Key Points

• • Fleas jump; ticks crawl and attach. Fleas are tiny and fast. A tick feels like a small bump stuck to the skin.
  • Fleas live in your house too. Eggs and larvae hide in pet bedding, rugs, and furniture, so treating only the pet won’t end it.
  • Flea-borne typhus is rising locally. Bexar County cases climbed from 79 in 2020 to 236 in 2025, according to Texas health officials.
  • Ticks mostly come from the yard, except the brown dog tick, which can live indoors.

The fleas vs. ticks question usually comes down to how the pest moves. Fleas are tiny, wingless insects that jump, live on your pet, and breed in your house. Ticks are larger, crawl rather than jump, and latch on to feed for days, usually after your pet has been in grass or brush.

The difference matters because they hide in different places and need different fixes, and both can carry disease in Texas. Here’s how to tell them apart and where to treat for each. For more, see our pages on fleas and ticks.

Fleas vs. Ticks: What’s the Difference?

Fleas are about 1/8 inch long, reddish-brown, and built to jump; they bite and move on. Ticks are eight-legged relatives of spiders that crawl onto a host, attach, and swell as they feed. You usually find fleas by the scratching. You find ticks by feeling a bump.

Sources: Texas A&M AgriLife Managing Fleas, AgriLife on ticks, and the Texas A&M Tick App.

How Do You Know Your Pet Has Fleas?

Constant scratching and fleas caught in a flea comb are the usual signs. You may also spot them in pet bedding or on your ankles.

What you see on the pet is only part of it. According to Texas A&M AgriLife:

• • A female flea can lay 20 to 30 eggs a day.
  • Larvae develop in 5 to 11 days in pet bedding, furniture, rugs, and moist, shaded spots outdoors.
  • Pupae become adults in a week or two, and adults can wait inside the pupal case until a host comes along.

That’s why you can treat the dog, think you’re done, and see fleas again two weeks later. Cat fleas can also carry dog tapeworm, which pets get by swallowing fleas while grooming.

How Do You Know Your Pet Has Ticks?

Run your hands over your pet after outdoor time and feel for small bumps, especially around the ears, between the toes, and under the collar. AgriLife says the ticks Texans are most likely to find are the black-legged tick, brown dog tick, lone star tick, Gulf Coast tick, and American dog tick.

The tick that moves indoors

Most ticks live outside, but the brown dog tick is different. The Texas A&M Tick App says it’s often observed inside homes and kennels, sometimes “literally crawling up the walls.” Dogs are its main host, and it can carry the germs behind Rocky Mountain spotted fever and ehrlichiosis.

The Lone Star Tick

Females have a single spot in the center of the back, from white or cream to gold. The Tick App lists it as the main carrier of ehrlichiosis and the cause of a rash illness called STARI, and AgriLife links it to alpha-gal syndrome, a red meat allergy.

Not sure what you found? The free Tick App for Texas, from Texas A&M AgriLife, helps with identification.

Are Fleas or Ticks More Dangerous in Texas?

Both matter, but in South Texas, fleas carry a risk most people don’t know about: flea-borne typhus.

The Texas Department of State Health Services says Texas reports the most flea-borne typhus cases in the U.S., and most are in South Texas. In Bexar County, reported cases climbed from 79 in 2020 to 236 in 2025, according to DSHS county data (2024 and 2025 figures are provisional).

• • How it spreads: infected flea droppings get into a bite or a scratch.
  • What carries the fleas: rats are the natural reservoir, and opossums and cats can also carry infected fleas.
  • Symptoms: fever, headache, chills, weakness, nausea, body aches, and rash.

Ticks carry their own diseases. After a tick bite, AgriLife advises telling your doctor about any fever, headache, joint or muscle pain, or swollen lymph nodes within 30 days.

This section is general information, not medical or veterinary advice.

How Do You Remove a Tick Safely?

Use tweezers or gloves, never bare fingers. AgriLife recommends grasping the tick as close to the head as possible, pulling straight out, and putting antiseptic on the skin afterward.

See a doctor (or your vet, for a pet) if the head stays in the skin, or if pain, a sore, or a rash develops.

How Do You Get Rid of Fleas vs. Ticks?

Fleas need a whole-house approach, while ticks are mostly a yard and pet problem.

Sources: Texas A&M AgriLife Managing Fleas and AgriLife on ticks.

Texas A&M says sunny, well-kept lawns usually don’t need flea treatment. Focus on the shady spots where your pet lies down.

To cut the typhus risk, DSHS recommends not leaving pet food out at night and keeping rodents, opossums, and stray cats from living in your yard. Our rodent control page covers the rat side.

Expert tip: Treat the pet, the house, and the yard on the same day. Texas A&M recommends treating pet living areas at the same time as the pet, so fleas don’t reinfest from whichever spot you skipped.

When Should You Call a Professional?

Call if fleas keep coming back after a full round of treatment and the 10-to-14-day follow-up, if you’re finding ticks inside the house, or if your yard backs onto brush or a greenbelt.

Here’s how the work splits: your vet handles the pet, and Beeline Pest Control handles the home and yard, using products applied with pets in mind. It’s part of our residential pest control service. Read more about our pet-friendly pest control. 

Fleas vs. Ticks: The Quick Answer

Jumping specks and a scratching pet mean fleas: treat the pet, the house, and the shady spots in the yard on the same day, then again two weeks later. A bump that won’t brush off means a tick: remove it carefully and clean up the brush.

If you’d like help with the house and yard, Beeline can take a look. Request a free quote, call 210-739-1320, or text 210-972-1672. 

Frequently Asked Questions