Tick season

One of my survey bowling buddies said he got 4 here in Indiana this week.

I've just moved to the Tennessee/Georgia area and they seem to be a lot worse down here than in upper East Tennessee. I've never really heard my buddies from up north talk about but I recently watched a documentary on some folks in Connecticut that suffer from chronic Lyme Disease due to the population of ticks.

After a quick search, here's a CDC map:

Pulled one of the little bastards out of the back of my head on Thursday. I'm not happy about it....already had Lyme disease twice....

Pretty interesting map. I Have not heard of many cases of lyme disease around here, which is what the map suggests. I do hear about many cases of rocky mountain spotted fever though.

Living in CT...

I have never had lyme...

But I know a lot of people who have 🙁

No ticks in northern NH yet. Last patches of snow are leaving the yard. I expect them in the first week of may.

I pulled six of them off me Friday. A few here and there last month. Seems like they're starting to ramp up. I had to have one cut out of me last year, not looking forward to them.

I have not yet seen any here in SE New York, but a month ago the vet told me she had a dog come in that was covered with ticks already .... not good.

I have posted this before: after time in the field, and it only takes minutes to get a tick, you have to check EVERYWHERE ! Then, the next morning, check again for the one you missed the night before. It only takes one of the little bastards to get you sick.

Remember, if you start to have flu like symptoms and it is not flu season, see your doctor.

If you have Lyme, or one of the other diseases ticks carry, you cannot tough it out. Don't be stupid.

And if you wind up on the antibiotic regimen and it upsets your stomach, take one of the pro-biotics that are out there; they help.

Ken

Here in coastal Maine when you say tick, the only thing that comes to most surveyors' minds is the deer tick. Even though its larger cousin is just as prevalent, or maybe more so, the deer tick carries a number of pathogens including Lyme disease which left untreated can be fatal, or worse, you'd wish you would die. The wood tick does not transmit these diseases.

The area that you live in will sometimes determine how the medical community responds or even recognizes the problem because of various reasons including:

Familiarity, this is a climate-related migrating problem and what was once foreign has become resident with increasing numbers. Some doctors have seen more positive cases of Lyme disease than others.

Recognizing what the tick looks like. My doctor brought in his collection of deer ticks to the examining room as indication that what I had brought in for him wasn't a deer tick. (seen here: http://panocea.us/2012/05/23/tick-tock-its-only-a-matter-of-time/ before I sent it in for positive identification at the MMRCI), which as it turns out was an adult and not a nymph as were the entirety in his collection.

The primary difference between the wood tick and the deer tick is indeed their size; however, the pattern on their back is conclusive.

In just 20 miles south of Ellsworth, according to surveyor friends living on Mount Desert Island, the medical community typically will routinely issue a regiment of antibiotics simply out of precaution because symptoms (bulls eye pattern around the bite, and other vague flu-like symptoms may only present themselves half the time.

The likelihood of infection is greatest with the adult deer tick upon the completion of their blood meal (which may take days - I had played host for 96 hours +/-) when they're no longer sucking but begin allowing the back flow of now infected blood - assuming they were in fact infected to begin with.

If you're interested in learning more, the Maine Medical Center Research Institute is an excellent resource.

Here is the Wikipedia CDC map:

A vaccine (for lyme disease) has been developed and working well for horses, dogs, etc.. Work on a human vaccine has pretty much stopped after mixed results with the first try.

Maybe surveyors should form a group to lobby for a vaccine for humans, after all we are one of the groups most affected by the disease. We could call it "Surveyors Hate Infected Ticks". 😉

I have had Lyme disease twice (maybe four times). I spoke with my doctor about the vaccine. As with most vaccines it was (is) not 100% effective. Because of this ineffectiveness issue if I presented symptoms of Lyme’s disease he would be obligated to treat me. My initial tests have failed to confirm an exposure, it have taken several weeks for a positive result. I have also had false positives. There is a protocol to the tests, be sure you see a doctor who is familiar with Lyme disease or get a referral to an infectious disease physician.

The reason I sport bloused boots, shoot them once a week with a mixture of baby oil and flowers of sulfer, an old trick I learned from some old hands that had spent decades working my neck of the woods. I'll skip a week when I treat them with mink oil, while effective, the mink oil softens the leather too much for weekly use.

This works against ticks, fleas and chiggers. I'd prefer leaches any time, they are not carriers of disease and as long as the wound does not get infected, are pretty safe. They get a meal and move on.

Haven't worked in swampy areas much, but even when I have, I've never even see a leech. I will try your tick mix though. I hate bug sprays with DEET. So for the last few summers I haven't bothered with any. All the ones I have ever tried were ineffective against ticks...they do work to keep the mosqitoes away though.