Ticks are another common summertime pest. Like mosquitoes, they can also carry diseases that make animals very sick. Because ticks like to hide in thick and grassy areas, keep your grass as short as possible by mowing your lawn regularly.If you do not have time to mow your lawn, consider hiring a lawn care company that can do so.
Thick brush and woodlands give ticks a great place to hide. If you have thick brush or woodland on your property, clear these areas to keep ticks away.A controlled burn of these areas would also keep ticks away; this burn should be done only by natural resource professionals., Long branches can provide shade in which ticks can hide. If you have trees with long, overhanging branches, trim the branches. Keeping the branches short will increase the amount of sunlight on the ground, making it harder for ticks to survive on the ground.A lawn care company could trim the branches for you if you cannot do it on your own.
 Like mosquitoes, ticks like to hide in piles of leaves. When the leaves start falling from the trees in your yard, rake the leaves so the ticks don’t have a place to hide.Place the leaves in a closed container until you’re ready to throw them away.
 Spraying areas of your yard where ticks could hide will help keep ticks away. Products to spray your yard should contain pyrethroids. You can either spray your yard yourself or hire a pest management company to do the spraying for you. If you choose to do it yourself, read and follow the product labels carefully to ensure you use the product properly and effectively., Tick hosts are animals that carry ticks (a tick could hop on an animal’s back). Examples of tick hosts are rodents, deer, and rabbits. Several strategies are available to keep tick hosts out of your yard. For example, if you like to have plants in your yard, consider having plants that don’t attract tick hosts.Deer tend to stay away from plants that are thorny, sticky, or taste bad. Examples of plants and flowers that deer don’t like are rhododendrons and Black Eyed Susans.If you have a horse, its grain could attract rodents. To prevent tick-hosting rodents from accessing the grain, keep the grain in a tightly-sealed container., Although ticks can be a big problem in summer, dogs and cats should be protected from tick bites throughout the year. Using a tick preventative only during the summer could lead to tick infestations and potential illness in your pet.In addition, if you stop the preventative when the temperature cools down, you may forget to start the preventative again when it becomes warmer outside.


Over-the-counter tick preventatives are available. However, the preventatives available through your vet are much more effective. Your vet can recommend which one will work best for your dog or cat.
Most tick preventatives for dogs and cats are topical. You would apply the product on your dog or cat’s skin between the shoulder blades where it can’t easily be licked off. One application of the product usually lasts several weeks.
Tick preventatives for dogs and cats also contain ingredients to repel fleas.
Tick repellents for horses typically contain pyrethrins, another type of insecticide. However, these repellents last for only a few hours. Frequent reapplication of a tick repellent could be toxic to a horse, since its skin is very sensitive., Because tick repellent could make your horse sick, consider putting mineral oil on your horse. The mineral oil would make it hard for a tick to latch on to your horse’s skin. Apply the mineral oil to your horse’s mane, tail, belly, and lower legs. If you regularly take your horse in wooded areas where there could be a lot of ticks, put mineral oil on your horse each week., During the summer, check your pet for ticks each time your pet goes outside. Even if you use products to keep ticks off your pet, it is still a good idea to examine your pet’s skin. If you find a tick on your pet, remove it very carefully. If your dog or cat has a tick, use tweezers to grasp the tick on or behind its mouthparts. Lift up the tick slowly to prevent breaking off the mouthparts.Because ticks can transmit disease to humans, wear gloves when removing the tick.On a horse, pay special attention to the mane and tail when checking for ticks. If you see a tick, remove it using the method for removing a tick from a dog or cat. Do not drop the tick on the ground and try to crush it—if the tick is carrying a disease, stomping on it could spread the disease.After removing the tick, place it in a container with rubbing alcohol. Rubbing alcohol, not water, kills ticks.Clean the area where you removed the tick with soap and water. Then, wash your hands.
Consider saving the tick and taking it to your vet. If your pet becomes sick after the tick bite, your vet could identify the tick and determine what diseases the tick may have been carrying.
Keep your grass short.
Trim tree branches.
Rake the leaves.
Chemically treat your lawn and vegetation.
Keep tick hosts off of your property.
Give your dog or cat a year-round tick preventative.
Put mineral oil on your horse.
Check your pet’s skin for ticks.
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