<font color="ff0000">Ticks - a query to everyone</font>

J

john

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I went on my first "field trip" (it was a trip and I was in a field occasionally) in the USA last weekend.

My wife and I encountered 3 deer ticks in a recreational picnic/swimming area in Oklahoma. We spotted them due to their size - who knows what nymphs we missed.

My query to the people on the forum from the USA is this: have you ever had a tick? I know it could be embarrassing to admit it but I believe these creatures are something we should all understand and be aware of due to the fact that they transmit a potentially deadly bacterium known as Lyme Disease.

I was disturbed to see all of the small children in the area where we swam and picnicked running around with just short trousers/bathing suits and flip-flops on. I realised that the parents of these children, ordinary people, were obviously not aware of what was lurking on top of the grass stalks by the water.

So please, share your experiences. To those of you for which this comes as a shock, here is what a tick looks like (the one on the right is what you'll see in the wild):

DeerTicks1.jpg

<font size="-2">Photo credit: UWEX.edu</font>

The ones we saw were larger than the following image, but it gives you an idea of just how easy it is to miss these guys:

tick_nymph_hand.jpg


If anyone would like to learn more about Lyme Disease, here is an excellent Canadian page about it: Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation.
 
An excellent UK tick-bourne disease website with lots of great links. http://www.wadhurst.demon.co.uk/lyme/
It is commonly thought that removal of the tick within 24 will prevent infection because the disease is often transmitted once the tick has finished feeding. The disease is also present in the tick's saliva so this is not always the case.

Here in europe there has been an explosion in tick populations, largely blamed on global warming as ticks favour warm, wet weather.

I've been bitten by ticks before - never been infected though, *touch wood*.
 
John

Ticks are a VERY common occurrence in the US and there's not much you can do to avoid them unless you just stay indoors or on pavement. You simply have to check yourself and your children for them periodically and especially at the end of the day. I'm sure the parents of those children were very aware of the problem. Also, there are some preventative measures you can take (repellents). The frequency of Lyme disease is trumped up and is just a matter of statistics, the more you're in the woods the higher (though not that high) your odds of getting it. I've been bitten by thousands of ticks over my lifetime (I've spent A LOT of time in the field) and haven't contracted it. The irony is that you'll read a story about someone who has contracted it from a tick bite they received in their yard in town. People thrive on paranoia though so it makes good fodder for the media periodically. And actually shorts and flip-flops are the best thing to wear in tick country as you are more likely to see one when it first gets on you than you would with pants, shoes and socks. That type of clothing just enhances the chigger problem.

Fortunately most of our youth are safe from this scourge since they're just fat little turds that play mind numbing video games indoors all day.

RUSS
 
Hi Russ,

I had(have as it never really goes away) Lyme's disease contracted from a tick. I spend a lot of time in the Pine Barrens and in the 5 acres of woods on my property.

The general consensus now is that removal of the tick within 48 hours significantly reduces the risk of Lyme's.

last week I hit the hat trick for ticks by finding a deer tick, a spotted dog tick and a lone star tick all attempting to climb my leg.

Personally I am more concerned about chiggers than I am ticks...

(and for the pavement comment, I should have you visit my dad's house. If you set up a chair on the driveway and wait, the ticks will cross the blacktop to get to you....)

Ed
 
A specific repellant is always being advised:
"Repellents containing DEET (n, n-diethyl-m-toluamide) can be applied to the skin, but will last only a few hours before reapplication is necessary. Use DEET with caution on children because adverse reactions have been reported."

Source: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/ehrlichia/Prevention/Prevention.htm

Especially the 50% lotion here (NL) is supposed to work for 10 hours. The duration is based on the % DEET with a 30% gel working for 5.5 hours.
 
*In addition to* a pest-repellant containing DEET, you can also add a few drops of Tea Tree or Geranium essential oil to your sunblock or other kind of body lotion, and the smell of the oils will help keep bugs away.

I've had chiggers before, but not ticks. They don't do anything to you but annoy you, do they?

fat little turds that play mind numbing video games indoors all day. }

rofl.gif
And people wonder why kids these days are such horrible little monsters! Go outside! Read a BOOK once in a while!
 
