Ticks Are Everywhere in Central Mass and They’re Out for Blood

Tick bites can be harmless, or they can infect you with diseases like Lyme disease or spotted fever.

Even though not all ticks carry infection, it’s best to try to prevent tick bites or to find them early. You would be best advised to take preventive action all year long with the one-two punch for Shrewsbury tick control.

Deer ticks are all around you! — Deer ticks are all around, looking for blood.

Many of us may have thought they die off in the winter after the first hard frost. Unfortunately, they do not. The adult black-legged deer tick, which spreads Lyme disease begins its prime feeding activity just about the time of the first freeze. The reason being is that their main host animals are deer and deer are actively moving around in the fall. If deer aren’t around, black-legged ticks will attach to people or pets anytime the weather starts getting warmer.

Exactly What Are Ticks?

Ticks are parasites that feed on warm-blooded hosts by biting them. A tick bite can infect humans and animals with bacteria, viruses and protozoans (organisms made up of one cell) that can cause diseases.

Some of these tick-borne illnesses can be very serious and may include:

Lyme disease
Tularemia
Ehrlichiosis
Rocky Mountain spotted fever
Anaplasmosis
Babesiosis

Other conditions spread by ticks include:

Colorado tick fever
Powassan virus
Southern tick-associated rash illness (STARI)
Tick paralysis
Spotted fever
Relapsing fever
Heartland virus

Why Are Ticks Such A Problem In Shrewsbury?

The biggest reason? They are so small. Ticks are typically small and difficult to see until they have been attached for some time. They feed on your blood and become larger and easier to see.

Tick species most commonly found here include:

American Dog Tick: This varmint will attach to animals including dogs, cattle, deer, raccoons and humans if given the chance.
Brown Dog Tick: These invasive pests usually attach to dogs, occasionally feeding on people and domestic cats.
Black Legged Deer Ticks: These harbingers of dread attach primarily on deer, cattle and other large animals and people. Deer Ticks are carriers of Lyme Disease transmitting it through bites. And if for no other reason than this alone, Shrewsbury tick control is an extremely smart way to protect yourself and your property.

Also read: Can you get Lyme disease in the winter?

Dave Macchia, tick control enthusiast — Dave Macchia, Central Mass tick control enthusiast

Found a tick on your body? Don’t panic.

It’s important to remove a tick from your body quickly – but do not panic.

Living in Central Massachusetts, you have likely found a tick on your body at one time or another. A typical scenario when someone finds a tick on their body is to freak out. Don’t freak – but DO act fast.

Have you ever found a tick on your body?

Tick Bite Treatment Protocol

Remove The Tick: If the tick is attached to your skin, remove it immediately. Wearing gloves, grasp the tick with clean tweezers as close to the skin as possible to remove the head and mouthparts. If some mouthparts remain, do not try to remove them, as your body will expel them naturally. Pull the tick straight out gently and steadily. Do not twist it. Do not try to remove a tick with a hot match or petroleum jelly or peppermint oil. This could cause the tick to regurgitate infected fluids into the wound. Save the tick in a container of alcohol to show the doctor.

Also read: Are fleas or ticks more dangerous?

Cleanse and Protect the Area: Wash your hands and clean the bite area with warm water and gentle soap. Next, apply alcohol to the bite wound to prevent infection.

See a Health Care Provider: See your medical internist or health care provider immediately if the tick has burrowed into your skin or if the head, mouthparts, or other tick remains cannot be removed.

Also see a doctor if you have found a tick on you body and…

black-legged tick — Black-legged ticks are vectors of Lyme disease, the most common tick-borne illness

You think it might be a deer tick, which is especially prevalent in the Northeast United States. According to The Centers for Disease Control, these disease-carrying parasites can be found in both inland and coastal areas, including off-shore islands, such as Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts; Block Island in Rhode Island; and Shelter Island, Fire Island, and eastern Long Island in neighboring New York state. Your doctor may prescribe a single dose of an antibiotic to help prevent Lyme disease.

You develop flu-like symptoms including fever, headache, nausea, vomiting, and muscle aches, or a rash within one month after the bite. Take the tick to the health care provider’s office or the hospital if possible.

