In these cases, the lice are usually confined to spots in preferred areas on the animal. Examination of five, one inch square areas on the face, dewlap, neck, back and base of the tail of each animal would be a conservative protocol. Look first for nits, then part the hair carefully to look for lice. Both biting and sucking lice feed head down with their abdomens pointed out. Identify the species present and record the number found per square inch at each site.
Lice persist over the summer months on reservoir animals.
Older cows or bulls are the most likely reservoirs. The longer, thicker hair and massive neck and shoulders of bulls makes self-grooming difficult, apparently grooming can reduce lice numbers to some extent. During the hot summer months, a few lice may survive out in the ear tips where temperatures do not reach lethal levels. The chances of detecting these carriers is slim because of the amount of time it would take to search thoroughly to detect them. The life cycle of biting and sucking lice have the three stages associated with incomplete metamorphosis- egg, nymph, and adult.