You may be wondering, is there ticks in Alberta? Yes, ticks live across Alberta, especially in grassy, brushy, and wooded areas.
Most tick bites do not cause serious illness, though some ticks can carry bacteria linked to Lyme disease and other tick-borne illnesses.
Alberta’s tick season typically runs from April through October. Ticks can become active whenever temperatures rise above about 4°C.
You can reduce your risk by wearing protective clothing and using repellent. Check your skin and clothing, and remove attached ticks promptly.
Tick Presence And Lyme Risk In Alberta
Ticks live in many parts of Alberta and may attach to people, pets, livestock, or wildlife. The risk of Lyme disease acquired within the province remains low, but changing tick distributions and travel mean you should still take precautions, including around Edmonton.
When Ticks Are Active
Ticks are most active from spring through early fall. Activity often increases during spring and early summer.
They can still be active during mild weather outside the usual tick season. Check yourself and your pets after outdoor activities whenever temperatures are above freezing.
You are more likely to encounter ticks in tall grass, leaf litter, brush, and wooded areas. Staying on cleared trails can lower your exposure.
Common Ticks And The Blacklegged Tick
Several tick species live in Alberta. The blacklegged tick, also called the deer tick, most often carries Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacterium responsible for Lyme disease.
Most ticks found in Alberta do not transmit Lyme disease. Identifying a tick by appearance alone can be difficult, so save a tick or submit a clear photograph to help with surveillance and risk assessment.
Health Canada’s Lyme disease information describes the connection between blacklegged ticks and Lyme disease.
Local Lyme Disease Risk Versus Travel Exposure
Blacklegged ticks have been documented in Alberta, though they do not have established populations throughout the province. Health authorities consider the risk of locally acquired Lyme disease low, while travel to other areas may increase your risk.
Tell a healthcare professional about recent travel, outdoor exposure, the date of a bite, and any symptoms. Lyme disease is one type of tick-borne disease, and other tick-borne illness risks can vary by location.
Preventing And Removing Tick Bites
You can lower your risk with protective clothing, repellent, and routine checks after being outdoors. Pet owners should use veterinarian-recommended tick control because dogs and cats can carry ticks indoors.
Personal Protection Outdoors
When walking or hiking, stay on cleared paths and avoid brushing against tall grass or dense vegetation. Wear light-colored clothing, long sleeves, and long pants tucked into socks or boots.
Apply an insect repellent containing DEET or icaridin according to the product label. After returning indoors, place outdoor clothing in a dryer on a suitable heat setting if the fabric allows.
Shower and check your skin after outdoor activities.
Tick Checks For People And Pets
Check your entire body, including your scalp, hairline, waist, groin, behind your knees, and around your ears. Inspect clothing, backpacks, and gear as well.
Check pets every day after outdoor time, especially around the ears, eyelids, collar, legs, toes, tail, and between the back legs. Ask your veterinarian about tick control products suited to your pet, region, and lifestyle.
Safe Tick Removal And Follow-Up
Use fine-tipped tweezers to grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible. Pull upward slowly and steadily without twisting, squeezing, or crushing the tick.
Do not apply petroleum jelly, heat, or chemicals. Clean the bite and your hands with soap and water.
Save the tick in a sealed, clean container if you plan to submit it. Watch for a spreading rash, fever, headache, unusual tiredness, muscle aches, or flu-like symptoms.
Contact a healthcare professional if symptoms develop or if you are concerned.
What To Do With A Tick You Find
Remove the tick promptly. After removal, submit a photograph through Alberta’s surveillance system, record where and when you found it, and monitor the person or pet for symptoms.
Using Alberta Submit-a-Tick Through eTick
The Alberta Submit-a-Tick program accepts tick photographs through the eTick program, using the eTick website or app. A clear image helps specialists identify the tick species and adds useful information to Alberta’s passive tick surveillance.
Photograph the tick beside a familiar object for scale and use good lighting. Include details about where it was found.
The Alberta Submit-a-Tick program may update its process, so follow the current instructions provided through the submission portal.
What Tick Surveillance And Tick Testing Can Tell You
The Alberta Passive Tick Surveillance Dashboard shows which tick species people have reported and where submissions occur. Alberta Health uses this information to monitor tick distribution and estimate potential Lyme disease risk.
A tick submission does not provide a diagnosis. Tick testing, when available, may identify a species capable of carrying Lyme bacteria and indicate whether the bacterium was detected in that tick.
A negative result does not replace medical advice, and a positive result does not mean transmission occurred.
The Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation provides educational information about Lyme disease, tick identification, and prevention.
When To Seek Medical Or Veterinary Care
Seek medical care if you develop a rash, fever, headache, joint or muscle pain, facial weakness, or flu-like symptoms after a tick bite or possible exposure.
Tell your clinician when and where you encountered the tick. Include information about recent travel and how long the tick stayed attached.
Contact a veterinarian if your pet has a tick that is difficult to remove or has a large or irritated bite area.
Watch for weakness, loss of appetite, fever, lameness, or other unusual behavior in your pet. Remove the tick promptly instead of waiting for identification or testing.
