What Sort Of Ticks Bite On Dogs?
There are a lot more tick types than you’d like to think. And it pays to know which one is attached to you or your pet. But what sort of ticks bite on dogs? If you suspect or know your dog has picked up a tick, there is no time to waste. You need to know what ticks bite dogs and how to confirm your dog has a tick versus a scab. Today I’ll share everything you need to identify the tick that’s bitten your dog.
Contents
- What sort of ticks bite on dogs?
- Tick types with pictures
- Which tick has bitten my dog?
- What do ticks do to dogs?
- Are tick bites ever deadly?
What Sort Of Ticks Bite On Dogs?
Ticks are one of the main concerns for dog owners. This is true even if you live in an urban area. Thanks to climate change, ticks are thriving and spreading farther than ever before. Worldwide, there are an estimated 700 species of hard-bodied ticks and about 200 species of soft-bodied ticks.
All ticks go through several life stages. And all ticks need a blood meal at each life stage. Some of these ticks are what experts call generalists. These ticks will prey on any host they can find. Other ticks are specialists that will only attach to certain hosts. Often this is a function of the local habitat and available food sources.
Tick Types
Of the 900 or so known tick species, experts have identified a short list of species most closely associated with tick bites on dogs in North America.
American Dog Tick
Dermacentor Variabilis is dark brown with a lighter shield color varying somewhat between adult males and adult females. These ticks are found on all coasts, in Canada, Alaska and some eastern inland states.
Blacklegged Deer Tick
Ixodes Scapularis has black legs, a black shield and an orange/red body. These ticks are rapidly expanding in all areas across the United States.
Brown Dog Tick
Rhipicephalus Sanguineus is a narrow brown tick with a widespread range in the United States. This is a tick that prefers a canine host whenever possible.
Groundhog Tick
Ixodes Cookei, also known as the Groundhog or Woodchuck tick, is light brown to blonde in color and is found mostly in the eastern regions of the United States.
Lone Star Tick
Amblyomma Americanum is reddish brown and female adults have a single white dot on their backs that gives this species their name. Lone Star ticks are found in the south and eastern regions of the United States.
Pacific Coast Tick
Dermacentor Occidentalis is brown/black with a mottled appearance. As the species name implies, this tick lives in the western coastal regions from Baja, Mexico, on up through Oregon.
Rocky Mountain Tick
Dermacentor Andersoni is red/brown all over and male adults also have a cream shield. They prefer higher elevations over 4,000 feet in the United States.
Western Blacklegged Tick
Ixodes Pacificus has a red body with black legs and is found mainly in California and surrounding western states.
Soft Ticks
Ornithodoros species lack the hard exoskeletons of their hard tick relatives and have been described as looking like a raisin. They prefer forest areas above 3,000 feet in the United States.
How Do I Know What Kind Of Tick My Dog Has?
The only way to correctly identify what kind of tick your dog has is to remove it intact so you can study and identify it. To minimize risk of disease transmission for both you and your dog, it is critical to wear surgical gloves and remove it using tweezers. Otherwise, even skin contact with contaminated blood can potentially cause serious illness.
To do this, use fine-point tweezers or a tick removal tool. Grasp the tick’s body and pull it steadily upwards to extract the mouth parts along with the body. If the mouthparts remain under the skin, this can lead to infection and disease.
Then you can use a magnifier to identify the tick or take it intact to your veterinarian for a species identification.
What Happens When Ticks Bite Dogs?
When a tick bites a dog, it inserts its mouthpieces underneath the skin and begins to feed until it swells up to several times its normal size. But when the tick first attaches to your dog, it is tiny and often only looks like a little dot or freckle.
Since disease can be transmitted as soon as three hours after a tick bite, always examine your dog’s skin as soon as you return from walks or hikes.
Can Ticks Kill Dogs?
Ticks belong to the arachnid or spider family. Not only do some ticks use neurotoxins to induce paralysis in their prey, but ticks carry a wide range of pathogens and microorganisms that cause serious diseases.
While a single tick bite is unlikely to cause death, secondary complications may well lead in that direction. Prompt removal and treatment is key to keeping your dog safe.
Dog Tick vs Scab
Ticks can attach anywhere on a host. But most ticks are likely to choose favored areas like on or in ears, inside the nose, on or under the tail, around the private areas or paw pads, on the neck, head or shoulders, eyelids, armpits and under the collar.
So if you find something suspicious in these areas, it is more likely to be a tick. One common way you might discover a tick on your dog is by running your hands along your dog’s body, stopping if you feel any little bumps or scabs. But is it a scab or a tick that you are feeling?
Scabs typically align flat against your dog’s body. This is because they function like a protective band-aid over a skin wound. However, scabs may still have an uneven or bumpy feel. Contrast that with the look and feel of a tick, which will remain smooth and then balloon out while feeding.
What Sort Of Ticks Bite On Dogs?
Many different tick species can bite dogs and cause health issues ranging from pain and swelling to infection and serious disease. When in doubt, always reach out to your canine veterinarian for species identification and treatment.
Has your dog ever been bitten by a tick? What helped you to identify the tick bite and seek appropriate veterinary care? Share your stories in the comments.
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References
- Sonenshine, D.E. “Range Expansion of Tick Disease Vectors in North America: Implications for Spread of Tick-Borne Disease.” International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2018.
- Griffis, K. “Tick ID.” Centers for Disease Control, 2022.
