About Geneticks

Located in Uxbridge, Ontario, approximately a one-hour drive northeast of Toronto.  Geneticks is Canada's first private laboratory dedicated to tick identification and tick-borne pathogen testing.

Using molecular testing methods, Geneticks identifies tick species and screens for pathogens associated with Lyme disease and other tick-borne illnesses, providing Canadians with additional information following a tick bite.

Geneticks Canada
2 Brock Street West, Unit 4
Uxbridge, Ontario L9P 1P2

Mailing Address:
PO Box 383, Uxbridge Station Main
Uxbridge, Ontario L9P 1M8

 

After a tick bite, the most important thing you can do is simple:

Save the Tick

Never throw a tick away.

Do not flush it.
Do not crush it.
Do not leave it behind at a doctor's office or clinic.

Once a tick is discarded, valuable information is lost forever.

Even if you are not interested in testing today, keeping the tick gives you options later.

Symptoms associated with tick-borne illnesses can take days or weeks to appear. Many people only begin asking questions after symptoms develop, anxiety sets in, or they have had time to speak with a healthcare provider.

By saving the tick, you stay in control.

Testing later remains possible, and you have evidence of the exposure should you ever need it.

What Is Tick Testing?

Tick testing analyzes the tick itself to determine:

✔ What species of tick it is

✔ Whether it carried bacteria, parasites, or pathogens associated with tick-borne illnesses

✔ Whether Lyme disease bacteria were detected

✔ Whether additional pathogens were present

Tick testing does not diagnose disease in a person, but it provides information about the tick that bit you.

This information can help reduce uncertainty and support conversations with your healthcare provider.

Why Save a Tick Even If You Aren't Testing Right Away?

You do not need to decide immediately.

Many people choose to save the tick and make a testing decision later.

Keeping the tick allows you to:

✔ Consider testing if symptoms develop

✔ Learn more about your potential exposure

✔ Share laboratory findings with your healthcare practitioner

✔ Preserve evidence from the bite

If you save the tick today, you can always decide what to do tomorrow.

If you throw it away, that opportunity is gone.

How to Store a Tick Properly

Ticks can remain suitable for testing when stored correctly.

Place the tick in:

• A small microtube
• A sealed container
• A zip-top bag

Label it with:

• Date removed
• Person bitten
• Location where exposure likely occurred

Store the tick in a cool, dry place.

For longer-term storage, refrigeration is recommended.

Avoid:

✖ Crushing the tick

✖ Storing it in water

✖ Wrapping it in a wet paper towel

✖ Leaving it exposed to heat or direct sunlight

The sooner a tick is preserved, the better the sample quality for testing.

What Can Tick Testing Detect?

Depending on the testing panel selected, laboratories may screen for organisms associated with:

• Lyme disease
• Anaplasmosis
• Babesiosis
• Ehrlichiosis
• Relapsing fever Borrelia
• Other emerging tick-borne pathogens

Different laboratories offer different testing panels, ranging from targeted Lyme screening to more comprehensive pathogen testing.

Taking Control After a Tick Bite

A tick bite can feel unsettling, especially when there are more questions than answers.

Saving the tick is a simple step that puts information back into your hands.

You do not need to panic. You do not need to make decisions immediately.

But you should always save the tick.

Because once it is gone, the opportunity to learn more about that exposure is gone too.

Save first. Decide later.

It is one of the easiest and most important things you can do after a tick bite.

Take a Tour of Geneticks: Canada's Tick Testing Lab

Curious about what happens after you save your tick? Take a behind-the-scenes look inside Geneticks, Canada's tick testing laboratory in Uxbridge, Ontario, and learn how ticks are identified, processed, and tested for Lyme disease and other tick-borne pathogens.