Tick Facts & Information

What do ticks look like?

• Color: Color varies by species.

• Size: Adults can be smaller than a sunflower seed (over 1 cm long if engorged with blood), while tick larvae can be less than 1 mm.

• Legs: Ticks have only six legs during their larval stage and eight legs during their nymphal and adult stages.

What do ticks look like on a dog?

Ticks on a dog can be difficult to find as sizes can vary from a tiny poppy seed to as large as a grape when engorged with blood. They will look like tiny dots, usually dark in color (brown, black, or reddish-brown) and oval or round attached to the dog’s skin. Ticks can also crawl around long-haired dogs and puppies which can be even more difficult to find.

Regularly check your puppy and dogs for ticks after walks in the woods or grass as they may brush up against a twig or leaves infested with the pests. If ticks are found on your dog, prompt removal will be needed to help reduce the chances of tick-borne diseases. Use a fine tipped tweezer to remove the tick from your dog as close to the skin and as gently as possible. Consult your veterinarian if you need tick removal for your dog or puppy.

Where do ticks live?

Often found near wooded and highly vegetated areas. Some species require moisture to survive. Indoors, they may live inside cracks, crevices, or their host’s nest or burrow.

What do ticks eat?

Females and males of most species feed on blood of mammals, birds, and reptiles. Each species does have a preferred host, although most will feed on whatever blood is available to them. Thus, ticks are known to bite:

• Cats and Dogs

• Deer

• Humans

• Livestock

What is the life cycle of a tick?

Ticks consume blood meals during all four stages of their life cycles. Pathogens, or organisms that cause diseases in the animals they infect, can be passed through the stages of a tick’s life cycle. There are four stages:

1. Egg

2. Larval

3. Nymphal

4. Adult

Can ticks fly?

Do ticks fly? This is a common question when wondering how they move around. However, ticks do not have wings so they cannot fly.

Many people mistakenly believe that ticks drop from trees when a suitable host comes by. This leads to speculating on how ticks get into trees and assuming it must be by flying, thus enabling this myth to persist.

Ticks do not fly, run, or hop in order to infest a host. Instead, they climb up on brushy vegetation and wait for a host to pass by – a procedure known as questing.

How do ticks get on you?

Ticks sense a passing host by detecting:

• Carbon dioxide

• Body heat

• Odors

• Moisture

• Vibrations created by an approaching host

When they recognize a potential host, they hold onto leaves and grasses with their third and fourth pairs of legs, while stretching and waving their first pair of legs.

They hold the first pair of legs outstretched, waiting to climb onto the host as it comes into contact with where the tick is waiting. The tick’s sensory structures, known as their Haller’s organs and located on the tick’s first pair of legs, enable the tick to recognize the sensory signals the host gives off.

What’s the difference between fleas & ticks?

Fleas and ticks are both parasitic in nature, living on hosts much larger than themselves. Both fleas and ticks feed on the blood of their chosen hosts and are transmitters of various diseases. While neither ticks nor fleas choose humans as their primary hosts, both parasites are known to bite and feed on humans in the absence of other food sources.

Ticks

Like other arachnids, adult ticks possess four pairs of legs. However, as larvae, they bear only six legs and gain their fourth pair after molting. Their territories are not defined by specific location; rather, they tend to dwell within the habitats of their preferred hosts. Thus, the pests may be found in areas as diverse as forests, grasslands, and human homes. After hatching, all stages of a tick’s life cycle feed on blood.

Fleas

Fleas are insects with six legs. They are wingless and incapable of flight. However, the flat bodies and long legs of the flea have developed to enable impressive jumping skills and the ability to move unimpeded through dense fur or hair. Fleas are found throughout the world, with several species residing primarily in households. Fleas undergo complete metamorphosis of egg, larva, pupa and adult. Only adults feed on blood.

Do ticks carry diseases?

Ticks carry serious diseases like lyme disease, colorado tick fever and rocky mountain spotted fever. Learn more about the dangers of ticks and how to help prevent them.