The Monroe County Health Department Environmental Health Division assists individuals that are concerned about the ticks that were found on them, a family member or the family pet. While the staff at Monroe County Health Department are able to reasonably ascertain the name of the tick by comparing the tick to photos of known species, testing is not available onsite.
Disease from ticks is preventable. Following precautions when outside, especially in overgrown or wooded areas, you can minimize your risk of developing a disease. The most common ways to prevent disease include: wearing light clothes so you can see if a tick is on you and remove it before it embeds itself, using DEET or other tick repellent, checking your whole body, especially areas with hair such as the groin, head, sock line, under arms after being in an area that may contain ticks (if a tick is found, remove it by pulling it straight out with fine tweezers grabbing the tick at the skin surface), and tucking your pants into your socks and sealing off any other openings on your clothing such as sleeves and neckline.
Tick Disease Symptoms
Should you develop a disease from a tick bite, getting treatment early is necessary. Go to see your physician immediately if you have been in recent contact with ticks, especially if one or more were attached to you, and you start to experience any symptoms that may be associated with tick diseases, such as:
Types of Ticks in Michigan
Please see the State of Michigan site for information about the ticks normally found in Michigan. The following pictures are the five most common in Michigan: