What are ticks?
Ticks are Arachnida. Ticks are small, blood-sucking bugs. They can range in size from as small as a pin’s head to as large as a pencil eraser. Ticks have eight legs. Normally ticks are 3 to 5mm long. They are external parasites which living by feeding on the blood of mammals, birds and other types of animals. Ticks have four stages to their lifecycle, namely egg, larva, nymph, and adult. Ixodid ticks have three hosts, taking at least a year to complete their lifecycle. Argasid ticks have up to seven nymphal stages, each one requiring a blood meal. This is because of their habit of ingesting bleed; ticks are vectors of many diseases that affect humans and other animals.
What does ticks cause?
Ticks can cause allergic reactions and certain ticks can pass diseases onto humans and pets when they bite. These can be dangerous or even deadly. Some ticks carry diseases, which can be passed on when they bite. Tick-borne diseases can cause a variety of symptoms and usually develop within several days to a few weeks after a tick bite. Potential symptoms of tick-borne diseases are red spot or rash near the bite site, full body rash, neck stiffness, headache, nausea and even fever.
How to find out?
Ticks live outdoors. They hide in grass, trees, shrubs, and underbrush. A tick may attach itself to your pet, too. Ticks may stay attached to your pet, or they can migrate to you while you’re touching or holding your pet. Ticks can also leave you and attach themselves to your pets. Ticks prefer warm, moist areas of the body. Once a tick gets on your body, they’re likely to migrate to your armpits, groin, or hair. When they’re in a desirable spot, they bite into your skin and begin drawing blood.
Solution
First, the most common way for dog is using shampoo that contains medicated ingredients to kill ticks on contact. Next, tick dips are efficient ways to solve tick problem. A dip is a concentrated chemical that needs to be diluted in water and applied to the animal’s fur with a sponge or poured over the back. This treatment is not meant to be rinsed off after application. Next are the solutions for human. First, Scour your clothing. Ticks latch on to clothing from the top of low-lying vegetation, such as grass and shrubs, so pants are a good place to start. Once clothing is removed, throw it in the wash. Then, Scour your body (or your kid’s body). Ticks like to hide in crevices. Be sure to look under the arms, behind and inside ears, around the hairline, through the scalp, behind knees, between toes, inside belly buttons, and around the waist. Third, Take a warm shower or bath. This may help dislodge any ticks that haven’t yet attached. And also provides another opportunity to look for any stragglers.
Prevention
First, wear light-colored clothes, which makes it easier to spot them, tuck the long pants into your socks. You can also tape the area where your pants and socks meet for more protection. Then, wear long-sleeve shirt and wear boots or hiking shoes. Next, you should avoid areas where ticks likely to hang out, for example wooded areas with lots of shrubs, tall grasses and weeds, and leaf litter. For the dog, you can use tick collar. Tick collar are mainly for protecting the neck and head of your dog.