Tick Identification & Prevention

What are ticks?

There are many species of ticks living throughout our Central Florida service area. Some of the most common are the American dog tick, lone star tick, brown dog tick, and black-legged tick. These arachnids have an oval-shaped body, are wingless, and adults have eight legs. They travel from place to place on the backs of their animal hosts. To complete their life cycle, they require blood meals from people or animals. While most prefer to live on their animal hosts, they will also crawl onto people and feed on our blood. Some of the tick’s favorite animal hosts include mice, rats, squirrels, skunks, raccoons, deer, foxes, and other wild animals.

Are ticks dangerous?

When a tick bites, the area around the bite site becomes numb, allowing the ticks to feed on people for days without detection. The longer the tick is attached and feeding, the easier it is for them to transmit any disease they are carrying through their saliva.

Ticks are dangerous pests because of the many diseases they spread to both people and animals. Examples include:

• Ehrlichiosis
• Lyme disease
• Rocky Mountain spotted fever

Why do I have a tick problem?

The tick’s primary mode of transportation is hitchhiking on the backs of their hosts; it is most often wild animals or pets that introduce ticks onto a property. When you or your pets are spending time in your yard, a park, wooded trail, or other outdoor space, you can come into contact with these pests. In addition to pets bringing ticks into a house, rodents such as mice and rats frequently introduce them into homes when they get inside to nest.

Where will I find ticks?

Ticks live outside, and those that do get inside rarely cause a long-term problem, as most ticks are unable to complete their life cycle indoors. When not feeding on a host, they are outside waiting for a new host to brush past them that they can crawl onto. They prefer to hide in shady, damp areas and try to avoid areas of direct sunlight. They are common in wooded areas in addition to under leaf piles, fallen trees, woodpiles, in roadway ditches, and areas of tall grass or dense vegetation.

How do I get rid of ticks?

At Green Flag Services, we understand that ticks are a nuisance and difficult to control and eliminate. If you are having problems with ticks on your property, reach out to us today. We can provide you with the tick control services for your home to get rid of ticks and prevent them from returning.

If you need help removing ticks or other pests from your DeLand, Daytona Beach, Port Orange, Baldwin Park, Kissimmee, and Oviedo, FL, residential or commercial property, call Green Flag Services today!

How can I prevent ticks in the future?

Don’t allow ticks to take over your commercial property or home. Partner with the professionals at Green Flag Services and put into place the following easy to implement prevention tips:

• After spending time outside, check yourself, kids, and pets for ticks.
• Regularly groom and bathe pets.
• Place your Florida pets on a year-round tick preventative with the help of your pet’s veterinarian.
• When going outside, especially in wooded areas, make sure to wear long sleeves and pants.
• When going out, especially in tick-dense areas, make sure to wear an appropriate tick repellent.
• Ticks prefer dark, damp areas. Cut back shrubbery and other dense vegetation back to keep the soil underneath dry.
• Ticks like to hide in tall grass that traps moisture. Mow your lawn frequently to keep the grass short.
• Remove leaf piles, brush piles, and woodpiles from your property where ticks can hide.
• Keep the rodents and wild animals that ticks are living and feeding on from being attracted to your yard by eliminating food sources. Keep lids on trash cans, pick up pet food, and remove bird feeders.
• If possible, place a fence around your yard to help keep wandering pets and larger wild animals out of your yard.

Helpful Tick Article

Why Does My Orlando Yard Have A Tick Problem?