Summer is for long walks with your family and pets. Don’t let a tick tag along.
What is a tick?
Ticks are a category of arachnids that have grown infamous for their food source of blood and their tendency to transmit the illusive lyme disease. However, these insects are quite a bit more complicated, and knowing the basics of this parasite can save pet owners a fair amount of stress and less visits to the vet or doctors office.
American Dog Tick
The dog tick (Dermacentor variabilis or wood tick) is the most common in North America, and the one most likely to be found on you or your pet after some time outdoors. Starting at 5-7 millimetres (mm), these ticks frequent tall grass and meadow areas, using their hook-like legs to discreetly latch onto passing hosts who brush up upon the foliage. Both the males and females consume blood, with the females engorging to over two times its original size to intake enough blood for egg production.
The key to identifying this species is by looking for the light brown markings on their scutum (backside), with males having lightning bolt-like patterns, and the females having a horseshoe-like one, even when engorged. Within Southwestern Canada, the dog tick is considered safe to both humans and animals, as it does not transmit any diseases. However, in South-Central Canada, there is a slight risk for this species to transmit Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF) to humans, and canine monocytic ehrlichiosis (Ehrlichia canis) in dogs.
Blacklegged Tick
The blacklegged tick, also known as the deer tick or Ixodes scapularis, is the primary vector in the transmission of Lyme disease. This 3mm insect is mostly found within leaf litter and saplings in forested areas, hooking onto passing hosts like the dog tick. The males and females both consume blood, but the males have much less risk of transmission due to the fact that they can complete their feeding in 30 minutes and are attached to hosts for far less time. The females pose the most risk, with an undisturbed adult being able to feed from the same host for nearly a week, making the chance of transmission far more likely.
Proper identification is key to determining the next steps for you or your pet. The males, which pose low risk, have nearly completely black bodies, with a lighter border around their back end. The females, which are high risk, contain a fully black scutum with a reddish-brown body. When engorged, the reddish area will fill with blood and change colour, but the scutum will remain black near the head.
Lone Star Tick
The Lone Star Tick, also known as the turkey tick or Amblyomma americanum, is usually found in the southern states of America, but with rising temperatures due to climate change, a handful of sightings have been seen in southern Ontario, and these ticks are likely to become more common as time goes on. These ticks can be found in both meadowy and wooded areas, specifically enjoying the border where the tree line meets a clearing, a place where deer commonly graze. While lone star ticks do not host Lyme disease, the females can carry other diseases that can be harmful to both humans and pets. Human diseases that this tick can transmit include Alpha-gal syndrome, ehrlichiosis, tularemia, Bourbon virus disease, and Heartland virus disease.
While dogs cannot catch any diseases from lone star ticks, they can carry a fatal condition for cats called Cytauxzoon felis, also known as bobcat fever. While the chances of encountering this tick in Canada is low, general tick prevention and awareness is key to prevent all ticks from creating health issues for you or your pet. Fortunately, the lone star tick is very distinctive to identify, with females being 3 mm long and marked with an off-white spot on their scutum that remains when engorged.
Lyme Disease in Humans
For those who enjoy the outdoors, Lyme disease can be quite nerve-wracking, as the symptoms and signs can present as everyday maladies, and the longer you wait to receive treatment, the harder it can be to recover.
The most well known symptom of Lyme disease is the bullseye rash. This distinctive bite with a surrounding band rash only occurs after you have been bitten by an infected tick and contracted Lyme disease. However, this bite might not always appear as the perfect bullseye shown in most example pictures. The majority of people will develop some kind of spreading rash as a result of Lyme disease, so tracking the spread of mysterious rashes is significant to determining your next steps.
Other early symptoms of Lyme disease include fever, chills, headache, stiff neck, muscle aches and joint pains, fatigue (more tired than usual), swollen lymph nodes, spasms, numbness or tingling, and facial paralysis. Symptoms will worsen the longer you go without treatment.
Lyme Disease in Animals
While most dogs that contract Lyme disease are asymptomatic, it is important for owners to keep the symptoms in mind, as your pet cannot explain how they are feeling. Limping, fever, loss of appetite, decreased activity, swollen lymph nodes, and swollen joints are the most common symptoms in dogs. Fortunately, cats have not been seen to be affected by Lyme disease outside of laboratory settings, but tick checks should still be done to keep blacklegged ticks from hitching onto you or your other pets from your cat.
Tick Prevention
The best way to avoid dealing with ticks is by following a few steps to make encounters less likely. Keeping your yard free of long grass and leaf litter, as well as staying on established paths during walks will keep you and your pet out of areas where ticks lay waiting.
Wearing long light coloured clothes and closed-toe shoes, and using bug repellent that contains DEET (diethyltoluamide) are simple but proven ways to prevent tick bites. Performing tick checks after time spent outdoors is also a beneficial habit to reduce the chance of disease.
For both dogs and cats, the primary defence against ticks is through monthly prevention gels that protect against a full range of insects. For dogs, keeping them on-leash during walks, avoiding high risk areas for ticks, and performing frequent tick checks can also decrease risk of disease.
The best way for cats to avoid ticks is to remain inside, but feline preventative gel and tick checks can reduce the risk if you have an outdoor cat.
Tick Removal
If prevention fails and you or your pet gets bitten by a tick, time and proper removal is key to lessen the chance of transmission. The bacteria that causes Lyme disease is held in the stomach and mouth of the tick. Removing the tick properly and within 24 hours of the bite will reduce the chance of the bacteria entering the body. First, in a well-lit area, locate the area where the tick is attached to the skin. With a pair of metal tweezers, pinch the head of the tick as close to the skin as possible, and pull straight up. If any sections of the mouth remain in the skin, remove them with the tweezers. With pets, separate the fur as much as possible to best visualize the tick.
Once removed, identify the tick using a reliable source, such as etick, or your health unit website. The tick you have will determine your next steps, with dog ticks needing light monitoring at home, and a blacklegged tick requiring a visit to your health care professional and a possible vet visit.
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