The bite area develops a lesion within 30 days. A sign of Lyme disease infection is a “bullseye” rash in which the center becomes clearer as the redness moves outward in a circular pattern.

There are signs of infection such as redness, warmth, or inflammation.

Follow Up To Ensure Your Well Being: Your health care provider may prescribe antibiotics if you have symptoms of Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, or another tick-borne disease.

Year-Round Tick Control Is Your Best Bet For Total Protection From Tick Bites

tick control tubes Enlist help from a reputable tick control company, you’ll have access to year-round protection for ticks. And, if you’re not aware, ticks are definitely a year-round problem in our area. The brown dog tick is able to complete its entire life cycle indoors. f this tick gets into your home during the summer or fall, you could have a full-blown infestation in the winter. It’s good to know that expert help is just a call away. Ticks can also enter your home during the colder months of the year by hitching a ride on rodents. Mice and rats carry ticks and spread them to unexpected locations. Tick treatments will reduce ticks around your perimeter and reduce the exposure of mice and rats to ticks on your property and, through the winter, the addition of rodent control can keep rodents out.

How do ticks get in your house?

Ticks Can Invade Your Life and Your House By Latching Onto Your Pet Dog

Your dog can transport ticks inside your home

It wasn’t until I became an adult that I realized how simply sinister and awful ticks are. Growing up in the city, our prey du jour were mice. I have since learned that ticks frequently attach themselves to furry animals, including pets, when outdoors, especially in backyards when they frequent damp, tall grassy areas of your property. Then the ticks hitch a ride on your pets and are transported into your home – something none of us want!

How Ticks Catch Free Rides On Your Pets

One way ticks get in your house by attaching to your dog by inserting their mouthparts into their skin. After attaching to your dog, ticks begin feeding on your dog’s blood. The places where ticks attach can become red and irritated.

How do ticks end up in your home? — How can you keep ticks off your dog?

On occasion, ticks can consume enough of your dog’s blood to cause a deficiency called anemia. Certain female ticks can also cause a rare paralysis in dogs as a result of a toxin they produce while feeding. More importantly, ticks are capable of causing many diseases in your pet. The disease with which most people are familiar is called Lyme disease. Another is Rocky Mountain spotted fever.

Why Is Lyme Disease A Danger To My Pets?

Tick transmitted Lyme disease can cause arthritis and swelling of your dog’s joints, resulting in painful lameness. Rocky Mountain spotted fever can cause fever, lameness, and other symptoms. There are also other diseases that ticks can transmit to your dog. Your veterinarian can answer questions about the diseases that are important where you live.

How Can I Prevent My Dog From Getting Ticks?

Unfortunately, it is very difficult to prevent your dog’s exposure to ticks. Ticks can attach to your dog when he or she goes with you on walks, hikes, or during any outdoor activities. The longer your dog is left unattended in your backyard, the greater the risk.

The best way to prevent ticks from attaching to your dog is by the regular use of tick control products. Your veterinarian can advise you about the best product for your dog and your situation. Your veterinarian is also aware of diseases that are common in your area and can pose a risk to your dog.

If you have a tick problem in your yard consider:

Having your backyard and surrounding property professionally treated with professional Wilmington tick control. This is the best alternative to second-guessing what over the counter solutions may be best for tick control and eliminating concern for how you may be negatively impacting the environment.
Make a landscape or seasonal decor change to make the environment less tick friendly. This can be done by providing a 3-foot buffer between your lawn and any wooded areas in your yard. Mulch, wood chips, or gravel work well, and help to decrease the migration of ticks into yards.

Ticks vs. Mosquitoes: Which is worse?

Like Mosquitoes, Ticks Are At The Top Of The List For The Most Dangerous Animals On Earth

When asked to think about deadly animals, it is easy to conjure images of large predators and sharp teeth. We can thank the movies for that. But the deadliest animals that can cause the most long-term harm and havoc are actually much smaller. Vector pests, such as ticks and mosquitoes, are way up on the list due to their ability to vector disease.

ticks vs. mosquitoes — Ticks vs. mosquitoes: Mosquitoes are the most dangerous animal on Earth. Ticks can be considered the most dangerous arthropod.

