Louse—Tick—Flea
The dog louse (trichodectes latus), the dog tick (irod ricinus), and the dog flea (pulex canis) are sources of no little torment. They cause considerable irritation, which induces the dog to scratch and rub himself; small pimples are formed, their heads are rubbed off, serum exudes, perhaps matter, and thus sores are produced. Lice are found in every part of the body, but particularly on the head and about the eyes and lips. They do not live on man. Ticks do not infest house dogs.
Treatment.—Fleas are best removed by means of Persian Insect Powder (Flores Pyrethri), this may be dusted on the dog or better dissolved in alcohol or water and sprinkled or rubbed on, another convenient way is to dust on the powder after a bath and before the hair has entirely dried. As this powder renders the fleas insensible rather than killing them, means should be taken to prevent the fleas getting back on the dog after they have recovered.
For house dogs a convenient way is to stand the dog on newspapers while dusting on the powder and hold him there for a few minutes until the fleas have dropped off; then carefully gather up the papers and burn them.
For larger dogs in the country the powder may be dusted on out-doors and away from stables, kennels, etc., and the dog kept out until the fleas have left him.
The sleeping quarters of the dog must also be carefully attended to, the box or basket should be washed with creoline or lysol solution or may be washed with water and dusted with the powder while still damp; the bedding should be washed in boiling water if possible or if a pillow is used it may be placed in an oven sufficiently hot to kill the fleas but not hot enough to scorch pillow.
If the dog is very young or feeble brush the powder off after it has been on for 15 minutes.
Lice and ticks are readily killed by Kerosene (Coal Oil). For small house dogs, Spirit of Anise or Oil of Anise, with 10% of Olive Oil, is probably a better remedy. Any of these should be applied night and morning, for two days and then washed off. Then the dog should be carefully combed to remove the eggs which adhere to the hair paying particular attention to the face, around the eyes etc.
Do not attempt to pick lice or ticks off dogs, as very often the head remains in the skin, causing a small sore. Wait until the application has killed him and he will drop off. The bedding should be treated as for fleas.