Ticks are small, tear-drop shaped arachnids that are generally reddish-brown in color. These summer bugs prefer warm, humid environments, as the heat and moisture in the air are more conducive to their metamorphosis. Ticks feed on blood so they also seek out areas plentiful with potential hosts – birds, amphibians and mammals like you, your family and your pets. If you’ve spotted ticks in your home, it may be time for a tick removal professional.
How to Identify a Tick
As arachnids, ticks are black or brown and have eight legs. Unlike spiders, most are fairly small – some no larger than the head of a pin. These pests feed on blood to grow and reproduce, and will latch onto humans, deer, rodents, dogs and cats to do so. 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.
Female ticks may release themselves to lay eggs. At this point, she’s engorged with blood from feeding on the host. Once the eggs hatch, few of the new ticks survive but for those that do, they will also need to feed on blood to reach their next life stage.
The tick population fall into two basic types:
- Hard ticks: Have a scutum or shield and lay their eggs in the ground during the spring months.
- Soft ticks: Continue laying eggs until they die and have a leathery cuticle in place of a scutum.
Regardless of type, ticks can usually be found in:
- Nearly all seasons; they may survive in temperatures as low as 32°F.
- High grasses and on logs.
- Dry and hot climates, including deserts and beaches.
- Buildings – especially brown dog ticks.
There’s a higher chance you will pick up ticks around your home when:
- You and your pet are outdoors
- You’re in your garden
- You’re around other animals, including squirrels and rodents
- You’re in overgrown, grassy areas
- You’re close to any perimeter vegetation, or areas that border a forest
- You’re walking along a regularly used path, such as a hiking trail
Damage by Ticks
The biggest concern with ticks is their ability to spread diseases. Ticks can carry and transmit multiple diseases at a time, which can be extremely harmful to humans and pets. Lyme Disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Ehrlichiosis and Typhusand Babesiosis are just a few of the viruses associated with these pests. They can also cause allergic reactions in humans, a condition called tick paralysis, and tapeworms in dogs and cats. If you think you may have a tick infestation, you can’t afford to wait until someone in your home gets sick to confirm. Call in the tick exterminators at Eliminate ‘Em for a full inspection and keep your family safe.
How can you tell you’ve been bit?
- When a tick bites a host, the host’s body reacts to the proteins injected and produces a red, raised area that itches and may resemble a bull’s eye.
- Unlike with other pest bites, these areas don’t go away after a few days.
- In more extreme cases, you’ll develop a rash at the site and experience symptoms within three to 12 days that feel like arthritis, fever or the flu. If these symptoms don’t go away, seek out medical attention.
Tick Extermination & Removal
These pests can be present in and around your home, attaching to animals and people or entering through cracks. Eliminate ’Em Pest Control Services provides you with fast, professional, courteous service and licensed technicians for expert tick removal services. These include:
- Surveying your property while keeping a tick’s lifecycle in mind.
- Using an environmentally friendly tick removal solution on your property and in the surrounding woods.
- Creating a less-inviting habitat. We repair crevices and gaps, cut grass to a short length, remove leaves and brush, and remove any bird or rodent nests.
- Helping you set up a barrier – usually wood chips or gravel – to separate your lawn from any wooded areas.
- Providing tips for tick control, tick prevention, and what to do if you’ve been exposed to ticks.
- Inspecting your property once a month during tick season.
Eliminate ’Em Pest Control Services offers same-day service and free estimates for tick extermination services. Professional technicians are available to you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to get rid of any insects, rodents or wildlife that is causing damage or creating a nuisance in and around your home.