With the ability to vector diseases such as Lyme Disease and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, the backyard tick can be considered the most dangerous arthropod in the United States.

Which Ticks Are The Most Dangerous From An Illness Perspective?

The most common ticks of medical significance include the black-legged tick (or deer tick), brown dog tick, American dog tick, and the lone star tick.

Exactly What Are Ticks?

Contrary to what you may have thought, ticks are arthropods. They are not insects. Ticks are in the arachnid family, making them more closely related to spiders and mites. Insects are commonly defined by having one pair of antennae, three body segments, and six legs.

Ticks do not have antennae and have two body segments instead of three. One of the easiest ways to distinguish ticks from insects is to count the legs. Adult and nymph ticks have eight legs, while insects have six legs. Tick larvae throw that rule out the window by only having six legs but can still be distinguished from insects by examining the body segments.

Also read: Are drought conditions conducive to tick and mosquito control?

Where Do Ticks Live?

Throughout your backyard and often found in parks and camping grounds, ticks are commonly found in tall grasses, woody/brushy areas, and leaf litter.

What else can be found in these areas? Rodents and other animals can be found there, too. All ticks feed on blood from vertebrate hosts. Mice are a good example of an extremely common host (especially for tick larvae).

Ticks cannot fly or jump, so they will not wander too far away from areas where their hosts may be found. They need carriers – think Uber for the animal world.

They wait for their host to pick them up and grasp on, a process called questing. If you find a tick well outside their typical nesting places, there is a good chance that it hitched a ride from its host.

How Can I Prevent Tick Bites?

Choose professional Randolph tick control for optimum protection at home.

Tick prevention is the smartest route for ongoing tick management. Take control of tick infestations by understanding where ticks are commonly found, then modify those areas to make them less appealing to ticks and their hosts.

Be familiar with tick species and their preferred hosts in your area to better target your approach. Like other pests, ticks have crawled the earth for many years and have become relatively well-known in communities across the country.

While their populations are widespread, public knowledge and awareness of the threats they pose to our health and well-being are unfortunately not as commonplace. Rather than just a nuisance or warm weather inconvenience, ticks are dangerous pests capable of transmitting debilitating diseases at increasingly alarming rates.

tick tubes for tick bite prevention — Embolden your tick control efforts with tick tubes.

For this reason, proven, trustworthy tick control is an excellent idea. With a combination of a tick control barrier spray and the placement of tick tubes, this one/two powerful punch will serve you well.

For dependable, proven tick control, contact your local tick control specialist. And again, be sure that your Randolph tick control service sprays your yard and surrounds your property with tick tubes.

Also read: Do I need Randolph tick and mosquito control spray?

Campgrounds Are The Perfect Storm For Tick Infestations

Ticks love camping – who knew?

Campgrounds are a perfect storm for tick infestations. They didn’t get that outdoor adventurer gene from me, but my kids love to go camping. Especially my daughter, her husband, and their young daughter. So recently we took one for the team and joined them. My wife joined them in the tent. I slept in the car – and not well.

Ticks love camping! Campgrounds are perfect storms for tick infestations. — Ticks love camping – or they love that you love camping!

After an enjoyable outdoor fireside breakfast of sunny side up eggs, warmed over brioche buns, and instant coffee we ventured back to our respective homes. My entire family knows what it takes to be tick aware, so as soon as we got back home, my wife and I headed to the shower.

As she was washing her legs she noticed a teeny black spec on top on her right foot. After further inspection, it confirmed her worst fear. A tick was burrowing into her skin. Luckily, I was in the bathroom with her and immediately went to the drawer that had needle-nose tweezers in it. Trying to be as gentle as I could – and yet still capture that tiny beast – I successfully removed it and gave it a proper burial at sea. After being squished in nearby tissue paper, I flushed it down the toilet.

How To Remove A Tick

remove tick with tweezer — Remove the tick with tweezers.

For a more clinical, pragmatic method, here is what The Centers for Disease Control Recommends on how to remove a tick:

If you find a tick attached to your skin, simply remove the tick as soon as possible. There are several tick removal devices on the market, but a plain set of fine-tipped tweezers works very well.

