How to Submit a Tick for FREE Testing (And What Not to Do!)

Ah, spring—the season of blooming flowers, warm breezes, and… TICKS. That’s right, folks, it’s that magical time of year when these little hitchhikers start making an appearance in full force. If you or your kids (or let’s be honest, your dog) end up playing host to one of these tiny intruders, don’t panic! Our friends at the Tick Research Lab of Pennsylvania have laid out exactly how to submit a tick for testing—and just as importantly, what not to do unless you want to make their jobs significantly harder. Basic testing is FREE. 

A huge thank you to the Tick Research Lab for allowing me to repost this super helpful guide from their newsletter! Now, let’s all work together to keep our families safe, informed, and tick-free this season—or at least minimize the number of times we end up frantically Googling "What happens if a tick gets squished in tape?"

Here’s everything you need to know!

Spring is here!! 

As we all know, springtime means tick time! We typically see a rise in tick activity starting in March and continuing until August. With tick season beginning, we wanted to give everyone a reminder on how to submit a tick for testing.

1. Remove the tick using fine point tweezers.
2. Place your tick in a clean zip-locked bag.
3. Place an order at ticklab.org/test-my-tick or order via phone by calling (570) 422-7892.
4. Print your order voucher and package it in a regular envelope with your sample. If you don’t have access to a printer, write your order number on a piece of paper and send that with your sample.
5. Mail your tick or drop it off at 562 Independence Rd., East Stroudsburg, PA.
6. Results will be available within 72 hours of receipt.

In addition, we’d like to highlight a few common mistakes we see when receiving ticks.

1. DO NOT put the tick in tape or any sticky substance. The tick can come apart during removal, making it harder for our experts to give you accurate engorgement times.
2. DO NOT send the tick in any solutions or chemicals such as water, alcohol, ethanol, or bleach.
3. DO NOT submit a tick in a non-sealable bag or fragile container. This increases its risk of being lost during shipping.
4. DO NOT add anything extra in the bag such as leaves, sticks, tissue, or any other materials that can cause the tick to be hidden.
5. DO NOT send more than 5 ticks in one order/bag. If you have to send more than five ticks, make sure to make additional orders to account for all ticks.
6. DO NOT submit an order with multiple ticks from different hosts. Separating ticks from different hosts helps us give you the most accurate information about each host’s exposure risk.
7. DO NOT mail or put a tick in the drop off box without an order number or contact information.

Don’t fear if you mistakenly made one of these errors; your tick can still be tested! We ask that you avoid these types of submissions as they can cause issues in the processing which may result in inconclusive testing. As always, make sure to practice tick prevention. Wishing you a safe and tick-free spring!

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