We often think of summer as prime time for bugs, and assume that we’re in the clear when the cooler months of fall arrive, with far fewer annoying mosquitoes, stinging pests, or ant invasions. However, some Terre Haute insects live well into autumn and pose a threat as long as they’re able to crawl around.
Perhaps the biggest culprit is the tick. Ticks thrive in moderate climates like Terre Haute’s. Our winters are not cold enough to kill them off and a particularly mild winter can lead to huge tick-population increases when spring hits. We need to be on the lookout for ticks from early spring through late fall.
There are several species of ticks in Terre Haute, including the American dog tick, the brown dog tick, and the blacklegged tick (also known as the deer tick). While they may seem like tiny, inconsequential pests, they are anything but. Ticks carry and transmit a host of diseases, and although these illnesses vary in danger level none are something you’d want to contract--and some are even deadly.
Different tick species transmit different diseases, including Rocky Mountain spotted fever, Powassan virus, babesiosis and, probably the most well-known of the group, Lyme disease. Early symptoms of these diseases often mimic flu-like symptoms, but if left untreated can result in muscle weakness, joint pain, swelling of the brain, and partial paralysis, to name just a few.
In order to avoid coming in contact with ticks, you must understand how they travel. Ticks cannot fly. Instead they stand in the grass, weeds, brush, leaves, or woods with their front legs in the air, waiting for something (or someone) to brush past them. They then grab on, climb aboard, and find a warm spot on their new host to have a meal.
Anytime you, your children, or your pets are outdoors, is a time when you could potentially pick up a tick. Often, they’re so small that unless you are carefully searching for them, you won’t notice them.
To avoid ticks when outdoors, there are several steps you can take.
- Wear long, light-colored pants and closed-toed shoes.
- Wear DEET on your skin, or spray it on your clothing.
- Keep your pet up to date on their tick treatments.
- Check yourself after returning indoors.
While it’s impossible to keep ticks off your property, there are some DIY steps you can take to reduce their numbers.
- Keep your grass trimmed.
- Remove brush and leaf piles from your lawn.
- Place a stone wall or barrier between your lawn and the woodline.
If you’d like an even more effective treatment option, Action Pest Control offers top-of-the-line tick treatments for your lawn and home. Here’s how we do it:
- First, we target the problem outside. We know the common areas where adult ticks like to spend their time, and we treat that vegetation with residual products.
- Next, we target the nymphs who prefer the shady thatch layer of grass. That area is treated with a granular insecticide.
- Finally, we head indoors and spot treat cracks and crevices around the base of walls.
- Tick control is available in both our Complete and Premier services and is also available as a single treatment.
Don’t let ticks get the best of your outdoor activities this fall. Call Action for the most complete and effective tick treatment availab