To Remove A Tick

Use clean, fine-tipped tweezers to grasp the tick as close to the skin’s surface as possible.
Pull upward with steady, even pressure. Don’t twist or jerk the tick; this can cause the mouth-parts to break off and remain in the skin. If this happens, remove the mouth-parts with tweezers. If you cannot remove the mouth easily with tweezers, leave it alone and let the skin heal.
After removing the tick, thoroughly clean the bite area and your hands with rubbing alcohol or soap and water.
Never crush a tick with your fingers. Dispose of a live tick by:

Putting it in alcohol
Placing it in a sealed bag/container
Wrapping it tightly in tape or
Flushing it down the toilet

Get Rid Of Ticks At Home with Ipswich Tick Control

tick control tubes When camping, ticks dry up easily so they prefer shady, wet areas. While you might also prefer some shade over your tent, you’ll be able to avoid ticks better if you set up camp in a sunny area. They also like to hide in tall grass or piles of leaves, so pitching your tent in a cleared area will prevent ticks.

The same variables apply to your backyard, especially it the perimeter has tall grasses and wood piles where moisture lurks well after rainstorms and irrigation watering.

If you want dependable, proven tick control, contact your local tick control specialist. Be sure that your tick control service sprays your yard and surrounds your property with tick tubes. This tick double-trouble control and elimination method will ensure it’s one less thing you’ll have to worry about.

Fighting Ticks with Fire – Will it work?

I have written in the past about ticks and fire, but this is altogether a different story.

We know that you cannot burn a tick to remove it from your skin. One farmer in Maine, is ready to employ fire to fight ticks on her farmland. Elizabeth Jimenez moved to Maine from Florida, and was astonished at the number of ticks she would encounter once springtime rolled around. Springtime in the Northeast is the time when ticks emerge from their overwintering. And emerge, they did!

Can you burn ticks out? — Can you fight ticks with fire?

Elizabeth reports a veritable tick apocalypse on her property, saying that if you even consider sitting down in the field, you will be aggressively pursued by ticks. She and her fellow farmers began saving the ticks that they took off their clothing after visiting the field – and she notes the, “jar is filling fast.”

Fighting Ticks with Fire

Thing is, Elizabeth moved to her three-acre Maine property in order to start an organic farm. To be classified “organic” you must raise your crop without the use of synthetic fertilizers or pest control products. For this reason, she has decided to extensively burn her field to kill ticks that reside there. Prescribed burns are nothing new to farmers. Many farmers burn their fields to rid them of plants that are already growing there, and to prepare the soil for new plantings. This is the first time I have heard of a controlled burn specifically to eradicate ticks.

Can you burn ticks out?

Local tick experts report that 2021 was even worse than 2022 for exploding tick populations. There were more dog ticks in Maine in 2021 than had ever been reported. There is no doubt that fire will work to this farmer’s benefit. It will most assuredly kill ticks. One expert says that Elizabeth’s effort to eradicate ticks in her field will be successful specifically for dog ticks. This is because dog ticks can predominantly be found in flat fields. However, for our friend the deer tick, that lives typically in woodland areas, the fire might not be as successful.

After she burns, she plans to create a visual barrier of wood chips around her field in hopes of keeping ticks away. Though, experts implore that this barrier is more for humans than ticks. It lets us know when we are leaving or entering the area where ticks are or are not.

The aftermath of burning ticks out.

Burning underbrush in wooded areas to fight ticks is nothing new. It is effective in the short-term, but what happens after the burn? As vegetation begins to regenerate, it creates a very tick-friendly environment. As wildlife reenters the area to feed, they will bring ticks back with them.

deer will bring ticks back after burning underbrush — Deer will bring ticks back after burning underbrush

This farmer also has an out-of-season tick control approach. She intends to plow to keep her fields free from snow in the winter. As we know, a blanket of snow will act as insulation to protect ticks from freezing to death in the winter. She believes that she can get ahead of the springtime tick rush next year by allowing cold Northeast winter weather to kill ticks that might be trying to overwinter in her field. Another great method of fighting ticks in the winter is through the use of tick tubes. Tick tubes, which contain an EPA-registered insecticide applied to cotton, are placed in potentially tick-friendly and rodent-friendly environments. Mice scrounge for the treated cotton and carry it back to their nests. Ticks that encounter these mice or their nests will be killed by the insecticide.