Sawyer Permethrin aerosol is a tick repellent that is labeled for spraying on clothing; tick control for clothes.

http://www.pestproducts.com/permethrin_tick_repellent.htm

Lyme disease isn't the big deal here in Southern AZ that it is in other states but we are still cautious with our kids.

As a child in Georgia, we "got" ticks all the time. It was a routine to come inside from playing and have your mom check you over with tweezers and a lighter in hand.

"Getting" a tick is like "getting" a mosquito bite not a lot you can do about it! Its embarrassing becuase people associate getting a tick with being unclean.
 
Ed

Now I know two victims. And you're right about pavement, but at least there you can see them coming. I know at my in-laws' in southern AR they're a problem in the house! And chiggers are a bigger problem, because by the time you realize you have them it's too late. My brother was hospitalized once because of a severe infestation of chiggers. He was collecting worms for fishing in the accumulated leaf litter of a ditch in some oak woodlands. Guess where chiggers love to nest? They had to strap him down (he was 7) to prevent him from scratching himself into oblivion. I itch just thinking about them (LOL!).

RUSS
 
Welcome to Oklahoma! Yeeehaw!

I'd agree with what's been said here. There's no avoiding ticks, and unless you cover yourself in questionable chemicals, there's no stopping them from biting you if you choose to go out in the woods in warm weather. I'v been bitten thousands of times over the course of 2 decades and have never contracted Lyme's Disease.

And definitely...once you've gotten chiggers, you'll forget all about ticks, that's for sure.
 
OK so "all" you have to worry about with chiggers is the urge to itch? They're not in themselves harmful?

About 2 months after I got married last September, I developed an allergy to (hopefully just US) mosquitos. If one bites me, within 36 hours an area 10 to 15 cm (4 to 6 inches) in diameter swells up in scarlet red (looks like I'm haemorrhaging) and within 24 hours of that it starts to itch like hell. It leaves a mark on me for weeks after it's healed.

So now I have 3 problems to worry about: can't get bitten by mosies, need to watch for ticks, and need to pray that I don't get chiggers...

I find all of this curious. From about the age of 6 or so, I spent most of my childhood in or around a wetland of some sort, looking for insects or amphibians. In that time I was often near farmland or woodland. I never once got a tick or any other nasty. The worst that ever happened to me was getting stung across most of my body by a hive of wasps.
 
I was just re-reading the comments here. Ed has/had Lyme disease so he's not worried about getting it from a tick again. So I believe that's why he's more worried about chiggers. Nate, chiggers might drive you nuts but you really don't want Lyme disease...
 
Yes, chiggers are harmless. But those are all the wimpy invertebrates. You still have fire ants and wasp/hornets to watch for too. Nothing like mixing Tevas and fire ants to make your day!!
 
I've been bitten by fire ants several times since I got to Texas last September. Annoying but pretty minor. My number 1 fear is Lyme disease, closely followed by mosquito bites due to my nice new allergy (no one understands how bad those are until they become allergic to them).
 
Have the sand fleas sampled you yet John? You're probably the most exotic dish around for miles.
 
One thing that really takes your mind off the malaria infested mosquitos and ticks in the jungles of south east asia is the carpet of leeches that start inching towards you when you stop walking. And just when you get to the stage where you're checking your legs every 10 paces they start dropping from the trees...

I don't think I've worried about biting insects since returning from Borneo
biggrin.gif
 
Ralf, yes, it's a fact. I've seen them bite me and lived with the results time and again.
 
We are having a big problem with ticks, but they seem to be seasonal in our study site (Peru). But ticks are bad, I had one embedded some where that no man would want it. Chiggers are annoying and terrible. None of you here have probably had the pleasure of Bot flies, bullet ants, and other large stinging wasps. I have had all but the bullet ant, but I can add some stinging/biting insects to the list. We got hit by some wasps a few days ago and I still can not bend my finger, and my friend's arm is about double the normal size. Now with all that said, I still worry most about ticks in North America, but as many people have said most times there are no problems. Because of dealing with amphibians when I am in the field, I don't use sun block or repellents, and I have probably paid the price for not using it with a Dengue-like fever, bot fly, etc, but I still think it is better not to. I also am not super comfortable applying tons of Deet to my skin. In my first trip to Costa Rica/Panama I used Permetherone (spelling) on my clothing, which supposedly lasts 2 weeks even with washing.
j
 
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