PORTLAND, OR (WCMH) — Ollie the collie had a close call when he was saved from being euthanized after a tick was found on the animal’s neck.

According to KPTV, Ollie’s family brought him to the vet because he was paralyzed.

After being checked by the vet, there were no answers, so the family made the tough decision to have Ollie put down.

“They finally decided they had reached their limit and it was time to help him pass,” Dove Lewis Animal Hospital veterinarian Dr. Adam Stone said. “He couldn’t stand, he couldn’t walk, he couldn’t urinate, couldn’t defecate. So they had instructions to go get his bladder emptied twice a day from the regular vet to see if he would improve.”

But moments before he was to be put to sleep, a veterinary intern discovered a tick behind Ollie’s ear.

“He was in the room about to get put to sleep, and it was just pure grace that the people found something and decided to check it out further,” Ollie’s owner Falline Fate explained to KPTV.

“They have a neurotoxin in their saliva that prevents nerve transition to the muscles, and that takes time to build up in the body and cause paralysis like what we saw in Ollie,” Stone said.

About 10 hours after the tick was pulled off of him, Ollie was back on his paws and back to his energetic self. According to Dr. Stone, while it is rare to be paralyzed from ticks, it is good practice use several methods to prevent ticks including a collar, and oral and topical treatment.WHAT OTHERS ARE CLICKING ON RIGHT NOW: