found it on him yesterday while brushing him. But I found and removed a tick on his neck 2 days ago near the same ar
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My dog had a tick but it fell off before I had a chance to pull it out properly. I think the head may still be attached, but I’m not sure. What should I do to best care for this?
I don't like how it has a dark circle in the photo. I recommend to have this examined by the veterinarian. Depending on disease prevalence in your area, the doctor may recommend prophylactic treatment for tick borne disease or may discuss vaccines for Lyme disease. I hope this helps.
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My dog is up too date with her shots, however I just found 2 ticks on her. Not sure how long they were on her but one was much bigger than the other. She hasn't been showing any symptoms I have removed the ticks, but what should I do next?
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My dog has a somewhat scaly, hard, large lump on her chest where I had found and removed a tick several weeks ago. Should I be concerned or is this normal and nothing to worry about? I can't tell if she's lethargic or having pain walking because that
Hello! It's difficult to tell for sure, but what I think I'm seeing in the photo is a nipple towards the upper left aspect of the photo, and an oval yellowish area below - I'm guessing that's where you believe the tick was removed? It is very common for dogs to get a small hard scab where a tick was removed, and as long as that scab is not red, inflamed, and has no discharge, it typically resolves on its own. Dogs do not get the stereotypical "bulls-eye" lesion that we watch for in humans to indicate Lyme disease exposure. However, if the lesion in question is that yellowish oval area, that would not be a normal response to a tick bite, and I would have that checked out by a vet. Your vet will be able to look at the lump and determine how concerned they are, and they will likely want to take a small sample with a needle to look at the cells in the microscope (cytology) to determine what is causing the lump. Additionally, if there is concerned about tick exposure, they can test
Updated on September 24th, 2025
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We pulled a tick off her 2 days ago and now its has a red ring around it. There is another spot where there was a tick and now its a hard lump but it is not red.
A small amount of localized swelling and redness is a normal inflammatory reaction after tick removal. However, if the swelling and redness persists then you should have your vet take a look at it. You could clean the area with a wound wash and then apply a topical OTC antibiotic cream to the area. Make sure to use a good flea and tick prevention, NexGard, Bravecto, Credelio. Also, talk to your vet about vaccinating for Lyme disease is she isn't vaccinated. Monitor for any abnormal signs and talk your vet about yearly testing for tick borne diseases and heartworms.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
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I pulled a tick off Jake three weeks ago. It scabbed over, then the scab looked “wet” so about ten days ago I pulled it off and cleaned the wound real good. Tonight I noticed it was still hard and scabby and not looking better. I pulled the scab off
Hello, thank you for using Boop by Petco. This would not be normal after tick removal especially since it has been three weeks ago. I suspect the head (or some part of the head of the tick) may still be embedded into the deeper tissue. You will need to take Jake to your vet for them to check it and he may need to be sedated so the wound can be explored. You can also speak to your vet about what tick preventative would be best to use going forward to hopefully prevent this from happening again. Hope this helps. Best wishes.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
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My dog got bit by a tick. I removed it on Saturday, the tick was slightly engorged. Since I removed it, he has had a red bump with a pimple like head that's a bit crusty. At what point do I need to take him to the vet to make sure it is not infected?
A tick will bite and then inject an anticoagulant and anesthetic into the wound so it can suck blood. When you removed the tick you may have accidentally left the head in the wound, which will come out by itself eventually. The bump is caused by a reaction to the tick's anticoagulant/anesthetic. There are two types of infection possible (but fairly rare considering how many animals get bitten by ticks) 1) a local reaction with a little abscess. This will usually go away by itself and will not need to be examined by a vet unless it starts to ooze or increases in size, hurts or looks very angry. 2) there is always a chance that the tick was infected by the bacterium that cause Lyme disease or by a blood parasite or another tick-born disease. Should your dog get ill or act lethargic or get a fever within the next 2 to 4 weeks , he needs to be seen by a vet who can do blood tests to find out whether there is an infection.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
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