Vet-Approved Tick Protection Checklist for Dogs
Follow this step-by-step system to protect your dog from ticks and tick-borne diseases year-round.
Based on: My Vet Reveals The Scary And Dangerous Truth About Ticks by McCann Dog Training
Follow this step-by-step system to protect your dog from ticks and tick-borne diseases year-round.
Based on: My Vet Reveals The Scary And Dangerous Truth About Ticks by McCann Dog Training
What if the thing your dog picked up on your last hike was quietly causing kidney damage, blindness, or lameness — and you had no idea? That's not a scare tactic. That's what a practicing veterinarian shared in a candid conversation with the McCann Dog Training channel, and it stopped a lot of dog owners in their tracks.
Here's the uncomfortable truth: ticks don't just carry Lyme disease. According to Dr. Paula, they carry what she calls a 'soup of diseases' — many of which haven't even been fully identified yet. Lyme just gets the most press. And in southern Ontario alone in 2026, between 1 in 10 and 1 in 15 dogs tested are coming back positive. That's not sick dogs flagged for symptoms. That's routine screening. The deer tick nymph — the one most likely to transmit Lyme — is the size of a poppy seed. You will not spot it with a casual glance.
Now picture this instead: you come home from a hike, run through a quick post-walk checklist, your dog is on the right monthly prevention, you've asked your vet about the Lyme vaccine, and you've got a tick remover on your keychain just in case. You find a tick, remove it cleanly in seconds, and you're not panicking because you already know exactly what to do next. That's what being prepared actually looks like.
McCann Dog Training brought in Dr. Paula — an experienced veterinarian with real clinical data and a genuine passion for dog health — to lay out everything you need to know in plain language. She covers the four layers of tick prevention, the right way to remove an attached tick without pushing more infectious material into your dog, which body parts ticks hide on most often, why checking your dog by hand beats any other method, and why year-round prevention matters even in winter. This isn't general internet advice. This is what your vet would tell you if you had 20 uninterrupted minutes with them.
This checklist turns everything Dr. Paula shared into a clear, printable action plan you can follow starting today. No searching through videos, no second-guessing. Every step is specific, every note is grounded in the actual conversation. Use it before your next walk, bring it to your vet appointment, or keep it on your fridge as a seasonal reminder. Your dog can't tell you when something feels off — but you can be the person who catches it early.
Every checklist item comes with actionable notes to guide you — things like "Don't forget to do this before you start," "Avoid this common mistake," or "Set a reminder for 30 days out." Nothing vague, just clear next steps.
+ 16 more action items inside...
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