How to Remove a Tick From a Horse

Eight-legged ticks cause disease in horses. A tick burrows its head into the warm body of the horse to feed on the horse's blood. As the tick feeds and grows, it secrets body fluids into the blood stream and feces around the wound created by the ticks burrowed head. The earlier a tick is removed from the horse the better the chances the horse will not become ill from the tick. Removing the tick improperly will cause the tick to eject blood and fluids into the horse's blood stream; increasing the chances the horse will become ill.

Things You'll Need

  • Tick tweezers
  • Bowl of water
  • Mild antiseptic
  • Clean rag
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Instructions

    • 1

      Slide a pair of tick tweezers over the tick. Push the tweezers to the area where the tick's head enters the skin of the horse.

    • 2

      Squeeze the handles of the tweezers to grab the tick. Lift up on the tick as you pull the tweezers steadily away from the horse's skin until the tick pops from the horse.

    • 3

      Drop the tick in a bowl of water.

    • 4

      Pour a mild antiseptic on a clean rag. Wipe over the wound left by the tick and the surrounding area with the antiseptic soaked rag.

    • 5

      Monitor the wound. Contact a veterinarian if the wound becomes infected or the tick's head remained inside the horse during extraction.