Ticks: Prevention, Identification, and Removal Guide

Protect your family and pets from ticks with regional prevention guides and bite treatment advice.

Ticks: Prevention, Identification, and Removal Guide

About Ticks

Ticks are blood-feeding parasitic arachnids (related to spiders, not insects) that transmit more diseases to humans and animals in the United States than any other arthropod. Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, babesiosis, tularemia, and several encephalitis viruses are all tick-borne. Tick-borne disease incidence has more than doubled in the US over the past two decades.

Understanding which ticks are present in your region and how to prevent exposure is essential for anyone who spends time outdoors.

Identification

Black-legged tick / Deer tick (Ixodes scapularis): Primary Lyme disease vector. Very small (sesame seed size when unfed). Female: reddish-orange body with black shield. Found in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, and parts of the South. The Western black-legged tick (Ixodes pacificus) is the vector in California and the Pacific Northwest.

American dog tick (Dermacentor variabilis): Larger than deer ticks (watermelon seed size). Brown with mottled gray or white markings. Primary vector of Rocky Mountain spotted fever. Found east of the Rockies and in coastal California.

Lone star tick (Amblyomma americanum): Aggressive biter. Female has a distinctive white spot on the back. Vector for ehrlichiosis, STARI, and the alpha-gal allergy (red meat allergy). Found from the South through the Midwest and Northeast.

Rocky Mountain wood tick (Dermacentor andersoni): Found in the mountain states. Similar to American dog tick. Transmits Rocky Mountain spotted fever, tularemia, and Colorado tick fever.

Signs of tick presence:

  • Finding ticks on yourself, family members, or pets after outdoor activity
  • Ticks visible on tall grass, leaf litter, or brush when walking through

Prevention Tips

  1. Wear light-colored clothing — Makes ticks easier to spot before they attach
  2. Tuck pants into socks — Prevents ticks from crawling up pant legs
  3. Use EPA-registered repellents — DEET (30%+) or picaridin on skin; permethrin on clothing (do not apply permethrin to skin)
  4. Treat pets year-round — Tick preventives for dogs and cats: oral medications (Bravecto, NexGard, Simparica) or tick collars (Seresto)
  5. Check yourself and pets — After any outdoor activity, do a full-body tick check. Pay special attention to hairline, behind ears, underarms, groin, and behind knees
  6. Create tick-safe zones in your yard — Keep grass mowed short, clear leaf litter from play areas, create a 3-foot woodchip barrier between lawn and wooded areas, apply tick pesticide in spring

Tick Removal

If you find an attached tick:

  1. Use fine-tipped tweezers or a tick removal tool
  2. Grasp as close to the skin surface as possible
  3. Pull upward with steady, even pressure — do not twist or jerk
  4. Clean the bite area with rubbing alcohol or soap and water
  5. Note the date, tick species if known, and location of bite

Consult a doctor if you develop a rash, fever, or flu-like symptoms within 30 days of a tick bite.

When to Call a Professional

For yard tick control, professional barrier treatments applied in spring and early summer (when nymphal ticks are active) can significantly reduce tick populations in lawn-edge and wooded areas.

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