Reminder: Beware of ticks!

[kickysnana]

It is that season when the tiny infected ticks are active, the ones you often cannot see even engorged. They carry Lyme, Bartanella, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Erlichiosis, Microplasmosis,rabbit fever, babisiosis sometimes more than one.

Spray your clothes and shoes. In tall grass or woodlands wear long pants tucked into your socks. Remove clothes when you get inside and toss them in the dryer.

Keep grass cut near your home so the ground dries out sometimes. If you get a bite with a rash ask for antibiotics, more than three days that is useless. If you get a high fever in the summer and flu like symptoms get tested and treated. These diseases once established are hard to get rid of and extremely debilitating.

Early Symptoms: Severe Headache, severe fatigue, fever, only 50% of the time rash,
Secondary Symptoms: Above plus Joint swelling, cognitive problems, secondary rashes.

Some of these can be passed on to babies in utero and recent studies suggest some sexual transmission (Lyme).

[Rambis]

1. Bad shit

No target rash-thank god my brother in law from Minnesota was here saw me and knew right away what is was. Two months after still didn't feel 100%. Literally could not get out of bed 105 temp, couldn't think, couldn't eat, knees hurt like somebody was sticking red hot pokers in back and three different IV fluids trips to hospital.

[frylock]

2. found a fat tick on my leg after a ride through sycamore cyn yesterday

[bemildred]

3. I used to go backpacking in a place where you had to stop every hundred yards or so

and pick them off your pants. We would still have to dig one or two out anyway, when we'd look each over at the end of the day.

But I never got anything from it but a tick bite or two.

[semillama]

4. Depends on the tick, but in general they're all nasty

here's a helpful link from the CDC:

http://www.cdc.gov/ticks/diseases/

The blacklegged tick (which used to be called the deer tick) is the primary culprit for the nastiest ones, it seems, although the more common wood tick can also transmit disease.



I've had deer ticks on me but not attached; I've had wood ticks attached. Luckily have not found any attached and engorged.