WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – A commonly held belief among pet owners is that the summer months are when you should worry about tick-borne illnesses. With summer ending, it could be easy to stop thinking about ticks, but they don’t always go away when the air starts to cool.
Avoiding those ticks is often at the top of a pet owner’s priority list, whether it’s chewable medicine or tick-repellant on their fur. Keeping up with treatment year-round is the best way to stay safe from illnesses.
Teresa Chvilicek takes her dog, Sarge, to the dog park at least twice daily.
“The only worry is when we go out to the field … It’s highly important. Highly important to stay up on it, I firmly believe that,” Chvilicek said.
Dr. Brian Herrin, a tick and parasite researcher at K-State, agrees.
“I often say, ‘I don’t see ticks 365 days out of the year, but I do see them 12 months out of the year.’ Which is why we encourage pet owners to keep their pets on highly effective products year-round for that reason,” Herrin said.