THE CATTLE TICK 331 



learn how it lives. A large tick on a cow drops to the 

 ground when too full of blood to suck more, and there lays 

 as many as 3000 eggs. In warm weather these eggs soon 

 hatch into tiny ticks, each about the size of a chicken 

 mite. They crawl up on tall grass or bushes, waiting for a 

 cow to rub them off. Neither old nor young ticks can live 

 on anything but blood. Hence, if no animal comes along, 

 the young ticks starve. But they do not starve quickly. 

 Without food they may live as long as three months in 

 summer and much longer in cool weather. 



Destroying ticks on cattle. Ticks are killed by grease, 

 kerosene, crude petroleum, and other poisons. These sub- 

 stances are applied to cattle either by hand, by spraying, or 

 by dipping the cattle. 



Starving the ticks in fields, pastures, and woodlands. 

 When the owner has cleared his cattle of ticks, he can get 

 entirely and permanently rid of ticks on his whole farm. 

 He can starve the ticks in his fields, pastures, or woodlands 

 by keeping cattle, horses, and sheep out of them for a time. 

 The time to starve all the ticks is the period from May I to 

 about September 10. In cool weather the ticks must be 

 starved for a longer period, from September until April. 



Land is generally free from ticks where no cattle have 

 been during the months of hot weather. Thus most cul- 

 tivated fields are free from ticks. By having two pastures, 

 one used only during the hot season, and the other during 

 the other part of the year, both can be kept free from the 

 ticks. The cultivated fields, after the crops are harvested, 

 may be used as the cool-weather pastures. Of course, it 

 is necessary, in changing the cattle from one pasture to 



