The City of Thunder Bay and immediately surrounding area are considered a risk area for Lyme disease. During the 2021 tick season, about 62% of the blacklegged ticks identified through active surveillance in this area were infected with Lyme disease bacteria.
These bacteria can be transmitted to humans after a blacklegged tick has fed for 24 or more hours.
Most ticks found in the Thunder Bay District are wood ticks and do not carry the Lyme disease bacteria. Visit our Lyme Disease fact sheet page for more information.
Ontario’s Ministry of Health and Long-Term care encourages residents to:
COVER UP: Protect yourself when you are active outdoors; wear closed foot wear and long sleeves, tuck pants in socks and wear light coloured clothing so ticks are more easily noticed
USE BUG SPRAY: Follow the directions and use bug spray containing DEET or Icaridin on exposed skin to keep bugs away.
CHECK YOURSELF & YOUR PETS: Do a tick check after being outdoors. Look in warm, hidden areas on the body including armpits, in and around the hair and ears, between the legs, and the back of the knees. Use a mirror or have someone else check the back of your body for you. Don’t forget the family pet; in and around the ears, on the belly and between the toes. A Tick Check Zone poster (PDF) provides ideas on where to look on a human and a dog.
PROTECT YOUR PETS: Ask your veterinarian about options to help keep ticks off your pets.
The Don't Get TICKED Outdoors Poster (PDF) includes images of both a wood tick and a blacklegged tick. Females are usually larger than the males and the size of each tick depends on the stage of the lifecycle; eggs to larva to nymphs to full-size adults.
Ticks can range in size from a poppy seed in the nymph stage to a pea when they are engorged (full of blood). Wood ticks are larger in size than the blacklegged ticks.
For example:
a female wood tick is about 0.5 cm long
a female blacklegged tick is about 0.3 cm long
Here is a photo of blacklegged ticks at different stages of feeding. The largest is filled with blood after feeding:
Source: Government of Canada
Use these photos below to help you identify any ticks you might find:
Wood Ticks/ American Dog Ticks
Photo credit: University of Rhode Island; TickEncounter Resource Centre (http://www.tickencounter.org/)
Wood ticks OR American dog ticks are nuisance ticks
Adult male - mottled brown-cream back/reddish brown legs
Adult female - Brown body/cream cape/reddish brown legs
Blacklegged Ticks/ Deer Ticks
Photo credit: University of Rhode Island; TickEncounter Resource Centre (http://www.tickencounter.org/)
Blacklegged ticks or deer ticks have the potential to carry Lyme disease
Adult male - all black
Adult female - reddish-brown body/black cape and legs
If you are unsure of the type of tick you have found, you can submit the tick for identification. More details are provided in the Submit the Tick section below.
Engorged Ticks
It is also possible that the tick might be engorged when you find it. This means it is filled with blood after feeding. The photo below is an engorged female wood tick, found on a dog.
Ticks bite, draw blood, enlarge and then drop off. The tick's mouth will be under the skin, but the belly will be sticking out. The TBDHU is no longer providing tick removal kits. You can make your own with a pair of fine-tipped tweezers and an alcohol pad in a plastic bag and place this in your first aid kit. You can also include a copy of the Tick Identification Wallet Card (PDF).
To remove the tick, follow these steps:
Do not use a lit match or cigarette, nail polish or nail polish remover, petroleum jelly, liquid soap or kerosene to remove the tick.
Ticks penetrate the skin with their mouthparts, draw blood, enlarge and then drop off. The feeding tick's mouth will be under the skin, but the abdomen will be sticking out.
Use fine-tipped tweezers. Grab the head and mouth as close to the skin as possible.
Pull up slowly until the tick is completely removed.
Do not twist or turn.
Put it in a clean container and mark the date and geographic location of where the tick was picked up.
Wash the area with soap and water OR apply rubbing alcohol.
Monitor the bite. See a health care provider with concerns. Let them know any history of exposure to ticks (time spent outdoors), any rashes associated with the bite, travel history and possible dates when you might have been bitten.
NOTE: We no longer send blacklegged ticks away for Lyme Disease testing. If your tick has been identified as a blacklegged tick and you/your pet were bitten, monitor the bite and contact a health care provider/ veterinarian with any concerns.
If you would like to submit the tick for identification, please follow the directions below depending on where you reside:
Thunder Bay
During the COVID-19 situation, ticks can be dropped off at the office located at 999 Balmoral Street from Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Print and complete the Tick Intake Form and include it with your tick submission. You can deposit the tick in the box located in the front foyer of the building.
If you do not have a printer, please be prepared to provide the information required when you visit the office.