Hi there, my dog had actually seen this little guy slowly making its way across the kitchen floor. it seemed to be in no hurry. I've lived on a farm for most of my life and have never seen anything like it. Seems to have eight legs. and a iddy biddy little head. Looks like a pea with legs that kinda shuffles across the floor. Any help is appreciated. Yes it is still alive, I released it back outside. Thanks
That's a tick - it looks like a pea because it's swollen with blood. I'd definitely recommend killing any others you find (they don't need to be released into the wild) and check your dog (and family members for any that have latched on.)
Thats nuts. We aren't known for having ticks in this area. The few ive had on me myself in southern saskatchewan, looked quite different than this one. Ive never seen one actually full of blood. I was able to locate it outside and kill it. So they burrow and leech blood then leave? or do these particular ones latch on to the outside then leave when full?
There's an expression down here that is kind of gross, and that is being "full as" (or tight as) a tick" meaning you've overeaten. When they become engorged they often fall off. They look very different when they aren't full of blood.
That is indeed an engorged female tick. As I see no evidence of an anal groove, I'm going to guess that it most likely is in the genus Dermacentor...
http://www.infovet.ca/yahc/showPrintInformationItem.do?infoItemId=255005&itemId=1655&
