Our previous article discussed the difference between ticks and bed bugs. We told you about which is worse in certain circumstances, even though they’re both horrible. They’re both about the same in size, and they both suck blood, but they have some very unique differences.

Ticks aren’t insects, and bed bugs don’t stick around on you as ticks do. Bed bugs appear in urban environments, while ticks are always brought in from grasslands or wooded areas. Getting rid of them is also a big difference between ticks and bed bugs because ticks have to be manually removed (but at least you can see them). Bed bugs must be removed with more overarching treatment products, such as our bed bug traps and spray.

But, as it turns out, there are a few more ways bed bugs and ticks differ. Here are some more ways these little vampires are different and how each is just a bit more of a jerk than the other.

 

Who Do They Bother?

Here’s one of the significant differences between ticks and bed bugs. Cimex lectularius, the species we call bed bugs, is just one of 90 species in the Cimex family. But those other 89 species don’t have much interest in us. Cimex pilosellus, for instance, feeds almost exclusively on bats. In other words, the bed bug is essentially exclusive to humans. It’s like a little pet that nobody wants!

Ticks, on the other hand, are more opportunistic. While some ticks specialize in which host they go after, the most common types we run across are just as happy to grab onto a human as they are on a dog, raccoon, deer, moose, elk, fox, coyote, or just about anything else that passes by.

If there were a tick that specialized in humans, you can be sure they’d all be drawn directly to that spot on your back that you can’t quite scratch. You know the one. It’s right...almost, uh...not quite...uh, I hate that spot! Does anybody have a fork?

 

Who Swells Up?

Don’t click this link. Don’t. Don’t do it! It’s just a bunch of images of swollen ticks! And it’s pretty disgusting. (They’re also kind of funny-looking.) Many tick species will swell up on blood before dropping off their host. They use this blood as energy to molt into their next life stage.

Bed bugs get redder as they drink but can’t expand rapidly and become giant fat blob monsters like some ticks. As we said, they come back repeatedly and leave behind bloody poop stains in your bed. Is there any wonder we want to help you get them out of your house with our all-natural bed bug treatments?

 

Who Carries Disease?

We hate to compliment the bed bugs, but we will give them this: at least they don’t carry disease. While their bodies may contain pathogens, there appears to be no way that they can transmit them to humans.

Ticks, on the other hand, are well-known for being disease carriers and transmitters. The tick will feed on a person or animal, and the bacteria, virus, or protozoa will live in its body. When it feeds on its next host, the pathogen is transmitted.

Ticks have been verified to carry as many as sixteen different pathogens, including Lyme disease, typhus, tick-borne encephalitis, rickettsialpox, Boutonneuse fever, African tick bite fever, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, tick-borne relapsing fever, babesiosis, Bourbon virus, and tick-borne meningoencephalitis.

Want to do more reading? Here’s a page about all the horrible diseases ticks can give you. Oh, and ticks can carry more than one of these simultaneously, infecting a person with multiple illnesses!

Of course, bed bugs were once on the brink of being entirely eradicated from hotels, only to reappear as they developed pesticides and as working pesticides were found hazardous to human health. If bed bugs did carry disease, it’s likely that there would have been an even bigger push to eradicate them and that more money would be put into wiping them out completely. So, in some ways, the fact that bed bugs don’t carry disease has probably saved them from harsher treatment.

That’s not stopping us, however! We’ve created a natural plant-based remedy for bed bugs that removes them from your house. Other companies might have given up, but we’re moving forward with our natural bed bug treatments! 

 

Who Has Better PR?

Ask someone, “Would you rather have ticks or bed bugs?” and they’ll look at you in a funny way. No one wants either! But societally, it’s much more embarrassing to have bed bugs.

Ticks, on the other hand, have one thing going for them. While there’s never been a superhero called Bed Bug Man, there is a reasonably well-known hero named The Tick.

Since 1988, The Tick has been in comics, had a kids’ animated series, two live-action series, a video game, a board game, and many action figures (including Taco Bell toys).

 

So Who’s The Ultimate Loser?

Well, with bed bugs and ticks existing in the world, humanity is the loser. But hey, at least neither of them flies!

After tallying up all of the above, we must admit that ticks are total jerks. They ruin a nice walk in the woods, they give spiders a bad name, they look grosser when they swell up, and they can latch onto you like a... well, like a tick. Oh, and they carry debilitating and deadly diseases, so there’s that.

But, at the same time, it’s straightforward to avoid ticks if you stay out of wooded areas and grasslands, use Deep Woods Off, and give yourself a sound check before getting back in the car. It’s difficult to avoid bed bugs unless you never travel anywhere and never invite anyone to stay in your house. And then bed bugs attack you in the room of your home in which you should feel the most comfortable. Plus, they bite you when you sleep, which is totally uncool.

You know what. They’re both horrible. And while we don’t have any tick spray, we can help you with a bed bug-killing spray that is safe for humans and pets. We might not have tick traps, but we do have bed bug traps that will keep those suckers from moving from the carpet and up your bedposts. Please work with the Bedbug Store; we’re more than happy to help you eliminate those horrible little pests.