SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash. – Animal experts and biologists said the 2023 tick season across the U.S. was concerning; however, this year’s tick season might be even worse.
“I haven’t seen a year like this where there’s just so many,” Hugh Lefcort, a biology professor at Gonzaga University, said.
Lefcort told NonStop Local that the weather could make 2024’s tick season worse.
The mild winters are essentially allowing tick populations to thrive.
“We have seen quite a few ticks on dogs, cats…I even had a client who had a tick just on him. We definitely have had an influx of folks call in,” Olivia Young, a veterinarian at Audubon Veterinary Clinic, said.
Evonne Menzies is a long-time dog owner and Spokane Valley resident.
On Friday, her Cockapoo puppy, “Honeybee,” came into the house after playing in their private backyard. Menzie discovered something suspicious on Honeybee’s ear flap.
“I thought maybe it was a little scab from the puppies playing a little bit rough. And upon further investigation, I discovered it was a tick,” Menzies said.
She immediately jumped into action, removed the tick with tweezers and contacted their vet.
Menzies then found another tick inside the home that the puppies had brought in, so she had to have an exterminator come to the house.
This is her first time ever dealing with ticks.
“In the country, you know, you expect that sort of thing. But living in a little subdivision that’s fairly new, I just didn’t think it was much of a concern,” Menzies said.
Young told me that there are preventative measures pet owners can take to keep their animals safe from fleas and ticks.
“So, the best course of action is, for dogs and cats, to get them on a flea/tick preventative [medication] early in the season,” Young said.
While not early in tick season, after this experience, Menzies put all of her dogs on a preventative.
“Get that medication, because you don’t want to deal with ticks on your dogs…I think that was probably our first mistake, not taking the vet up on the offer to start them on a medication,” Menzies said.
As of Wednesday, Honeybee and Menzies’ homes are completely tick-free.
