There’s another tick to be on the look-out for, especially if you raise cattle or horses in Iowa. The Asian long-horned tick has been found in 19 states, including Missouri.
That’s Veterinarian Grant Dewell, who’s with Iowa State University Extension and his research specialty is beef cattle. The Centers for Disease Control has issued a warning about these ticks due to recently published research about three Ohio cows that died after being bitten tens of thousands of times by Asian long-horned ticks. This tick species was first found in the U-S in 2010. Dewell says a female can produce on her own.
Researchers in Ohio concluded the cattle there died of blood loss. Dewell says it’s important to keep grass cut around feedlots and make sure animals are grazing in pastures, because ticks prefer to live in areas with tall grass.
While Asian long horned ticks seem to prefer cattle and horses, they have been found on dozens of animals in the United States. A man from New York is the first known human to be bitten in the U-S by this species of ticks. That happened in June of 2018.
