You find a tick on your dog. Your stomach tightens. You know you need to remove it, but suddenly you’re second-guessing yourself on how. Then comes the what-if: what if it was carrying something? What if it was there long enough to transmit disease? You pull it off, check your dog over, and spend the next few days watching for symptoms you’re not even sure you’d recognise.

The thing about ticks is that most handlers focus only on removal. We’re not taught what comes after — what to actually look for in the weeks following a bite, what diseases ticks carry, or how to distinguish a normal bad day from an early sign of infection.

Everything in this article comes from my conversation with Arlene Brailey and Ian Wright on episode 213 of Found It, Fetched It.

Ticks carry disease — and it can go unrecognised for years

Lyme disease is caused by a bacterium transmitted through tick bites. The problem: early infection is often subtle. Arlene discovered this through her son’s story. He was bitten during outdoor expeditions as a teenager, but the family didn’t know Lyme disease was a risk. Three years later, he couldn’t get out of bed. Visual disturbances, brain fog, severe fatigue, muscle pain — all traces back to a single tick bite years earlier.

The delay in diagnosis is common. Early Lyme disease can look like flu: fatigue, joint aches, mild fever. By the time serious symptoms emerge, the infection has had years to establish. In dogs, the picture is similarly quiet at first. A dog might seem off — less keen on walks, slightly stiffer — and you assume it’s age or a bad day. You don’t immediately think infection.

Key takeaway: A tick bite isn’t a one-day problem. What matters is what you watch for in the weeks after, not just how cleanly you remove it.

Preventing ticks is simpler than managing the disease they transmit

Ian, speaking as a vet who’s seen the consequences, makes this clear: prevention is the shortest path forward. There are effective options. Year-round tick prevention products work. The challenge for working-dog owners is staying consistent — applying preventatives even in winter, even when you’ve never seen a tick on your dog, even when it feels like overkill.

For dogs in active work outdoors, especially across the UK and Europe, year-round coverage matters. Ticks aren’t seasonal the way many people assume. They’re active in mild weather year-round, which in the UK means most of the year. Missing a month of prevention isn’t a small gap; it’s a genuine window of risk.

The other piece: tick surveillance. If you remove a tick, you can report it to tick surveillance schemes. This isn’t bureaucracy — it’s data collection that helps map where disease-carrying ticks are found, which informs guidance for handlers and vets.

Key takeaway: Consistent prevention is far easier than retrospectively managing tick-borne disease. Year-round matters more than seasonal thinking.

What Lyme disease looks like in your dog

In dogs, Lyme disease often manifests as subtle lameness or stiffness, especially in the hind end or joints. A dog might be reluctant to jump, slower on walks, or seem generally fatigued. Some dogs show behavioural shifts — less enthusiasm, more lethargy. The trap: these signs are easy to misattribute to age, a hard play session, or just an off day.

Other symptoms include recurrent fever, loss of appetite, or swollen joints. Some dogs show no obvious signs at all but carry the infection. This is why knowing a tick has bitten your dog — and when it happened — is valuable information. It narrows down what to look for and when to get checked.

Ian’s advice is straightforward: if your dog shows lameness, stiffness, or lethargy in the weeks after a known tick bite, a vet check is warranted. Lyme disease is treatable with antibiotics, especially if caught early. The cost of one vet visit is infinitesimal compared to years of managing a chronically infected dog.

Key takeaway: Lethargy, lameness, or stiffness weeks after a tick bite warrant a vet check. Early treatment is far simpler than chronic disease.

How to handle a tick — and what to watch for after

When you find a tick, there’s a right way and a wrong way. The wrong way: squeezing it, burning it, or yanking it out. All of these increase the risk of the tick’s body rupturing and transmitting infection into your dog’s skin. The right way: gentle, steady removal using a hook or tweezers, pulling straight out without twisting.

Once removed, you have options. You can dispose of the tick (making sure it’s dead), or you can report it to a tick surveillance scheme. Schemes across Europe collect data on tick species and where they’re found — information that helps map disease risk. If you report, you’ll usually need to photograph the tick or send it in, depending on the scheme.

After removal, the waiting period begins. Watch your dog over the following weeks. Normal activity, normal appetite, normal energy — all good signs. Any shift worth investigating. There’s no need to panic over every tick you remove, but there is value in staying aware.

Key takeaway: Gentle removal prevents disease transmission at the site. Watching for symptoms in the weeks after is your real job.

Questions people ask about ticks and Lyme disease

My dog has never had a tick. Do I still need year-round prevention?

Yes. In the UK and Europe, ticks are active most of the year. If your dog is outdoors regularly — especially in long grass, woodland, or moorland — the risk is ongoing. A dog hasn’t had a tick yet doesn’t mean ticks aren’t present where you walk. Prevention stops that first bite from happening.

How long does it take for a tick to transmit Lyme disease?

Research suggests transmission typically takes at least 24 to 48 hours of feeding. This is why prompt removal matters. It’s not an instant transfer — there’s a window. That window is why consistent checking and quick removal are part of the prevention strategy.

Can I get Lyme disease from my dog?

No. Lyme disease isn’t transmitted between dogs and humans. However, if your dog has a tick on it, that same tick could bite you. The risk is shared exposure, not transmission from your dog. This is why yard and environmental tick management matters for the whole household.

What if I can’t afford year-round tick prevention?

Talk to your vet about budget options. There are different products at different price points. What matters is finding something that fits your situation and actually using it consistently. A lower-cost option you’ll use is infinitely better than a premium option you can’t afford and therefore skip.

Where do I find guidance if my vet isn’t sure about Lyme disease in dogs?

ESCCAP (https://www.esccapuk.org.uk/page/Ticks/7/) publishes fact sheets and guidelines on parasite prevention and disease transmission. The Lyme Resource Centre also holds information relevant to both human and dog health. These are evidence-based resources you can reference if you need a second opinion or more detail.

You don’t need to live in fear of ticks

The goal isn’t to be paranoid about every walk. It’s to be informed and prepared. A tick on your dog isn’t a catastrophe — it’s a common encounter that you now know how to handle. Prevention stops most of them from happening. Quick removal stops most transmission. Awareness catches early signs if infection does occur.

What shifts when you understand the full picture: you’re no longer reactive and frightened. You’re informed. You have a framework. You know what matters and what doesn’t. You can remove a tick and carry on walking, without spending the next week in what-ifs.

That’s the real value of this conversation — not fear, but clarity.

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