My chihuahua has a red ring bite. Is it a tick or a fly bite?

Hi, thanks for using PetCoach! It appears that the pink target lesion is a black fly bite. If it is, it should fade in 3 days. It doesn't cause any pain and isn't anything to be worried about. If more areas pop up and he isn't outside then he should be seen by a Vet. https://www.vin.com/veterinarypartner/default.aspx?pid=19239&catId=102899&id=7986755 Have a great day!

Thank you for the picture of Chipper's lesion. It appears to be a black fly bite. These lesions from the bite look bad, but typically they do not bother the pet. You don't need to do anything to treat it, these usually go away on their own over time. That being said, if this doesn't improve over the next week, it looks worse, or he's constantly itching it, then he will need to see a vet. I hope this helps!

I agree that these have a "bullseye" look to them, however we don't typically see bullseye lesions in dogs with tick disease, as they do in people (with Lyme disease). Often insect bites can leave this type of lesion, and I'd be wondering whether this was itchy or not, as it could be a mosquito bite or spider bite. Other things to consider would be ringworm and a bacterial skin infection (pyoderma). If Pepe is feeling well that makes me less concerned for tick disease, however based on your zip code Lyme is always a concern, so I would be inclined to get him tested for tick disease as you have found them on him recently.

The most common reason that we see red circular rashes in dogs are actually bacterial skin infection. Tick bites rarely cause red circular rashes in dogs (it's more common in people). Ringworm certainly can cause a circular rash, but they often aren't red in dogs. I would recommend having your vet examine Chance and determine what they think is going on. They may be able to tell by looking at it, or they may need to do some special skin tests like skin scrapings or skin cytology in order to determine the best treatment for Chance. I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

It is possible this is an insect bite. Fly bites in particular can look like a red ring with a central pallor (pale area in the middle). It is tough to tell from the photo what the central area looks like. If it is raised and looks like it is filled with yellow/pus, then this could be a pustule which is a sign of skin infection. If the center is flat with the skin and just pale in color, then a bug bite is more likely.

This looks like it could be a tick bite. I would recommend calling your local vet to determine if Sully needs treatment or if he should wait and be tested for tick diseases at a later time. It just depends on what your local area has for tick disease.

It is hard to tell for sure it if both dogs have it I would be most suspicious of black fly bites, which are often just a local irritant. However, the other big concern would be petechia hemorrhages- which could come secondary to things like rat poison exposure! If they are feeling fine and were exposed to flies recently this is more likely but if they seem to feel off or had any other signs of concern it would be safer to take them in!