Dog Tick Vs. Deer Tick: Diseases, Appearance, And More - Healthline

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Bites and Stings

Dog Tick Vs. Deer Tick: What’s the Difference?

Medically reviewed by Helen Chen MCMSc, PA-C — Written by Natalie Silver — Updated on November 3, 2025

Comparison chart
Ticks and Lyme
Location
If you find one
Prevention
When to talk with a doctor
Takeaway

Deer and dog ticks are both parasites that can spread disease. They differ in size, the specific diseases they can carry, and where they’re found.

Deer ticks and dog ticks are both types of ticks. Ticks are parasites that live on a host and survive by biting and consuming blood. This behavior can spread disease in humans and animals.

Deer ticks can spread Lyme disease as well as a few other illnesses to humans. They are the size of sesame seeds or smaller.

Dog ticks are about double the size of deer ticks, with a red-brown shield. They can also spread some diseases, but not Lyme disease.

It’s important to remove a tick from your skin immediately and monitor your symptoms following the bite.

Try to prevent tick bites by engaging in precautionary measures when you’re outside or around animals.

Dog tick vs. deer tick chart

While both deer and dog ticks are in the same species, their characteristics differ.

Deer tick	Dog tick
Appearance	Red-orange body with black shield (females), and eight dark legs	Reddish brown with white shield (females), grooved shield, eight legs and a narrow shape.
Size	Very small: Adults are the size of a sesame seed, and nymphs are the size of a poppy seed.	Slightly smaller than a quarter of an inch
Potential health issues	– Lyme disease – babesiosis – anaplasmosis	– Rocky Mountain spotted fever – tularemia – tick paralysis
Locations	– Mainly in the eastern, central, and southern United States– But they have been identified in all 48 contiguous states.	– Prevalent in the east of the Rocky Mountains and along the Gulf and Pacific coasts– They can live indoors for their entire life cycle
Where you encounter them	-overgrown natural areas, including grass, plants, and logs – on pets that have been outside	– natural areas without tree cover– walkways and trails – dog beds and other areas where pets sleep and spend time– kennels.
When active	Often from late spring through early fall, when temperatures remain above freezing.	April through August

Deer ticks

Don’t let the name fool you. Deer ticks, or black-legged ticks, feed on more than just deer — including humans.

Deer ticks will feed off a few different animals or humans during their lifespan, which is how they spread disease. You’re susceptible to illness from a tick bite because their prior animal hosts may have diseases like Lyme, babesiosis, and anaplasmosis.

Tick larvae feed off of smaller hosts, like rodents and birds, before they reach the stages where they’ll attach to humans. This gives them ample time to contract harmful bacteria that can spread to you.

According to the Minnesota Department of Health, 1 in 3 adult ticks and 1 in 5 nymph ticks have the bacteria that causes Lyme disease.

A tick needs to be attached to you for a A tick needs to be attached to you for a full day or two before it can spread the disease, or two before it can spread the disease, but you may be susceptible to other diseases during that time. Ticks may feed from you for up to five days, unless removed.

Dog ticks

Dog ticks are another type of parasite that can transmit disease if they attach to you.

They’re mostly associated with feeding from dogs, but they don’t exclusively prey upon your four-legged friends. These parasites live near homes and can even spend their entire lives inside.

Dog ticks are nearly double the size of deer ticks, so they may be easier to spot. Adult females are most likely to bite in the spring and summer.

Dog ticks may carry diseases that can make you very sick, including Rocky Mountain spotted fever and tularemia.

Which ticks carry Lyme disease?

Deer ticks can carry Lyme disease, as well as other illnesses.

Lyme disease is a bacteria that spreads when an infected tick encounters your blood stream.

Lyme disease can cause a variety of symptoms with Lyme disease. It can begin with a rash and flu-like symptoms. More serious symptoms of untreated Lyme disease include joint pain and conditions related to your brain.

Where are these ticks located?

You can encounter deer and dog ticks throughout the United States. Both are prevalent in the northeastern part of the country, but can also be found in southern states and western coastal states.

