![]() You can reduce tick habitat in your yard by removing leaf litter, keeping the grass cut short, removing any bushes or shrubs you don’t really like, and even fencing off wooded areas. Lone star ticks climb to the ends of leaves or tall grass and attach to anything that brushes by. They also have preferences for spaces between wooded areas and meadows or grasslands, which are areas where deer tend to graze and dogs often sniff. These ticks prefer wooded habitats but can also be found in bushes and shrubbery. It can be hard to avoid lone star ticks if you exercise your dog in densely green areas. How Can Lone Star Tick Bites Be Prevented? It doesn’t affect dogs, but it may be one more reason to keep ticks off your dog that could be brought inside to your cats. Lone star ticks transmit a deadly disease to cats called bobcat fever. Heartland virus hasn’t been identified in domestic dogs but antibodies to it have been found in coyotes. They’ve also recently been identified as the carrier for the newly emerging heartland virus. Lone star ticks are also known to transmit Southern tick-associated rash illness (STARI) to humans, but not to dogs. However, despite one study finding alpha-gal antibodies in dogs, there’s no evidence of it ever causing problems in any species but humans, apes, and Old World monkeys. One condition is alpha-gal syndrome (AGS), that causes some people to develop allergies to red meat. Lone star ticks transmit several other diseases that most likely don’t affect dogs. Fortunately, the lone star tick doesn’t seem to transmit Lyme disease. Bites from nymphs and adult lone star ticks, however, can cause tick borne diseases, including ehrlichiosis, tularemia and possibly Rocky Mountain spotted fever. What Diseases Do Lone Star Ticks Carry?Įven though they bite, lone star larvae don’t carry disease. They’re also often called the “turkey tick” because they’re often found on turkeys. They seem to favor larger animals such as deer, but also often bite wild turkeys. Larvae, nymphs, and adult ticks bite humans, dogs, cats, livestock, and wild animals. Lone star ticks aren’t picky about who they bite. In the south, they’ve been seen through the eastern parts of Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. In fact, they’ve been found as far north as coastal Maine and upstate New York, and west through Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa to parts of Nebraska. Lone star ticks are found mostly in the eastern and especially southeastern United States but have been extending their range westward and northward. Female ticks range in size from 1/8 of an inch when not engorged to 1/2 inch when fully engorged. This color change can make them harder to identify, because they’ll look more similar to other kinds of ticks. Lone star ticks have oval to roundish bodies, and engorged lone star ticks are usually larger, and females turn grayish-brown in color when they’ve fed. Engorged ticks are ticks that have fed and are full of blood. When ticks are “engorged,” they will also look different. ![]() Tick identification guides can help you tell the difference, also at different stages of a tick’s life. The American dog tick’s white dot is larger than that of the lone star tick’s, and it’s more towards the front of their back, near their head. It can be confused with the American dog tick, which also has a white dot on its back. ![]() ![]() Male and female larvae and “nymphs,” which are young ticks that are not yet fully grown, are both translucent yellow. Male adult lone star ticks have a geometric, black pattern on their backs. Adult female lone star ticks are especially easy to spot: they are reddish brown with a big white dot on their back. Luckily, lone star ticks don’t look as similar to other types of ticks. It’s unfortunately expanding its range - here’s what to know to help keep your dog safe this flea and tick season. This breed of tick has been potentially linked to several different diseases, plus one surprising allergy in dogs and people. You may have heard of the l one star tick (Amblyomma Americanum). Unfortunately, there are always more types of ticks to worry about. If you’re a dog owner, you’re already likely concerned about ticks during your state’s tick season. ![]()
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