Natural Pawtucket tick control.

While many farmers and land owners protect their fields with EPA-registered tick control solutions, there are tick repellents available that are comprised of natural products. Professional Pawtucket tick control companies offer natural tick protection through products that are created with essential oils, made by Mother Nature herself.

Will a flash freeze affect ticks?

Can a flash freeze work in our favor against ticks?

At the time of this writing, Massachusetts is under a winter storm warning. This means different things for different parts of our state. Some temperatures are below freezing, others are hovering right above. Can a winter storm, a flash freeze specifically, kill ticks?

Will a flash freeze kill ticks? — Will ticks survive winter storms and flash freeze scenarios?

What is a flash freeze exactly?

A flash freeze is simply explained. Areas, where temperatures were (or are) right above 32°F, woke up to rain this morning. A cold rain, but rain nonetheless. A flash freeze happens when the above-freezing temperature falls below freezing, causing precipitation that is on the ground and other surfaces to freeze. The glaze produced by this weather event is extremely slippery and spells bad news for commuters. But is a flash freeze bad for ticks?

Winter weather does not kill ticks.

The type of winter weather we have in Massachusetts, though cold and uncomfortable, is not enough to kill ticks. Over the past decade or more, black-legged tick populations have grown and thrived, much in part due to the warming climate here and everywhere. And even though ticks thrive in warm climes, they are hearty enough to survive the winter, unless that winter delivers sustained days of extreme cold. If you are thinking that today’s winter weather will help reduce the number of ticks in Massachusetts, think again. Ticks will survive a flash freeze. And as for snow, well, it can help insulate ticks, which are burrowed beneath the soil, bedded down for the season.

Tick control is as essential as ever.

tick control There is no need to call off the assault, because you will still need to make a concerted effort to kill ticks around your home this spring, summer, and fall. As nice as it would be to count on Mother Nature to eliminate ticks for us, she is not in the tick control business in Massachusetts these days. This is not all bad news, because professional tick control companies are gearing up for their spring season. What’s more, there are steps you can take to help your property become less appealing to ticks. Spring is the time for renewal and outdoor maintenance projects. Be sure to follow the 6 C’s of tick control as you take care of lawn maintenance and install new landscaping.

What are the 6 C’s of tick control?

Clear out
Clean
Choose plants
Check hiding places
Care for family pets
Call the tick control pros

Also read: How bad are ticks in Massachusetts?

Dave Macchia mosquito conrol and tick control enthusiast — Dave Macchia
Central Mass enthusiast for effective season-long mosquito and tick protection

The Tick That Lived for 27 Years

I have often written about the tick life cycle, which is two years for black-legged ticks.

You might be surprised to know that there are more than 850 species of ticks throughout the world. We are unfortunate to have about 90 species living in the United States. And while we are familiar with deer ticks and dog ticks in Massachusetts, which transmit illnesses, many species do not pass on infection. However, that is not the only interesting tick fact you will find in this article.

A tick native to Africa lived 27 years. — The lifespan of one African tick might surprise you.

The African tick that lived for 27 years, even without feeding.

Entomology Today recently posted an article about one tick species’ 27-year lifespan. The Argas brumpti is a soft tick, native to the drier climates in southern and eastern Africa. What is already known about this tick, is that it does not carry any known disease pathogens. However, the bite from the Argas brumpti can result in painful skin lesions, which are believed to be caused by a chemical anticoagulant in their saliva. One Binghamton University associate professor has studied a group of Argas brumpti ticks for more than four decades.

Julian Shepherd, Ph.D., has spent the last 45 years studying the Argas brumpti African tick. He created an ideal tick habitat in his lab, set at a sustained 69.8°F and 81% relative humidity. This study began in 1976 by chance, after Dr. Shepherd was given the ticks. Though unrelated to any of the research he was doing at the time, he made them the focus of anew study. And so it began. Unlike their disease-carrying counterparts, not much research had been done on this soft tick species.

