Dog tick medicine can be used to prevent tick infestation and tick-borne diseases in dogs. This page looks at different types of dog tick medicine, including natural products for dog tick prevention.
Ticks can transmit and cause several tick-borne diseases (such as Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and canine ehrlichiosis). It is therefore very important to take preventive measures against tick infestations in dogs.
There are ways to prevent tick-borne diseases in dogs, such as:
- Avoid letting your dog roam in tick-infested areas.
- Ticks must attach themselves to a dog for several hours (24-48 hours) before they can transmit diseases. Therefore, check your dog for ticks daily, and immediately after your dog has been out running in the woods or fields. If you find a tick on your dog, remove it right away.
- For outdoor control, cut tall grass, weeds, and brush. Treat your yard with an insecticide that is safe for use with animals.
- Have your dog undergo annual tick-borne disease screening tests.
- Watch out for symptoms of common tick-borne diseases, and seek veterinary attention if your dog shows such symptoms.
In addition, there are quite a few dog tick medicine and preventive products that can be used to prevent ticks on your dog. Let’s take a look at some of them.
Preventative Topical Dog Tick Medicine
There are numerous types of dog tick medicine that can be applied topically to a dog’s skin to repel and kill ticks. Here are the main ones on the market:
| Dog Tick Medicine | Functions | Active Ingredients | Effective for | Comments |
| K9 Advantix® (by Bayer) | A topical product that repels and kills ticks, fleas, and mosquitoes; kills chewing lice; repels biting flies | imidacloprid, permethrin | one month | Recommended for use in dogs 7 weeks of age or older. Water proof. Dog will still be protected after exposure to water. |
| Frontline®Plus (by Merial) | A topical product that kills ticks and fleas | fipronil | one month | Approved for use on puppies and kittens 8 weeks of age and older and on breeding, pregnant or lactating cats and dogs. Water proof. |
| Bio Spot® Spot On (by Farnam Pet Products) | A topical product that kills and repels fleas, ticks and mosquitoes; kills flea eggs up to one month and prevents reinfestation | permethrin, Nylar® (an insect growth regulator) | one month | Only to be used on puppies older than 12 weeks of age. Water proof – Ingredients are not soluble so rain and swimming have a minimal effect. Soaps wash away part of the natural oils on a dog’s coat and skin and will also remove some of Bio Spot’s active ingredients, thus reducing efficacy. |
| Revolution® (by Pfizer) | A broad-spectrum product that provides protection against heartworms, fleas, flea eggs, American dog tick, and mites | selamectin | one month | Recommended for use in dogs 6 weeks and older. Water proof – effective even if dog is bathed two hours after applying. |
| Promeris® (by Fort Dodge) | A topical product that controls flea and tick infestations; prevents re-infestation | metaflumizone, amitraz | 4-6 weeks | Recommended for use in dogs 8 weeks of age or older. Water proof. |
| Vectra 3D® (by Summit Vet Pharm) | A topical product that repels and kills adult fleas, ticks, mosquitoes, lice, mites and sand flies | dinotefuran, pyriproxyfen, permethrin | one month | Recommended for use in dogs 7 weeks of age or older. Water proof. |
Dog Tick Medicine – Natural Products
If you prefer to go natural, there are also some products that use all natural ingredients to repel ticks.