Mosquito and Tick Control Services

Mosquito Life Cycle

The typical mosquito life cycle consists of four stages – egg, larva, pupa, and adult. The egg stage begins when an adult female mosquito lays her eggs in water. Some usual places where mosquitoes lay eggs are rain gutters, and ditches, also in poorly maintained places including planters, bird baths, pools, empty cans, old tires, and in almost anything that holds water.

What is the Life Cycle of Ticks?

Ticks go through four life cycle stages: egg, larva, nymph, and adult. There are two different types of ticks – hard ticks and soft ticks. Both hard and soft ticks are transmitters of numerous diseases that affect humans and animals. As ticks feed on the blood of a host, they may transmit disease organisms from the animals they previously fed upon and pass these disease organisms to humans and animals through their bites.

Benefits of Mosquito Control Services

Mosquito control helps reduce the number of adult mosquitoes, thereby reducing the possibility of mosquito-transmitted diseases and itchy mosquito bites. Also, fewer mosquitoes outside the home will directly impact the number of mosquitoes that may get inside the home – thus reducing the aggravation and disease transmission possibility of being bitten by mosquitoes while inside your home.

Tick Control Treatment Benefits

Ticks can transmit severe diseases that may be harmful to both humans and pets. Tick control is becoming more and more necessary as the hazards of tick-transmitted diseases increase. Depending on the tick species, they can get inside the home by hitching a ride on your pets, infested clothing, and equipment being taken inside. Your tick control program will include methods and procedures to help reduce the chance of ticks being brought inside your home.

Mosquito Yard Treatment

An Orkin Pro will use a comprehensive, mosquito management plan, which may include:

• Reducing Water Sources: Locating water sources that may be potential habitats and breeding grounds is the first step in mosquito control. Your Orkin Pro may recommend the use of mosquito control products in water sources, but only when these methods are necessary to reduce these sources and only according to the approved label instructions of the mosquito control product.

• Vegetation Management: Based on a property inspection, your Orkin Pro will provide recommendations for vegetation management and possible treatments since many mosquitoes rest in vegetation located around homes during the day.

• Education: Your Orkin Pro can help you determine the best types of mosquito repellents for you and your family.

• Exclusion: Our exterminators will also provide recommendations to make sure that mosquitoes are not able to get inside the home via poorly fitting window screens or open doors.

• Pest Control Treatments: Some chemical products that might be used for mosquito treatment include:

  • Insect growth regulators to prevent mosquito development in water environments.

  • Insecticide products that cause mosquito mortality in their water environments and their daytime resting sites.

Tick Treatment for Yards

After conducting an inspection to determine the sources of tick infestation and to identify the tick species, Your Orkin Pro will prepare a customized tick treatment for your home. To help prevent and get rid of ticks, your exterminator will create a customized tick control program that may include:

• Inspection & Identifying Ticks: The first step your Orkin Pro will take is to inspect your property —both inside and outside. In addition to preventing indoor ticks, it’s important to get rid of ticks in the yard since they can hitch a ride inside on clothing and pets.

• Education: Your exterminator will provide some basic details about ticks, including behaviors, life cycle, and habitat. They will also explain how to recognize ticks, how to prevent ticks and give the recommendation to contact your medical professional or veterinarian for advice on using tick repellent, treatment products, and treatment advice.

• Tick Habitat Modifications: Ticks prefer to live in shady areas where the vegetation is thick. Your Orkin Pro may recommend removing potential tick habitats such as heavy leaf litter, thick ground cover around the home’s perimeter, and protected areas such as fallen logs, firewood piles, and rock piles. Exposing these areas to sunlight reduces moisture and decreases the likelihood that ticks will want to live there. They may also suggest fencing your yard to help keep unwelcome animals such as deer, raccoons, and stray dogs that may be carrying ticks from entering your yard.

• Chemical Applications: Your customized tick treatment plan will also identify locations where tick control products can successfully and safely be used in accordance with approved instructions on the product label.

Dangers Of Mosquitos and Ticks in Your Yard

Tick-Borne Diseases

Ticks are capable of transmitting various disease organisms through tick bites. Some of the more prevalent diseases transmitted by ticks include Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Anaplasmosis, Babesiosis, Ehrlichiosis, Tularemia, and Tick-borne relapsing fever.

Diseases Spread by Mosquitoes

Mosquitoes are capable of transmitting bacteria, parasites, and viruses. Diseases transmitted by mosquitoes include Dengue, Malaria, Eastern Equine Encephalitis virus, West Nile virus, Zika virus, and Chikungunya virus. Skeeter Syndrome refers to an allergic reaction some individuals have to the proteins in the saliva in a mosquito bite.

How To Reduce Mosquitos and Ticks in Your Yard

Prevent Ticks in Your Yard

Ways to help reduce tick habitats and prevent tick infestations in your home include:

• Remove leaf litter.

• Clear tall grasses and brush around homes and at the edge of lawns.

• Place a 3-ft wide barrier of wood chips or gravel between lawns and wooded areas to restrict tick migration into the yard.

• Mow the lawn frequently.

• Stack wood neatly and in a dry area.

• Keep playground equipment, decks, and patios away from yard edges and trees.

• Discourage unwelcome animals (such as deer, raccoons, and stray dogs) from entering your yard by constructing fences.

• Remove old furniture, mattresses, or trash from the yard that may give ticks a place to hide.

• If using an insecticide, make sure the product is labeled for home usage and that directions found on the product label are carefully followed.

How to Keep Mosquitoes Away

Mosquito control centers on limiting water sources that could serve as mosquito habitats. Other ways to keep mosquitoes out of your yard include:

• Make sure that water doesn’t accumulate in rain gutters by regularly cleaning rain gutters and inspecting the area surrounding downspouts to ensure that water isn’t accumulating there.

• Adult mosquitoes require places that provide shade and protection for them during the day, so trim or remove vegetation that may provide protection.

• If needed, apply insecticides to locations where mosquitoes lay eggs and where they rest during the day.

• If using an insecticide, make sure the product is labeled for home usage and that directions found on the product label are carefully followed.