What's the best and safest way to remove a tick from a dog?

Get some rubbing alcohol and put some on a medicine bottle and then place a drop in the tick then the tick will let go and you can put him in the medicine bottle with the alcohol if you like.

That's how we do it because it's best to have the tick let go then to break it off in your pet.

You have to twist the tick counter clockwise slowly to remove it. If it is done right the head won't break off and the entire tick will come out. If you wanted to wait until tomorrow to pull it out you can go to the pet store and purchase a tool that is for tick removal and works like a charm. That way you will have a better chance at removing the entire tick without pulling off just the head. Good luck! By the way, the best way to be sure they are dead is to burn them with a match or lighter. They are very difficult to kill. And do not, whatever you do just yank the ticks head. You have to twist it to get the body too! If you just yank it the head will pull off of the body!

You can get it out with a tweezer...position the tweezer beneath the tick head and then push upward. So you crush the tick head and it will come out. This will kill the tick. You should see some blood.

If you don't want to do that then go to the store and buy some tick killer. They have sprays, collars, pills. Numerous stuff.

Start feeding her some raw garlic. They don't like the taste or smell of it. The smell of the garlic will come out in the pores...you wont notice a garlic smell though. It will keep the fleas away to. It also helps get rid of worms. I eat it also...the mosquitos don't like it either!

EDIT: Do not use fire or smoke. Ticks only breathe once or twice every hour. This method will work...but it's timely...and not worth the animals discomfort.

If you are worried about taking the tick off yourself, then go to the vet.

You take tweezers and firmly grasp the tick and pull straight out. Making sure to pull out the mouth and leave nothing behind. Then you take isopropyl alcohol and you disinfect the spot..

Do NOT use, gas, or vaseline or motor oil, no lighter, no peroxide, nail polish, or a match or anything else.. ONLY tweezers.. There is nothing that you can put on the tick that will make it suffocate and die or fall off.. You must remove it properly.. Dispose of it properly. Do not squeeze the tick you will make things worse.. Do not listen to any of these stupid old wives tales they make matters worse and you are risking your dog's life by using any of them.

If it is in deep then cut away some of the fur around the tick. then put hydrogen peroxide over the tick. Get a lighter and burn the tick. Pick it off with tweezers. the hp might sting your dog but it wont harm her. be sure to hold her down when you burn the tick.

Hope this helps~

So many removal methods leave the head in, which can get infected badly.

If you have nail polish, have someone hold the dog really still and paint the body of the tick with nail polish. That makes it suffocate since they breathe through their sides a lot, and it'll back out and come loose.

You can use rubbing alcohol on a Q-tip also, 'painting' it on the body of the tick.

You can use an incence stick or a firework punk. I don't even know where you could get a punk these days. (I don't even know if they call 'em punks anymore, but they are like unscented incense sticks)

Light it and then allow to burn a little and blow out. The end will keep smoldering and be red hot. Locate the tick, and have your dog sit or have someone sit ON your dog. You don't want to burn your dog, you want to touch the tick with the punk and it will literally JUMP off of your dog. This is the best way so as not to pull off the body and the head is embedded in your dog! (ticks can grow a new body!)

I had an awful season with ticks this year on my dogs.. I was taught to get a match, light it, blow it out and then put the still hot end on the tick, not on the dog, and the tick should pull it's head back and out and you then use a tissue to remove it head and body.. Just be careful that the match is out and that you don't burn the dog with the hot end!

if you put ice on the tick it will back out or if you touch it's "butt" with a hot match head ( strike a match blow it out and touch the tick) it will back out. you can just use a tweezers but you may not get the entire tick. if the head of the bug remains embedded the dog may get sick. feeding your dog garlic is an excellent idea that really works and dogs like the taste of garlic. you can just add it to the food.

tweezers works best. make sure you get the whole entire tick out of her though. even if the head stays in her,it can live. if you don't feel comfortable taking the tick out,you can always go to your local vet and have them do it.