10 Gross Things About Ticks

Ticks are gross. It is known. Let us count the ways!

Mosquito Squad of Southeastern Massachusetts is celebrating our 10^th anniversary in business. Ten years of tried and trusted mosquito and tick protection. Though traditionally 10^th anniversaries are symbolized by gifts of tin or aluminum, we celebrate with a flair for the ick that is the tick. Prepare to be grossed out with these 10 yuck-themed tick facts in no particular order of raunchiness.

10. Ticks are spider-ish.

Though technically ticks are not spiders, or vice versa, ticks are arachnids – just like spiders. Each the tick and spider have four sets of grabby little legs. Each is classified as an invertebrate rather than an insect. And let’s face it, they are each unsightly critters in their own way.

9. Tick tummies are like, ewwwwww.

If you have ever used the simile, tight as a tick, after gorging on your favorite meal or dessert, you know that tick tummies are ever-expansive. A tick can grow up to a few times its original size after foundering on its favorite meal, and it is quite a sight to behold. Speaking of a tick meal…

8. Ticks are tiny vampires.

Okay, Hollywood movie vampires can be anything but gross, but ticks are nasty little bloodsuckers. If a tick cannot find a tasty blood meal at every stage of life, it cannot live to the next stage. They’re not picky, either. They will find blood from a bird, mammal, reptile, or amphibian.

7. Ticks are super creepy.

It would be a terrible fright to see a flying or jumping tick, and fortunately, they are unable to do either. However, ticks are creepy little buggers. They attach to their blood meal host by lying in wait for an opportune encounter with a viable host. They involve would-be hosts in an unwanted game of hide-n-seek, whereby they are doing the hiding and seeking.

6. A tick can remain attached for days without notice.

In order to pass infection, such as Lyme disease, a tick must be attached to its host for 36 to 48 hours. It’s pretty gross that ticks are sucking our or our pets’ blood in the first place, but they must do it for a long time to become sated. If you ask us, being a tick carrier for days at a time is pretty darned gross!

5. Ticks carry nasty diseases.

According to the CDC, the United States is home to more than 15 tick-borne illnesses. While Lyme disease is the most common, they also transmit potentially fatal illnesses, such as Powassan virus and Rocky Mountain spotted fever. If you fall ill after a known tick bite, seek immediate medical attention.

4. Ticks are faster than you think.

While we know that ticks lie in wait to latch onto their blood host, they are also able to scurry quite quickly. If dropped into the open after a failed attachment, a tick can and will move about to find its next questing spot – and he might encounter you or a family member in the bargain.

3. Ticks can live indoors.

If a tick is unable to make an attachment before it falls off your clothing (or your person or your pet), it can live anywhere from 24 hours to a few days indoors. You could have a tick in your home right now, and that’s just nasty to think about!

2. A tick can leave body parts under your skin.

Once a tick is attached to you or your pet and begins to take on a gourmet blood meal, it means to remain attached until it can no longer eat another drop. In the meantime, if you find said tick, and make a poor attempt at removing it, mouthparts can be left to fester beneath your skin. That’s why it is super important to properly remove a tick!

1. A tick will attach anywhere on your body, even your eyeball.

Some ticks are just not finicky enough to run for the standard hidden areas of attachment, like the armpit or groin. And let’s face it, everyone wants to be Internet famous these days. Why should that not apply to ticks? One such audacious arachnid sought his fame by attaching directly to a man’s eyeball, and dare we say he acquired a bit of social media fame – or infamy! Check it out here.

At Mosquito Squad of Southeastern Massachusetts, we mean to lower your chances of encountering an ick – we mean tick! We offer effective year-round tick control solutions for your family’s health, well-being, and peace of mind.