Tick Testing Options

If you find a tick, or remove a tick from a person or pet and want to get it tested to see what pathogens it might be carrying, there are a few options. First step is to put the tick, dead or alive, in a sealed baggie with a moist cotton ball or moist piece of paper towel. Then, consider sending it to one of the following testing laboratories:

• (The following service may not be available due to funding) There is a free tick testing service being offered as part of a nation-wide study. It operates on grant money and at times the money is used up, so it may or may not be available for free. It tests for 5 pathogens including Lyme. It provides instructions for sending the tick in and allows you to print the form to send with it. It can take a few weeks to get results back. Here is the link for tick testing…

  • Ticknology will test for 13 pathogens including Lyme and co-infections. http:ticknology.org
  • TickCheck offers tests and can detect the presence of 18 pathogens that cause diseases such as Lyme disease, anaplasmosis, babesia, bartonella, ehrlichiosis, tularemia, B. miyamotoi, mycoplasmosis, southern tick-associated rash illness, and Rocky Mountain spotted fever.  https://www.tickcheck.com/
  • IGeneX laboratory http://www.igenex.com/testing/tick-testing/

Note: These tests do not require a doctor authorization to perform. Also, be aware that if a tick tests positive for a specific pathogen, it does not guarantee that it transmitted that pathogen to the host it was attached to. Patient testing and evaluation following a tick bite is still the most reliable way to determine infection.

New At Home Self Testing Option