Brown dog tick control in the real world – a structured review of field-based interventions

Abstract The globally-distributed brown dog tick (BDT) is adapted to human-associated environments, transmits pathogens of veterinary and public health significance, and is very difficult to control. This paper reviews information on BDT control from field-based intervention studies, observational studies, reviews, and book chapters. The 55 included manuscripts reported on tick collars, dog-focused spot-on, oral, injectable, repellent-based, and pour-on treatments, environmental treatments, and integrated approaches. There was considerable variability in study settings and analytical approaches, particularly for community-based approaches. Tick collars and injectable fluralaner generally showed sustained effectiveness, with effectiveness varying by active ingredient. While spot-on, pour-on, and oral treatments also showed generally high initial efficacy, they often required consistent reapplication to maintain effectiveness. Despite that some acaricides applied to individual pet dogs could eliminate detectable BDTs on that pet for months, long-term or community-level impacts were rarely evaluated. Studies of environmental-only treatments were limited to historical or experimental products. Integrated interventions combining some or all of dog treatment, environmental acaricide application, dog management, and education ranged in scale from three infested homes in suburban northern California to tribal communities in eastern Arizona and peri-urban areas near Hermosillo, Sonora. They described moderate to high effectiveness in reducing tick infestations, although typically without isolating the principal drivers of efficacy. Control failures can be attributed to acaricide-resistant ticks, resurgence after initial knock-down of a local tick population, and reinfestation from roaming dogs, adjacent infested areas, and longer-distance introduction of ticks, typically on dogs. High quality epidemiological studies to refine effective intervention remain critically necessary.