Deer ticks can be found:

in the spring and fall months, or in weather that’s above freezing
in brushy or grassy vegetative areas
in many types of wooded areas

Dog ticks can be found:

at any time of the year, but particularly in the spring and summer months
indoors or outdoors
ground covering areas that are not covered by trees

It was thought that ticks were passive organisms that we accidentally picked up as we walked through brush or tall grasses.

In recent years, however, research has shown that ticks actually undergo periods of “questing” in which they behave in certain ways that improve their chances of finding a host to latch onto. Understanding this aspect of their behavior helps us see the importance of taking precautions when outside or around animals.

What to do if you find a tick

With ticks being prevalent in the United States, there’s a chance you’ll experience a tick bite at some point in your life.

Keep in mind that not all ticks carry disease and that finding them on your skin early reduces the chance they’ll transmit illness to you.

Make sure you check your body after spending time outdoors or near your pets. Make sure to check your pets and children for ticks as well.

You probably won’t feel a tick bite, but will see it attached to your skin or feel it if it’s on an area of your body that you can’t see, such as your scalp or back. Follow these steps if you have a tick attached to your skin:

Remove the tick if it’s attached to your body with tweezers.
Use the tweezers to grasp the tick as close to the skin’s surface as possible.
Try to pull it out directly without twisting or jerking your hand. This will ensure that you’ll get the entire parasite out of your body.
Clean the bite site as well as your hands after removal.

Don’t try to remove the tick with substances like petroleum jelly or alcohol.

How to prevent tick bites

There are several ways you can prevent tick bites:

Learn where ticks live and what they look like.
Treat pets with veterinary-recommended flea and tick preventatives.
Wear long sleeves, pants, closed-toe shoes, and head coverings when outdoors.
Use bug spray when outdoors.
Stay on trails and avoid areas with a lot of vegetative overgrowth.
Examine your body for ticks after spending time outdoors.
Shower after spending time outdoors.
Examine your pets regularly for ticks.
Clean areas where pets spend time, including their beds.

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When to talk with a doctor

If you develop a concerning rash or flu-like symptoms within several weeks of a tick bite, talk with a doctor immediately.

You may also have these symptoms without ever spotting a tick on you.

One sign of Lyme disease is a bull’s-eye rash that radiates out of the tick bite. You may see this rash even if the tick fell off your body before you spotted it.

If the bite site also starts to ooze or become inflamed, it may be infected and require treatment by a doctor.

»Learn more:Signs of Lyme Disease and When to Seek Medical Help

The bottom line

Identifying ticks on yourself, household members, and pets is an important way to prevent contracting certain illnesses.

Deer ticks carry Lyme disease, but dog ticks can spread bacteria as well.

Deer ticks are very small and dog ticks are just a bit bigger, so be vigilant when you search for them.

Talk with a doctor if a tick bites you to treat potential illnesses quickly. Prevent future tick bites by covering your skin when outdoors and cleaning areas where pets spend time.

How we reviewed this article:

SourcesHistoryHealthline has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical journals and associations. We only use quality, credible sources to ensure content accuracy and integrity. You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and current by reading our editorial policy.

Leal B, et al. (2020). Questing by tick larvae (Acari: Ixodidae): A review of the influences that affect off-host survival.https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33244354
Randolph SE. (2024). Tick ecology: Processes and patterns behind the epidemiological risk posed by ixodid ticks as vectors.https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15938504
The American dog tick. (n.d.).https://www.ticklab.org/american-dog-tick
Ticks. (n.d.).https://www.health.state.mn.us/diseases/tickborne/ticks.html
Tick bite: What to do. (2021).https://www.cdc.gov/ticks/pdfs/FS_TickBite-508.pdf
Tick Lifecycles. (2024).https://www.cdc.gov/ticks/about/tick-lifecycles.html

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Medically reviewed by Helen Chen MCMSc, PA-C — Written by Natalie Silver — Updated on November 3, 2025

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