After several afternoons of picking ticks off my horse, Trouble, I began to wonder if ticks are really this common in Montana.  With some searching, I soon discovered we are expected to have an extremely heavy tick season according to Pest World.

Tick season is already underway and the first place to look for them are generally dark and moist areas.  Though they can be anywhere, ticks are commonly found in places like armpits, the groin, behind the ears, and the base of the skull, near the hairline.  You also need to be able to identify them.  They can be quite small and grow as they suck a hosts blood.  Can you find the five ticks in the photo below?


So once you find one be sure to remove it quickly.  The CDC recommends using fine tipped tweezers and pull upwards steadily.  For disposal the CDC recommends "submersing it in alcohol, placing it in a sealed bag/container, wrapping it tightly in tape, or flushing it down the toilet. Never crush a tick with your fingers."

There is also the twist tool method that you can see in the video below.

 

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