Tips on Ticks, Spotted Fever, and Lyme’s Disease

Spring on the Oregon coast is a wonderful time of year. But with the warmer weather, unfortunately, come insects that are potentially dangerous to animals and humans. The dog tick (Dermacentor variabilis) pictured here wrapped in Scotch tape. Are common ticks of the west coast from March through August. Read on for tips on ticks.

Tips on Ticks

Survival Gear and knowledge about and dealing with ticks.

• Adult ticks wait on the tops of grasses, brush, and the tips of tree limbs ready to drop upon a suitable host that walk by. Like elk, deer, dogs, and humans.
• Use recommended insect repellents.
• Treat clothing and gear with products containing 0.5% permethrin.
• Wear light-colored long sleeve shirts, pants, and hats as a deterrent to tick bites.
• Scotch tape is a useful resource for holding ticks for identification.
• Identify that tick.
• Use fine-tipped tweezers to remove ticks - CDC - Tick Removal.

Ticks are abundant in elk and deer habitat

• Walking through a field where deer and elk inhabit. Will often, find you carrying a number of these nasty hitchhikers on your clothing.
• In addition, if you take your dog along with you on your hikes through the woods, they too will carry many ticks back home. It is important to check for ticks constantly while you are out hiking and when you return home.

Pets and Ticks

Domestic animals are susceptible to ticks

• Domestic herd animals such as cattle and horses are susceptible to tick infestation.
• If you live in North Carolina here is some shocking news on the Asian Longhorn Tick. Aka, Clone tick. Cow deaths by Clone Tick.

Ticks and house pets

We had a lot of pet's when growing up. Dogs, cats, and horses. We wandered everywhere in field and wood, so ticks have always been present in our lives. I removed ticks from our animals in the spring and fall, anything with warm blood is a potential victim of the tick!

Tips on removing tick's from your dog

Removing ticks from your dog or other domestic animals is simple and straightforward.

• Use fine-tipped tweezers to remove ticks from your dog.
• Grab the tick with tweezers as close to the tick's head as possible.
• Apply steady pressure outward by pulling the tick out.

Dispose of tick in a container with a small amount of alcohol. Or, wrap in tape like the photo above.

The use of Deet to repel ticks

Deet, what is it? According to -

“Science Daily (Aug. 6, 2009) — the active ingredient in many insect repellents, Deet (N,N-diethyl-m-toluamide), has been found to be toxic to the central nervous system. Researchers say that more investigations are urgently needed to confirm or dismiss any potential neurotoxicity to humans, especially when Deet-based repellents are used in combination with other neurotoxin insecticides.”

CDC information on Lymes disease

Use strong insect repellents to fight ticks

Use a strong mosquito repellent. Or even better use Permethrin (See cautions of use with domestic animals) as a tick repellent. Apply to cuffs and waist and belt line of your pants. Wear light-colored long sleeve shirts, pants, and hats can also be helpful as a deterrent to tick bites.

Lizards slow the spread of Lyme's

Ticks bite Lizards, and amazing things happen. Lizards Slow Lyme’s Disease

Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever

My brother-in-law had a case of Rocky Mountain spotted fever years ago and became very ill.  I have had several friends, who after repeated attempts to diagnose bizarre symptoms of illness, tested positive for Lyme’s Disease.

Check for ticks

I once removed a tick from the middle of my Mothers back when I was eleven years old. Which is the most helpless place to have a tick if you are by yourself. It would fit nicely in “Dark Stories of Survival," or the scariest!

Lymedisease.org explains how to remove a tick

Lyme Disease Update

Here is a quote and update on Lyme Symptoms and treatment by Dr. Nevena Zubcevik, the attending physician at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Zubcevik research has debunked much of the current information on Lymes disease.

“The conception that the tick has to be attached for 48 hours to inject the bacteria is completely outdated,” she said. There are studies that show that an attachment of 15 minutes can give you anaplasmosis, 10 minutes for the Powassan virus, and for the different strains of Borrelia burgdorferi, we have no idea.”  ~Dr. Nevena Zubcevik

Ticks rising in a warming world

"In a warming world, ticks thrive in more places than ever before, making Lyme disease the first epidemic of climate change.

The EPA tracks Lyme disease across the US as an official barometer of climate change

The last word is to be tick aware

In conclusion, during tick season, maximize your tick awareness. Think tick and your mind and body will respond and help remind you to check for ticks. Wear the recommended clothing and tick repellent to prevent tick bites.