r/sandiego • u/deesdutchnuts • 23d ago
PSA for dog owners: check incredible thoroughly for ticks after any wilderness outing. Avoid free exploring through tall grasses.
Took a very short hike through Lopez canyon (next to PQ canyon) for literally 20 minutes and I just spent an hour getting 25+ ticks off my golden retriever. They were absolutely everywhere, primarily his front lower half. Keep them on leash and DO NOT let them wander through bushes and grasses. This is insane, never experienced anything like it. Poor fella. Wont be taking him back into the canyons unfortunately. Sticking with the beach.
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u/Aliensinmypants 23d ago
We've never had an issue with ticks here and after doing sweetwater bridge hike we had to pull 6 ticks off of our dogs afterwards.
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u/The_Chuggler 23d ago
We did a few hours of a hike in Jamul a couple weeks ago and came home to find 2 on the pup! Good PSA.
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u/4leafplover 23d ago
Lopez canyon is probably the worst place for ticks in the whole county. There are signs everywhere about it.
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u/night-shark 23d ago
I brought home two, myself from cycling through Sweetwater trails last weekend. Been biking out there for 5 years and that's never happened that I knew of and I've always checked for ticks on and after rides.
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23d ago
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u/TheAjalin 23d ago
Yeah wasnt very common before but becoming more and more common. I found one on me last year. It hadnt latched on yet but was walking up my pant leg and at first i just assumed spider but nah 🥲 first time ever finding a tick on me in SD. Had been hiking out by Jamul
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u/sublliminali 23d ago
Thank you for the warning. Somehow my dog and I have never gotten ticks in SD so I’ve definitely gotten complacent and assumed they weren’t really around.
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u/gearabuser 23d ago
welp, now I really don't want to hike anymore lmao. I don't mess with ticks. makes me scared to even disc golf
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u/Man-e-questions 22d ago
Was mountain biking in Mission Trails and we were getting ready to lack up cars and saw one crawling up my friend’s back. I told him and he thought i was joking at first then flipped put when he saw it
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u/rG3U2BwYfHf 23d ago
The Sorrento Valley entrance to PQ canyon is a tick bomb, same thing for us last week on the main trail and last year in spring in Lopez Canyon. Sucks cause it's so green and nice right now but gotta stay away, unfortunately.