The Tick Prevention Checklist for Louisville: How to Keep Your Pets and Family Safe

Our relatively mild weather compared to other parts of the country can mean that ticks are often present in large numbers in our region. We know this is a major concern for a lot of homeowners, particularly when it comes to keeping their family (including the furry, four-legged members) safe. Knowing that ticks can carry and transmit dangerous diseases, Louisville homeowners want to keep these pests out of their yard.

To help make sure you’ve got all of your bases covered, we’ve put together this checklist that also aims to answer all of your tick-related questions. 

We will cover:

How to spot ticks?
When is tick season?
Types of ticks in Kentucky
How to prevent ticks
Why invest in yard tick treatment?
Additional protective measures for families 
Choosing pest control services in Louisville KY

We want to help set you up for success so that you don’t have to worry about ticks ruining your time outdoors.

How to spot ticks?

Most people know what a tick is, but just in case you need a refresher, we want to make sure you know what you’re looking for.

Ticks are small parasites that look like insects but are actually related to arachnids. They have eight legs as nymphs and adults. 

Ticks range in size from being as small as a pinhead to around the size of a pencil eraser. It’s not uncommon for people to get bit by ticks without realizing it at first. They are small and stealthy. 

Unfortunately, ticks survive by getting blood meals from their host and it’s during that process that they can potentially spread disease. Ticks can carry and transmit Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever and Lyme Disease, among other diseases.

When is tick season?

Tick activity really starts to ramp up as the weather warms up in the spring. Ticks tend to be the most active between April and September here in Louisville.

That being said, you can be exposed to ticks year-round in Kentucky. 

Because mild days are relatively common, even during the winter, ticks don’t always die off. They may become dormant but will increase their activity when temperatures are above freezing. 

Types of ticks in Kentucky

Kentucky is home to a number of different tick species.

Here are some of the most common.

• Blacklegged Tick: Also known as the “deer tick,” the Blacklegged Tick can transmit Lyme Disease. These are small, dark ticks with eight legs. Adults are about the size of a sesame seed.
• Lone Star Tick: The Lone Star Tick is another common tick found here in Kentucky. This tick is known for the white mark on the back of the female. The Lone Star Tick can transmit diseases like alpha-gal syndrome, which is a permanent, serious allergy condition that results in a red-meat allergy.
• American Dog Tick: This tick is reddish-brown in color and has a flattened shape. It is a common species here in Kentucky and can transmit Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. While Lyme Disease tends to get more attention, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever is often more commonly transmitted in Kentucky.
• Brown Dog Tick: Known to prefer dogs as its host species, Brown Dog Ticks can complete its entire life cycle indoors, making it a problem in homes. This tick can transmit diseases to your beloved pets including canine babesiosi and canine ehrlichiosis. 

How to prevent ticks

Ticks can survive and adapt to many different types of habitats. 

Unfortunately, this means that ticks can commonly survive in a residential backyard. 

Most often, ticks are “brought” to a yard by wildlife that are passing through. It’s not just deer that carry ticks but all types of wildlife that might pass through your yard could be infested with ticks including even squirrels, rabbits, or stray cats.

Tick prevention in Louisville should involve some steps to keep ticks out of your yard. 

Here are a few tips to keep in mind.

• Spray your woodline Deer are the major carrier of ticks into your yard. Ticks will spend part of their life on a deer and then drop off and climb the highest plants to move to their second host (you, your children, or pets). Spraying these tall plants will eliminate ticks during this transition.
• Maintain a tidy yard: Making an effort to keep tall grasses and shrubbery trimmed can also play a role in reducing the number of ticks in your yard. Ticks love to hide out, and maintaining a tidy property will eliminate some of this. The same goes for keeping your lawn regularly mowed and clearing your property of debris, fallen branches, and leaves.
• Add a barrier to border areas: If your property borders the woods or other natural habitats, you’re more likely to have ticks make their way into your yard on their own. You can reduce this by adding a barrier. For instance, you can install gravel, mulch, or wood chips in areas of the lawn that border a wooded area or a field. This just makes it harder for ticks to creep right into your lawn.

Why invest in yard tick treatment?

The steps mentioned above can go a long way in keeping ticks out of your yard. But none of them will completely eliminate your risk. Blood-thirsty ticks are always on the hunt for their next meal and it can be hard to fully deter them.

This is why investing in yard tick treatment is also so important. 

An effective, professional-grade product can help prevent these pests from getting a chance to bite your family. 

Yard treatment for ticks should involve targeting any potential tick habitats around your property to give you peace of mind these pests are being taken care of.

At Limbwalker, we use highly skilled and trained professionals to apply our professional-grade products. These products are safe for children, pets, and plants. We know that you’re trying to protect your family from ticks and don’t want to worry about the safety of the products being used on your property to achieve this goal.

Additional protective measures for families 

Because we care about the folks living here in Louisville, we also want to share some additional protective measures you can take to protect your family from these dangerous pests. 

Keep in mind that even if you take steps to reduce ticks in your yard, including investing in yard tick treatment, your loved ones (including your pets) can pick up ticks elsewhere. Whether it’s on a trail, at the playground, or some other outdoor location, ticks are lurking in a lot of places.

Here are some additional recommendations to protect your family from ticks.

• Follow the vet’s recommendations: We always want homeowners to know that our advice on protecting your yard from ticks is not meant to be a replacement for anything that your veterinarian is also recommending for your pet. Dogs can be highly susceptible to tick bites since they come into contact with the grass so frequently. Even walking your pet around the neighborhood could expose them to ticks. Make sure to still follow the vet’s recommendation for tick prevention.
• Wear protective clothing: Protective clothing can also go a long way in preventing tick bites. This is particularly important if you are knowingly going into a tick habitat, like the woods or on a trail. Long sleeves and long pants can prevent ticks from biting you.
• Always check for ticks: It’s also important to do a tick check after spending time outdoors. Areas to check include under the arms, in and around the ears, inside the belly button, back of the knees, in and around your hair, between the legs, and around the waist. Checking children and pets for ticks can be especially important. Showering after being outdoors is a good way to wash off unattached ticks and to do a quick search.

Choosing pest control services in Louisville KY

Despite all of your best efforts to prevent ticks, there are likely still some lurking. That’s why choosing to invest in pest control services is a wise decision.

To keep ticks out of your yard, you’ll want to choose a company that you can trust. We’re here to help do just that, so you can hand over your worries and get back to enjoying your yard to the fullest. 

While it’s true that there are store-bought tick products available, they are not going to be as effective as the treatment used by a trained professional. Applying products correctly (and safely) is the key to success. Professional pest control can provide this assurance. 

At Limbwalker, we use highly skilled and trained professionals to apply these professional-grade, highly effective products. They are trained on where to treat in order to boost effectiveness. They also know exactly how much product to apply. 

Our products not only cover ticks but fleas, as well. This is important as fleas can also pose major problems for your family. They are another pest that might be preventing you from enjoying time outside.

At the end of the day, when you make a wise choice in Louisville pest control, you can hand over your worries and get back to enjoying your property to the fullest.

If you’d like to learn more about adding flea and tick control to your mosquito services at your Louisville home, get in touch, get your quote, and get back to enjoying your yard.

 Image Source: Tick