Why are there red bumps and dead ticks still attached to my dog?

Question

I put flea and tick medication on my dog earlier today, tonight i was petting his belly and noticed several red knots then realized there were ticks. He must have gotten into a nest or something. I pulled 6 off of him. My question is why were there big red knots? The ticks seemed to be dead but still attached. Is he ok?

Andrea M. Brodie, DVM · Accepted Answer

The big red knots are a reaction to the saliva that the tick injects when biting. The saliva contains an anesthetic and an anticoagulant and this can cause a reaction if the dog is very sensitive. When the ticks die they may actually be stressed and inject more of the saliva than usual. But , since they were dead, you have proof that the medicine is working! Ticks have a type of mouth that attaches to the skin, so when the tick dies, this attachment keeps the tick attached. So it was a good thing that you removed the dead ticks.

Why are there red bumps and dead ticks still attached to my dog?

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