In the early years of his study, Shepherd provided a blood meal food source for the ticks by way of rabbits. However, around the mid-1980’s, devoid of an available food source, he stopped feeding the ticks altogether. This began an eight-year starvation period – which they survived! Some of the first group of ticks lived for 27 years. Some of their descendants are alive still, aged 26 years. Shepherd believes this is, “apparently a record for any species of tick.”

At about the fourth year in starvation, the last male tick died. When Shepherd resumed feeding the female ticks, at least one produced a batch of fertilized eggs. While it was known that female ticks can store sperm until they obtain a blood meal to fertilize their eggs, it was only previously studied over a period of weeks. Shepherd’s study proves that these female ticks can still produce offspring by taking a blood meal four years after mating! If nothing else, the study provides proof that ticks are patient, resourceful, and exceptionally resilient.

Though his research is coming to a close, Shepherd is passing on his findings to South African researchers, who are studying the evolutionary development and diversification of ticks through DNA sequencing.

Follow my blog for more interesting tick facts, as well as tick-borne illness prevention information.

What Deer Hunting Season Tells Us About the Spread of Tick and Mosquito Diseases

Deer hunting is underway in Massachusetts. Some Northeastern states are getting a glimpse of the real threat of disease-carrying ticks. But that’s not all.

Whether you are a fan of deer hunting or not, tagging stations are offering insight into the spread of ticks across the Northeastern United States. Right now in York County, Maine, researchers are spread out between deer tagging stations. Their goal is to collect and identify ticks from deer carcasses and to also obtain blood samples to test for mosquito-borne illnesses, like EEE.

What does deer hunting tell us about ticks?

Tick populations have reached record numbers.

Hunters in the Northeast report that they are seeing more ticks on their trips into the wooded wilderness than ever before. Some avid small game hunters are even skipping those seasons due to the increase in tick encounters. In years past, you might find a tick or two during your hunt. Today, it is reported that your hunting trip will undoubtedly bring you in direct contact with ticks – plural. It’s not if but when.

Like Massachusetts, York County, Maine, is a hotbed for Lyme-carrying ticks these days. Deer ticks were first found in Maine in 1980. But unlike some Massachusetts locales, they have not yet reported lone star ticks, which carry a variety of tick-borne illnesses other than Lyme disease. However, experts believe it’s only a matter of time before these ticks arrive on the scene. It is more important than ever that hunters, hikers, and campers protect themselves. The best personal protection methods include wearing treated clothing to repel ticks.

Warmer winters mean more ticks, new ticks, and even new mosquito diseases.

The researchers at Maine deer tagging stations are out to identify mosquito-borne illnesses too. Blood samples are being taken from deer in hopes of identifying the prevalence of mosquito diseases, such as Eastern Equine Encephalitis and West Nile virus. The state’s only reported case of EEE this year was in York County. Massachusetts has had no reports of Eastern Equine Encephalitis so far in 2021. There were a few cases of West Nile virus in Massachusetts this year, but because of drought-like conditions from last fall through spring, even those cases began reporting later into the year than normal. Effective mosquito control must be given credit for the decrease in potentially deadly cases of Eastern Equine Encephalitis.

Tick control is a year-round concern.

Due to warmer winters in Massachusetts, ticks can and do quest even during the winter months. It is possible to be bitten by a tick in the fall and winter, and we should be concerned with ample protection during those months. Fortunately, reputable tick control professionals offer ‘out-of-season‘ methods of tick protection by way of tick tubes.

You can take personal protection measures while hunting or hiking this time of year, and leave the at-home protection to the pros!

Ticks Are All Trick, No Treat

It’s Halloween Eve eve. Have you invited ticks into your yard?

Pumpkin patches are abuzz and fall vibes are present everywhere we look. This includes ours and our neighbors’ front yards. Pumpkins, hay stacks, and fallen leaves – OH, MY!

pumpkins and ticks — Ticks are not just in pumpkin patches. They could be in your yard too!

Be wary of ticks through the end of fall.

ticks are all tick, no treat — Ticks are all trick, no treat!

