Tick-tock: A Comparative Study of Tick Product Speed of Kill and Why It Is Important
0.5 CE Credit Hour / Veterinarians & Veterinary Technicians
Overview:
Ticks pose a health risk to companion animals as nuisance blood-feeding pests and through the numerous pathogens they can vector. The lone star tick (Amblyomma americanum) is a common tick found on canines and humans in the U.S. and can serve as a vector of several significant tick-borne pathogens, including agents of ehrlichiosis and spotted fever rickettsiosis. Lone star ticks also prove a robust challenge for canine tick control products and are considered a rate-limiting tick species. This presentation will review: geographic regions where lone star ticks are found; risk of encountering lone star ticks; lone star tick associated pathogens and what’s known about their transmission timing; and, control and prevention of ticks to reduce risk tick-borne diseases in canines and humans. Finally, this presentation will describe and compare the speed of lone star tick kill on dogs administered one of three, monthly-dosed, tick control products to control existing and new lone star tick infestations over each product’s label-approved dosing period.
Key Learning Objectives:
- Demonstrate good comprehension of where lone star ticks exist in the U.S.
- Describe environmental factors that support lone star tick populations in the U.S.
- Demonstrate good comprehension of when (e.g. season, temperature) lone star ticks are likely to be present in the environment.
- Describe regions of the U.S. where dogs and humans are at greatest risk for lone star tick associated tick-borne pathogens and diseases.
Kathryn E. Reif, PhD, MSPH
Dr. Kathryn Reif is an associate professor in the Department of Diagnostic Medicine/Pathobiology in the College of Veterinary Medicine at Kansas State University. Dr. Reif’s research interests broadly revolve around vectors and vector-borne diseases of veterinary, medical and agricultural importance, with a primary focus on ticks and tick-borne pathogens of public health and veterinary concern. Some of Dr. Reif’s on-going research projects include: i) developing new approaches for real-time monitoring of tick salivation and feeding behaviors, ii) evaluating antimicrobial efficacy to control tick-borne pathogens, iii) evaluating efficacy of ectoparasitcide products, iv) investigating transmission dynamics and control strategies for bovine anaplasmosis and theileriosis; v) examining tick-borne pathogen prevalence; and, vi) tick-borne pathogen vaccine development. Dr. Reif enjoys engaging veterinarians and clients/producers in research projects and developing and delivering presentations on the importance of ticks and tick-borne pathogens to clinicians and the general public.
This program has been approved for 0.5 hour of continuing education credit in jurisdictions that recognize RACE approval.
This activity is sponsored by Elanco.
