Ticks in Your Riverside Yard: The Growing Risk and How to Protect Your Family and Pets

Most Riverside residents think of ticks as a camping problem — something to watch for on a hike in the San Bernardino National Forest, not in their backyard. But ticks are an increasingly significant concern for homeowners throughout the Inland Empire, particularly those with properties backing up to open land, mature vegetation, or with pets that go outdoors.

The Western black-legged tick (the Pacific Coast carrier of Lyme disease) and the American dog tick are both present in Riverside County. As deer, coyotes, and other wildlife move through suburban edges and green corridors, they carry ticks directly into residential neighborhoods.

Where Ticks Live on Your Property

Ticks don’t fall from trees — that’s a persistent myth. They practice something called “questing”: climbing to the tip of grass blades or leaf edges and waiting for a passing host. On your property, the highest-risk zones are:

• Leaf litter and mulch beds along fences and property edges
• Tall grass or overgrown vegetation in back corners of the yard
• Shaded areas under decks or dense shrubs
• The transition zone between your maintained lawn and natural vegetation

Dogs and cats pick up ticks in these zones and carry them inside, where they may then find a human host.

The Lyme Disease Connection

Riverside County reports Lyme disease cases each year, and while California’s tick-borne Lyme rates are lower than the Northeast, the risk is real and growing. The Western black-legged tick can transmit the Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria that causes Lyme disease — and unlike the East Coast black-legged tick, it doesn’t have as defined a “deer tick season.” In Riverside’s mild climate, tick activity can persist most of the year.

Brooks’ Tick Control for Riverside Properties

Our tick control program in Riverside treats the specific harborage zones where ticks live and quest — not just a broad perimeter spray. We focus on leaf litter areas, vegetation edges, and transition zones, using targeted, family-safe treatments. For homes with dogs that roam the yard, we often pair yard treatment with recommendations on pet tick prevention to close the loop.

Ask us about our seasonal tick control options when you call for a free quote.