How to Get Rid of Ticks on Dogs (and Why They Keep Coming Back)

Why do ticks keep coming back after a bath?

Because the bath only reaches the ticks on your dog. The real problem is in your house.

India's most common dog tick is the brown dog tick. Unlike most ticks, it lives indoors. It spends up to 95% of its life off the dog, hiding in cracks, corners and bedding. It only climbs on to feed.

A few facts explain the whole cycle:

• One female lays 1,500 to 4,000 eggs, usually in wall cracks, behind furniture or near where your dog sleeps.
• Ticks like to climb. That's why you see them on walls, curtains and near switchboards.
• They can survive for months without feeding. Adults can last well over a year.
• Warm, humid weather speeds up the whole life cycle.

So you can bathe your dog every week and still lose. Every bath clears the ticks on the dog, and the house sends a fresh batch the next day.

What kills ticks on dogs instantly?

Honestly, nothing kills a tick that's already attached in an instant, at least nothing that's safe for your dog. Here's what each option really does:

The takeaway is simple. Shampoos and sprays clear today's ticks. A long-lasting product, such as a tick tablet like Furtick or a monthly spot-on for dogs, keeps killing the new ones that climb on from your house. You need both kinds of help.

How to get rid of ticks on dogs: the 3-month plan

This is the plan that breaks the cycle. Skip any one step and the ticks usually return.

Step 1: Treat your dog with long-lasting protection

Pick one main product and give it on time, every time. A 12-week tick tablet, a monthly spot-on, or the option your vet suggests. Ask your vet if you're unsure, especially for puppies, pregnant dogs or dogs on other treatment. You can compare all the options on our tick treatment for dogs page.

If your dog is covered in ticks right now, start with a bath using an anti-tick shampoo or a coat spray such as Richpet Fipo-Mec Fipronil Spray. Then begin the long-lasting product. If you're using a spot-on, wait 2 days after the bath before applying it.

Step 2: Treat every pet in the house

One untreated dog keeps the whole house supplied with ticks. Treat all of them on the same day.

Cats need cat-safe products only. Some dog tick products, especially ones with permethrin, are very dangerous for cats. Ask for a flea and tick treatment made for cats.

Step 3: Clean the places ticks hide

Do this on the same day you treat your dog, then once a week for the first month. The full routine is in the next section.

Step 4: Keep going for at least three months

Eggs already in your house will keep hatching for weeks. The ticks that hatch will climb onto your dog and die, but only if the protection hasn't run out. Don't stop when you stop seeing ticks. Stop when you've gone a full cycle without any.

How to get rid of ticks in the house

You don't need to empty your house. Focus on where your dog sleeps, sits and walks, and where ticks climb.

1. Wash the bedding in hot water. Your dog's bed, blankets, covers and anything they lie on. Cold or lukewarm water won't kill ticks. If you have a dryer, run it on high heat for at least 10 minutes.
2. Vacuum slowly. Go along the floor edges, under sofas and beds, behind furniture, and over curtains and cushions. Ticks can survive the vacuum, so empty it into a plastic bag, tie it tightly and throw it out of the house.
3. Check the walls. Look along cracks, corners, the gaps behind switchboards and the area behind your dog's bed. Fill small cracks with putty or sealant, especially in the room your dog sleeps in.
4. Clear the clutter near the dog's sleeping spot. Shoes, bags and piled-up clothes give ticks places to hide.
5. Check the balcony and car. Ticks often hide in corners of balconies, doormats and car seats if your dog travels with you.

Is pest control safe for pets?

It can be, if it's done carefully. Many Indian pet parents have heard stories of pets falling sick after pest control, and some of them are true.

• Use a licensed pest control company and ask the exact name of the chemical they'll use.
• Tell them you have pets, and which ones.
• Keep dogs, cats, birds and fish out of the treated rooms until everything is completely dry. Cover fish tanks.
• Never use permethrin or cypermethrin sprays in a home with cats.
• Wash your dog's bowls and bedding before they come back in.

Home remedies that don't work (or are dangerous)

These are shared everywhere, from WhatsApp to YouTube. Here's the honest picture.

If a remedy worked as well as people claim, ticks wouldn't still be a problem in so many Indian homes.

Ticks in flats and from street dogs

In apartments, your effort can be undone by the dog next door. If a neighbour's dog has ticks, or community dogs sleep on your stairs, ticks will keep wandering in.

• Talk to your neighbours or society WhatsApp group. Ticks are a shared problem, and treating all the dogs in a building at the same time works far better.
• If you feed or care for street dogs, ask a local vet or rescue group about treating them too.
• Keep doormats and shoe racks clean, and check your own dog after every walk.

Start before the monsoon

Tick numbers climb in the rainy season. A study of dogs in Bhubaneswar found ticks on about 49% of dogs during the rains, against 32% in winter. Start protection before the monsoon, not after the first ticks show up.

When to see a vet

Go to the vet if your dog:

• Has so many ticks you can't count them
• Seems weak, dull or isn't eating
• Has pale gums, red or brown urine, or a nosebleed
• Has fever after you've found ticks

These can be signs of tick fever or blood loss. Read more about the symptoms of tick fever in dogs.

Ticks keep coming back?
Break the cycle.

Treat your dog, treat every pet, clean the hiding spots and stay with it for three months. That is how the tick cycle finally breaks.