Ag Agent: Invasive Tick A Reason For Concern

An invasive tick has made its way to Putnam County and livestock owners should be concerned.

That according to U.T. Extension Office agent Wayne Key, who said the Asian longhorned tick packs a bigger punch than other species.

“This particular tick has a little bit bigger impact because it carries a possible causative agent for Anaplasmosis and several other viruses that our livestock species can be affected from,” Key said. “In severe cases, blood loss can lead to death. That’s why it’s a little bit more of a potentially hazardous type of insect.”

The State Agriculture Department first reported the tick’s presence in Union and Roane Counties in May. Last week, the state confirmed additional detections in Jefferson, Claiborne, Cocke, Putnam, Knox, and Sevier Counties.

Key said the tick can cause problems for a number of mammal species, including sheep, goats, horses, dogs, and cats.

“Livestock is definitely of a concern,” Key said. “As well as several wildlife species we have here in the Upper Cumberland, like raccoons, possums, foxes, and deer. It is making an impact.”

Key said standard tick regiments can help prevent livestock from contracting tick-borne diseases.

“Fly tags and insecticidal ear tags work fairly well. If livestock owners are able to spray livestock that certainly will help,” Key said. “Those are the most common practices. It is susceptible to a chemical called permethrin, which is in many of our agricultural insecticide products that are readily available for livestock owners.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports no evidence that the tick has transmitted pathogens to humans.