Ticks pose a significant threat to our health. Each year, thousands of people are affected by tick-borne illnesses, ranging from Lyme disease to Rocky Mountain spotted fever and more. Understanding the dangers of tick bites and how to effectively manage and prevent them is crucial for safeguarding our health and enjoying outdoor activities without worry. From preventive measures to targeted treatments, the following highlights important steps you to help tackle tick control and ensure a safer and healthier environment for you and your loved ones.
How Do Ticks Bites Infect Us?
First and foremost, ticks might not cause an immediate injury (like a wasp sting), but can cause direct injury and health issues.
Let’s say it this way….ticks have mouth-parts that are composed of two retractable hooked appendages that pull the skin over a single fixed harpoon-like structure that, itself, anchors the tick to the skin during feeding. These mouth-parts are tiny, and enter just a fraction of a millimeter into the skin. By themselves, they rarely cause more damage than would a superficial splinter. You will not likely feel a tick walking on your skin. Furthermore, most tick bites neither are painful nor even noticeable (unless you happen to see the tick).
However, the tick produces copious saliva that it injects into the skin during feeding. This saliva contains a potent cocktail of substances that prevents blood clotting at the site and helps the tick feed. The tick’s saliva may cause diverse health effects on a person or animal. Generally, these effects are mild and are limited to local irritation and a bruise-like reaction around the bite site. With repeated exposure to tick bites, a person or pet may develop an allergic sensitivity to the saliva.
This may cause the area around the bite to itch. Although this increases the extent of annoyance, the itching may cause the host to notice the tick and remove it before the tick causes yet greater risk. The saliva from a few kinds of ticks can cause a kind of paralysis that may begin at the lower extremities and proceed to sweep towards the head during a span of hours or days. This phenomenon, termed ‘tick paralysis’ is medically important. It reverses rapidly once the tick has been located and removed. If allowed to proceed, however, tick paralysis can be fatal. Lyme disease is another concern regarding tick bites.
How Does Proactive Tick Control Help Reduce these Health Risks?
Unfortunately, ticks are dangerous and can lead to significant health issues. Fortunately, taking proactive measures can help control these risks. For example, learning how to identify a tick helps ensure that you what they look like.
Ticks are black or brown and have eight legs (like spiders). But, unlike spiders, most are fairly small – some no larger than the head of a pin. To find that warm-blooded host, the tick senses breath, body odor, heat, moisture or vibrations, then uses its hooked legs to latch on. From there, it finds a spot to puncture a hole and feed, injecting an anticoagulant to clot the blood. A tick may wait several days in one spot to find a host.
Additionally, tick control involves understanding where ticks can usually be found. For instance, watch out for ticks in the following areas:
- High grasses and on logs.
- Dry and hot climates, including deserts and beaches.
- Buildings – especially brown dog ticks.
Although we generally think of ticks during the spring and summer, they may be around all year. In fact, ticks may survive in temperatures as low as 32°F. For more information on where you may encounter a higher chance you will pick up ticks around your home, here are some common ways ticks latch onto you or your family members:
- Being outdoors (by yourself or with a pet).
- In your garden.
- Around around other animals, including squirrels and rodents.
- In overgrown, grassy areas.
- In close to any perimeter vegetation, or areas that border a forest.
- Walking along a regularly used path, such as a hiking trail.
As a result, especially during the spring, summer and fall, be mindful of ticks when outside. To reduce the risks of a tick bite, then there are some simple ways to help keep ticks out of your yard. Basic tick control steps start with surveying your property and taking action to eliminate their preferred living environment. For example, keeping ticks out of your yard involves landscaping tips, such as:
- Removing (or moving) old, rotting logs
- Repairing crevices and gaps
- Cutting grass to a shorter length
- Removing leaves and brush
- Removing any bird or rodent nests to create a less-inviting environment for ticks
- Create a barrier with wood chips or gravel to separate your lawn from any wooded areas
What Are Other Common Questions About Tick Control?
What specific types of ticks are most commonly found in residential areas and what diseases are they known to carry?
In residential areas, the most commonly found ticks are the Black-legged tick (also known as Deer tick), American dog tick, and Lone Star tick, each known to carry diseases like Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and ehrlichiosis.
How long do the effects of the professional tick treatments last, and how often should treatment be reapplied?
The effectiveness of professional tick treatments can last several weeks to months, depending on environmental conditions, and it’s generally recommended to reapply treatments periodically throughout the tick season for continued protection.
Are the chemicals used in professional tick treatments safe for use around children and pets?
Generally, the chemicals used in professional tick treatments are regulated and designed to be safe around children and pets when applied according to guidelines, although it’s always advisable to follow the specific instructions and safety precautions provided by the pest control service.
HOW CAN ELIMINATE ‘EM HELP REMOVE TICKS FROM YOUR YARD?
As a result of the dangers that ticks present, learning about the tick control process helps provide peace of mind. At the first sign of a tick infestation, contact a knowledgeable tick extermination company, like Eliminate ‘Em to schedule an inspection and tick treatment program.
Working with Eliminate ‘Em means one of our experienced tick exterminators will come to your home or business to assess the area for signs of ticks. In addition to overgrown grass and proximity to wooded areas, ticks also make their way indoors is by latching onto pets and rodents as well.
At the core of proper tick control is identifying the root cause of the tick problem. After discovering why the ticks are present, then an experienced pest control company will develop a personalized plan for tick control in your yard. The plan may include trimming the landscape, but also recommendations like applying bug spray while outside. Finally, our extermination team also sprays the yard with EPA-approved insecticide to deter the ticks from coming back. This tick prevention method is completely safe to be used around humans and pests.
If a tick bites you, a loved one, or a pet, it is time to call a professional tick exterminator like Eliminate ‘Em Pest Control Services for same-day service and free estimates for tick control and extermination services. Get rid of these dangerous pests today!
