Page 39 - MWC 10-6-2022s

WHAT IS THIS NEW is virtually impossible. Ticks The Midwest Cattleman · October 6, 2022 · P39
continued from page 37 spend most of the time, nearly Currently there are no acar- to Reduce Contact with Ticks:
90%, in the environment. Even icides labeled for use against This involves mowing pas-
oxygen around the body. This though only a small propor- the ALT. The use of pesticide tures, especially shaded areas,
can lead to collapse and death. tion of the tick population is impregnated ear tags, pour- and fencing cattle from wood-
Affected animals should be on livestock at any one time, ons, sprays, and back rubs that ed areas. Perimeter fencing
rested, given high quality feed treating cattle with a tick re- control the American dog tick of a minimum of 20 feet from
and water, and handled only pellent will reduce the num- and the Lonestar tick should wooded areas will reduce the
when necessary. bers that feed and develop provide beneficial tick control. number of ticks on the graz-
•There is no treatment into the next stage of the tick There are field reports of suc- ing area. All stages of the tick
available for Theileria infec- lifecycle. This will have an im- cess with macrocyclic lactone like warm, damp conditions
tion other than supportive pact on the numbers of eggs dewormers such as Cydectin® and long grass. Avoiding long
care. Blood transfusions may that eventually get deposit- Pour-on and Dectomax® In- rank pasture that has not been
be used for valuable animals. ed in the pasture and helps jectable products.
Recovery may take 1-2 months manage the disease spread. •Environmental Control continued on page 40
depending on the severity of
the anemia.
Prevention and control of
Theileria infection
•Inspect cattle for presence
of ticks: Routinely inspect live-
stock, pets, and humans for the
Asian Longhorned tick (ALT).
Parthenogenetic strains exist
in the USA, meaning male
ticks are not required to pro-
duce eggs and viable larvae.
A female can produce 1,000-
2,000 offspring without mat-
ing. A single cow can quickly
become host to thousands of
tick offspring that may cause
death due to blood loss with-
out a blood-borne parasite
infection. The ticks are light
brown and often smaller than
a sesame seed. The adult fe-
male is about the size of a pea
when full of blood (see Fig-
ure 1). All 3 life stages (larva,
nymph and adult) may be
present at the same time (see
Figure 2). In cattle, check the
head, neck, ears, flanks, arm-
pit, groin, udder and under the
tail (areas where the skin is
thinner). Cattle that seem le-
thargic or unthrifty should be
closely inspected for ticks.
•Manage the tick popula-
tion on Cattle: The eradication
or removal of ticks from a farm

(Photo courtesy of the UKVDL)
Fig. 2: Asian longhorned ticks on the ear of a
cow that died due to anemia from the massive
tick infestation.