Tick control methods can include personal protection, use of chemical repellents, removal of attached ticks, use of insecticides, control of ticks on pets and in buildings, and vegetation management. In the future, tick-borne diseases will probably increase as leisure time increases. People will have an opportunity for more outdoor activity, which will expose them to tick infestation. Demographic changes in parts of the country because of land development may also increase exposure to ticks. As Lyme disease has proliferated in recent years, concern about tick-borne diseases has also increased.
Ticks are arachnids, within the larger group of arthropods.
The ticks' only food is the blood sucked from their hosts, which are usually warm-blooded animals. Eggs hatch into six-legged larvae, known as seed ticks. A larva attaches to a host, sucks blood, and when full drops to the ground. Within a few days the larva changes form, becoming a nymph. The larger nymph, now with eight legs, finds another host for a blood meal.