Detecting and identifying ticks in livestock

Ticks can be identified by direct examination without the use of microscopes or hand lens. Those filled with blood are easier to identify because they are large and also reddish from the consumed blood. To find ticks on your livestock, comb the hairs or feathers to expose and examine the skin directly. Ticks may have preferred attachment sites that protect them to a certain degree from being dislodged by animal grooming. Areas around the head, in the ears, on the shoulders and other parts of the body can harbour attached ticks. On cattle, ticks can be found in highly vascularized areas of the skin (i.e., tail, udder). Unattached ticks can be recovered from the host by combing and examining the comb.

It is important to identify the types of ticks attacking your livestock. This is because some ticks carry agents that transmit deadly infections that may wipe out your stock. Find someone knowledgeable or use biological reference manuals for easy identification. Livestock extension officers under Ministry of Agriculture can assist on identification and possible remedies.

Management of ticks on animals

Management of ticks affecting livestock or companion animals varies with the species of tick and kind of animal that needs protection. For large animals, such as cattle and horses, tick control can be enhanced with vegetation management that modifies the tick habitat. Animals can then be pastured in areas where tick questing areas have been reduced.

On animals, tick control can be achieved using approved acaricides by dipping, spraying the entire animal with high-pressure sprays or whole animal dusts. Insecticide-impregnated ear tags offer some protection and control when ticks are infesting mainly the ears. When only a single or a few ticks are on an animal, simply remove them using tweezers or fingers. Grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible and pull firmly away until it detaches. Be sure not to squeeze the tick – you could cause any disease organism in the tick to go into the animal. Do not remove ticks by burning or using materials such as kerosene or diesel fuel. With heavy infestations, animals should be dipped, dusted or shampooed with an acaricide and then combed thoroughly to rid the ticks from the body of the animal.