Each year as the warm spring weather approaches, Pug owners should be increasingly apprehensive about those blood-sucking, disease-carrying ticks, otherwise known as "Rhipicephalus Sanquineus". This dangerous creature can infect man with Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, cause paralysis, and can even kill Pugs and Pug puppies. Ticks are parasites.
They were blamed for carrying the buggies that caused the death of so many dogs used by the military back in the 60s and 70s. After close study, it was shown that ordinary ticks were the culprit. There are several different species of ticks, from wood tick to brown Pug tick and many more.
Unfortunately, ticks in general are pretty resistant to chemical insecticides, so they are really challenging to control in the wild. It's amazing but a female tick can lay up to five thousands eggs! Usually these eggs are places in the cracks of a kennel, under the carpet or hidden away out of sight. Interestingly, eggs are never laid upon the host, whether a Pug or a person. The eggs hatch into larvae after about a month or so. Next, the tick larvae will look for a host, such some blood and then fall off to rest. The tick continues to grow up and changes into what are called nymphs, the tick equivalent of a surly teenager (without the acne!).
And the first thing a tick nymph does is seek out a new victim to grab some more blood from, at which point they'll fall off and go hide once again. Finally, after another two weeks or so, the nymph changes once again into a fully grown adult tick. The adult tick will then look for a host to really suck some blood, and this could be your Pug, another dog or even a child. Adult ticks can live for up to 2 years without eating.which is really bad news for Pug dog owners, as this means you can have ticks lurking in ambush.
Once the tick finds its way outside, it will climb up into a bush, tall grass or a tree to lay in wait for a new host. A perfect opportunity for a tick is when a Pug dog walks under a branch or goes potty in tall grass. A tick can jump pretty far as well. If a tick somehow made its way or was born in your home, it will peek out from beneath carpers or rugs to wait for a victim to pass within range. It's a bit disturbing but ticks can wait for as long as 4 months for a victim. And when a Pug or person comes close, it only takes a tick an instant to jump on as the victim passes close by.
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