Ticks are blood-sucking parasites that attach themselves firmly onto an animal, they are a small insect (around 3 - 5 mm long) and a member of the arachnid family. They grow in size over several days as they suck blood, then drop off to complete their life cycle. Ticks are usually picked up when dogs and cats walk through long grass and bush areas.
There are 2 types of ticks – hard ticks and soft ticks. Hard ticks are more readily identifiable than soft ticks and also spend more time attached to their hosts than soft ticks, who feed for a short period of time.
There are about 70 different sorts of tick in Australia. They are especially common along the east coast. Some have a flat body and a long mouth, while some look wrinkly and leathery. In Australia, most tick bites are caused by the paralysis tick Ixodes holocyclus (sometimes called a grass tick, seed tick or bush tick). They grow from an egg to a larva (about 1mm long and brown) and then to a nymph (about 2mm long and pale brown).
You should talk with your vet about how best to prevent ticks on your companion animal, there are many options including topical creams, shampoos and collars.
