Tick Submission

Tick Diagnostic & Lab Services

Tick Submission Information

In some tick endemic areas of the country, as many as 40-70% of deer ticks are infected with the Borrelia burgdorrifi spirochete, the Lyme disease bacteria.  You won’t be able to tell if a tick is infected by simple looking at it, whatever the size.  If you remove a deer tick from yourself, family member, or pet, here are the steps to take to preserve and submit the tick for simple identification by your physician or vet, or for a complete pathogen analysis from an independent testing laboratory. 

Typically, only deer ticks are submitted for analysis to testing laboratories.  Further:

• If you've removed an engorged deer tick, symptoms may begin even before the results of the tick analysis are available. Don't wait for tick testing results to seek medical advice if symptoms develop.
• Even if a submitted tick does test positive for a pathogen, there is no guarantee that the pathogen was passed on to the patient. The longer a tick is attached, however, the greater the chance of pathogen transmission.
• Overall testing is not perfect. Continue to monitor for symptoms after the removal of any tick. Keep in mind that if you've removed one tick, you've obviously been in tick friendly habitat. There may have been other ticks attached to you, a family member, or pet that you did not find.

After proper removal:

• Place the tick to be identified in a crush proof container. 
• Place a small piece of wet cotton in the vial along with the tick, as this will keep the tick from desiccating (drying out). 

Our ProTickMe kit provides you with a convenient tick submission vial with instructions, along with a record of important tick removal information. 

When submitting your tick sample and paperwork:

• Make certain to place the contents in a padded mailer and send overnight or priority carrier.  Do NOT place the tick submission vial with documentation in a regular envelope.  Most mail is processed using high speed sorting machines, and the thickness of the submission vial exceeds the thickness limit for machine processed first class mail. 
• Visit your post office if you have any questions.

Tick Testing Programs

Below is a partial list of state agencies and diagnostic testing labs.  In most instances, each site will have its own submission form. Recognize that some will simply identify the submitted tick at no cost while others, for a fee, will analyze the submitted tick for various tick-borne pathogens.  If you live in a state that is not listed below, consider contacting your state’s health agency to see if they support simple identification and/or further analysis. We will continue to update the following list as more sites are brought to our attention.

Connecticut

The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station. Tick office information. 

Connecticut Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory. Submission form for tick testing.

Maine

Maine Medical Center Research Institute Vector-borne disease lab. Tick submission information.

Massachusetts

UMass Extension Agriculture & Landscape Program.  Tick submission form and information.

Michigan

Michigan Department of Agriculture. Tick Identification and testing form.

New Hampshire

University of New Hampshire. Arthropod Identification Center.

New York

Cornell University Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County. Tick identification - submission form.

Independent Testing Laboratories

Analytical Services, Inc. Williston, Vermont

Clongen Laboratories, llc. Germantown, Maryland.

Igenex, Inc. Palo Alto, California

Imugen, Inc. Norwood, Massachusetts.

Northeast Infectious Disease Diagnostic Lab. East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. Tick submission form.

Mainely Ticks has no association with any of the above state agencies or independent testing laboratories. We are simply providing initial contact information. Contact bob@mainelyticks.com if you know of a state agency or independent testing laboratory that should be added to this list.