If you think you’re seeing more ticks in Kentucky this year, health and research officials say you’re probably not wrong.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tracks tick bite-related hospital visits and reports a nationwide uptick.
According to the CDC, the southeast region, which includes Kentucky, has reported 38 such visits for every 100,000 from January to April this year. All of 2025 saw 23 tick bite visits for every 100,000.
State epidemiologist Kathleen Winter said ticks are very prevalent in Kentucky, and the commonwealth has three primary varieties: the Lone Star tick, the American dog tick and the black-legged tick. She said her office has received more reports about ticks this year than in the past.
“We don't have very strong data to show that they are more prevalent, but we do know that tick activity can vary from year to year based on the temperature. When there's warmer weather, milder winters and even the increased humidity make a difference in the spread and abundance of tick life,” Winter said.
Most of the state’s tick surveillance relies on self-reporting to the University of Kentucky’s Department of Entomology. Researchers suspect all three species are found in all of Kentucky’s 120 counties.
“There is a lot of tick activity this year, and a lot of people are reporting tick bites, so we certainly know that this is an ongoing concern,” Winter said.
The state does track diseases spread by ticks, such as ehrlichiosis, lyme, spotted fever rickettsiosis and alpha-gal syndrome. There are also a few emerging diseases the Division of Epidemiology and Health Planning is tracking.
Winter said the state is experiencing an increase in alpha-gal syndrome, but surveillance only started last year.
“We don't have a lot of data to say that we know it's increasing across the population, but we certainly know it's a concern, and we're hearing more and more about it from our health care provider community and from our public,” Winter said.
Tick encounters are likely increasing due to environmental chance, more outdoor activity and pets bringing in more ticks, Winter said. She encourages people to check for them even when they don’t think they’ve been in a tick-heavy environment.
Hannah Tiffin, assistant extension professor of veterinary entomology at UK, said it seems to be a high tick year. She bases that on her field work and the increase of ticks submitted to UK’s lab, which will identify them.
“From our own research that we do in my lab, we've just found so many more ticks this year than when we were out doing tick research last year,” Tiffin said. “We were actually pretty hard pressed to find ticks last year. It was pretty confusing for us, but this year we have not had a problem finding them.”
In addition, she said she’s hearing from other extension offices that people are noticing more ticks on their cattle, as well.
What can you do about ticks to prevent bites?
Winter and Tiffin had very similar advice about what to do when you visit a tick-rich environment.
If you come in from hiking or being outdoors in tall grasses, check for ticks and remove any you find.
Ticks need to be removed with tweezers and pulled straight up from taut skin, not at an angle. The longer a tick is attached, the more likely it is to spread a disease. Pets should also be checked for ticks.
The initial bite area might be red, and other symptoms can include a rash or flu-like illness. Winter said if anyone starts experiencing these symptoms a few weeks after a tick bite, they should talk to a health care provider.
If you’re planning to go outside, Tiffin recommends a layered approach to tick prevention. Be sure to use a pest repellant, and also consider wearing long pants and full sleeves. Wearing tall boots and socks is also helpful.
“Wearing those long pants is really critical to keeping the ticks off and just making it harder for them to get to us and to bite us,” Tiffin said.
Tiffin also recommends a tick kit with tweezers, sanitizing wipes or ethanol, a vial to keep the tick, if desired, and a lint roller to easily remove them from clothes.
