Spring time is currently upon us which means great weather and more sunshine, but it also means more ticks! You must be careful whenever you are hiking outdoors or exploring outside especially around tall grass or wooded areas where ticks frequent. Ticks may be small but can cause big problems such as spreading diseases like Lyme disease, and Rocky Mountain Spotted fever. That is why this summer use this information to help better protect yourself from ticks.

  1. Ticks are different than insects; they are arachnids or a species from the same family as spiders. If you examine a tick close up you’ll see it looks similar to a spider with 8 legs, you’ll also notice it doesn’t have antennae like insects do.
  2. Ticks need blood to survive without it they will die, so they must find a host. Many types of ticks will feed on specific species of animals such as the Blacklegged ticks which feed primarily on the blood from white-tailed deer.
  3. Ticks use a process called questing to attach themselves to their host. The ticks will crawl up onto low brush or grass and clasp their black legs and grab with their front legs. Whenever an animal or human passes by the tick grabs on, and attaches itself to the host. Ticks have also been known to drop out of trees to attach to a passing host.
  4. Ticks love feeding on dogs so much that they prefer dogs as host over humans. Dogs can be an easy target for ticks since they are constantly playing outside, and are around ticks more often. If you’re a pet owner and want to protect your pet frequently check for ticks especially after walks outside or playtime outside. It is also important to wash your pets bedding and toys often to make sure they are not infested with ticks.
  5. Ticks feed for long periods of time, once they attach they can feeds for days at a time. It usually takes a tick about 24-48 hours of feeding before they can transmit infections such as Lyme disease so immediately removal after finding a tick is essential.

If you or someone you know is dealing with a tick problem. or any other pest problem in the greater Boston area call Johnny B’s Pest Control. Let our team of skilled professionals protect you or your business from pest today. We have been serving the greater Boston area for 30+ years and are family owned and operated. Johnny B’s can handle any pest problem you may have so contact us today to see how we can help!

 

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