My dog's tick bite is red, swollen, yellow. Is it infected or Lyme?

Question

Bad tick bite!!! Discovered a tick between my jack russel's shoulder blades. The surrounding area around the bite is red and puffy. Inside the red and puffy area is a yellow-green area that is festering and looks infected. I Googled several pictures of infected tick bites and fear that my jack russel may have been bitten by a tick carrying lyme disease. I safely removed the tick and made sure that the tick's head was not buried in my dog's skin. I'd greatly appreciate further advice/guidance! Pet's info: Dog | Jack Russell Terrier | Female | spayed

Laura Johnson VMD · Accepted Answer

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I see a lot of tick bites that are raised with a yellowish center. The bump is from a local inflammatory reaction due to the attached tick. It rarely indicates Lyme disease. Lyme disease is only carried by the deer tick. So we would have to ID the tick you pulled off. Unfortunately it takes 2-3 months for a test to show positive if Marley was infected with Lyme disease. It also takes 24 hours for the tick to transmit Lyme. So if you promptly removed the tick and it wasn't engorged it is likely that it didn't transmit Lyme. The bump could be infected. Without seeing a picture I can only speculate. You can clean the bump with hydrogen peroxide daily and apply a triple antibiotic cream. I have seen it take 2-6 weeks for these bumps to go away. It is never wrong to have the bump looked at by your Vet if you are still worried. I wish you the best!

My dog's tick bite is red, swollen, yellow. Is it infected or Lyme?

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