Adult female ticks, much like Dracula, are out for blood. Your blood, your dog’s blood, any old blood will do. Why are they so hungry this time of year? It’s actually not hunger that drives these ticks to take a blood meal. It’s more primal than hunger. It’s an innate need for a protein that is found in blood, which is consumed by adult female ticks (more in the fall than ever), in order to fertilize her eggs. Their inborn drive to reproduce is what drives adult female ticks. And if you are not careful, you will drive them right to your front door!

It’s less likely that you have a tick on your skin if you are wearing pants and long sleeves. But one great way to bring a tick home from the pumpkin patch is on your clothes. Your kids and pets are different stories. They are closer to the ground, and are often on the ground this time of year. Leaf piles are ever-present and far too tempting for kids and dogs to pass up in the fall. Small stature makes our little ones more susceptible to tick bites any time of year, but many forget that ticks are still out in the fall. When we return home from fall festivals, hay rides, pumpkin patches, or our own front lawns, it is essential that a full tick check be performed. On ourselves, as well as our kids and pets!

TICK TIP: You can place your clothing on high heat in the dryer for 10 minutes just in case your clothing might have a tick after being outdoors.

Here’s a bit of tick control hocus pocus!

I would never recommend not decorating your home and yard for the fall season to prevent ticks from entering your yard. What I would recommend is effective tick control measure be taken. Since our yards are even more agreeable tick habitats in the fall, you should enlist the help of a professional tick control company. You can have your entire yard treated with barrier tick protection, and embolden protection with tick tubes. Tick tubes will continue to work through late fall and winter.

It’s easy to forget about ticks when it’s cooler outside. Let this be your friendly reminder that they are out there. They are on the move. Be sure your home and family are protected!

Tick bites can be harmless, or they can infect you with diseases like Lyme disease or spotted fever.

Exactly What Are Ticks?

Also read: How can I protect my dog from Lyme disease?

Why Are Ticks Such A Problem In Shrewsbury?

Also read: Can you get Lyme disease in the winter?

It’s important to remove a tick from your body quickly – but do not panic.

Tick Bite Treatment Protocol

Also read: Are fleas or ticks more dangerous?

Also see a doctor if you have found a tick on you body and…

Year-Round Tick Control Is Your Best Bet For Total Protection From Tick Bites

Also read: What is a tick control tube?

Ticks Can Invade Your Life and Your House By Latching Onto Your Pet Dog

How Ticks Catch Free Rides On Your Pets

Why Is Lyme Disease A Danger To My Pets?

How Can I Prevent My Dog From Getting Ticks?

If you have a tick problem in your yard consider:

Also read: Does Lyme disease have a season?

Like Mosquitoes, Ticks Are At The Top Of The List For The Most Dangerous Animals On Earth

Which Ticks Are The Most Dangerous From An Illness Perspective?

Exactly What Are Ticks?

Also read: Are drought conditions conducive to tick and mosquito control?

Where Do Ticks Live?

How Can I Prevent Tick Bites?

Also read: Do I need Randolph tick and mosquito control spray?

Ticks love camping – who knew?

How To Remove A Tick

Get Rid Of Ticks At Home with Ipswich Tick Control

Also read: Where do ticks live in Massachusetts?

I have written in the past about ticks and fire, but this is altogether a different story.

Fighting Ticks with Fire

Can you burn ticks out?

The aftermath of burning ticks out.

Natural Pawtucket tick control.

Can a flash freeze work in our favor against ticks?

What is a flash freeze exactly?

Winter weather does not kill ticks.

Tick control is as essential as ever.

What are the 6 C’s of tick control?

Also read: How bad are ticks in Massachusetts?

I have often written about the tick life cycle, which is two years for black-legged ticks.

The African tick that lived for 27 years, even without feeding.

Also read: What is the most common tick?

Deer hunting is underway in Massachusetts. Some Northeastern states are getting a glimpse of the real threat of disease-carrying ticks. But that’s not all.

Tick populations have reached record numbers.

Warmer winters mean more ticks, new ticks, and even new mosquito diseases.

Tick control is a year-round concern.

Also read: Can I get a tick bite in the fall or winter?

It’s Halloween Eve eve. Have you invited ticks into your yard?

Be wary of ticks through the end of fall.

Here’s a bit of tick control hocus pocus!

Also read: When should I stop treating my yard for ticks?