Ticks and Lyme Disease

[Glenn]

I just got the 3rd tick of the season. For us this is an early start.

How Lyme Disease Cases Have Spread In The U.S.

The number of confirmed and probable Lyme disease cases in the U.S. more than doubled from 2001 to 2015. In 2015, 95 percent of confirmed cases were reported in the 14 states labeled below. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates the actual prevalence of Lyme disease infections is 10 times higher than the number of reported cases.

2001

 

2015

Reference Lyme Disease

 

[PaperPatched]

Here is a link to a very informative article about testing for Lyme disease and its possible relationship to other diseases:

http://boston.cbslocal.com/2017/09/29/nightside-a-new-perspective-on-lyme-disease/?e=tteo5fmMDwDwSA&utm_source=email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=11385&utm_campaign=daily-news-headlines-recommended--9

Click the right pointing arrow in the circle,  located on the bottom left of the image to start the program.

[Daswulf]

I better get more guinea fowl. Also I'm liking the opossums being close to the house more and more. 

My brothers son got limes disease last year from a tick. 

[RobS]

When I was a kid (1970s-80s), I played in the woods from sun-up to sun-down.  I never once had a tick on me.  I only remember the family dogs getting a tick a couple of times.  Now a days we are constantly pulling them off the animals, kids, etc.  There has without a doubt been a population explosion in ticks in NY.

My half cocked opinion is the increase in predators helped the tick population.   Birds of prey and coyotes.   I used to count turkey flocks numbering 100+  as a kid.  Now I see flocks of 10-12.  I used to kick up multiple grouse and pheasants in the woods and side of the roads.   I have not seen 1 grouse or pheasant in the last 2 years.  

I think the predators are culling  the animals that prey on ticks.

I'm not blaming 100% on the increase of predators, but I believe a large part is from their help.

[ThomasPowers]

In NJ in the mid 70's I remember the local fields being so bad that you could see the ticks holding on to the long grass alongside the trails through it.  Beating the path sides with a switch ahead of you  helped immensely.

[Glenn]

More ticks removed today. They are getting to be a pest.

The best way to dispose or dispatch a tick is to stick them to a piece of tape, then fold the tape over enclosing and sealing the tick inside. That way the sucker (pun intended) does not get a second chance to bite someone.

[Daswulf]

You mean you don't collect them in a ziplock bag to see how many you can get? 

They sure are hard buggers to squish. 

[ThomasPowers]

They pop nicely on the campfire.  My daughter once described her first bot fly larvae removal. It was on a cat.  There are videos of them being removed from humans too.  NEVER get a Veterinarian going about gross stuff they have seen; just saying: *NEVER*! 

[Daswulf]

We have had to remove a couple warbles from our cats in the past. Pretty gross. 

[Frosty]

Ughhh! We get fleas and ticks but only as imports on tourist's pets. Well, maybe some of the tourists too. 

Far as I know I've only had one tick on me when I was pretty young. Mother cured it with a drop of fingernail polish. It unplugged and tried crawling off immediately but died within inches.  The fingernail polish burned a little bit on tender skin but the tick was gone. I found it going to the bathroom.   Mental floss anyone?

Frosty The Lucky.

[ThomasPowers]

I hear that Grizzles are even harder to remove than ticks.

[Daswulf]

Fo rizzle!

[the iron dwarf]

18 minutes ago, ThomasPowers said:

I hear that Grizzles are even harder to remove than ticks.

we dont often get problems with them here

but an event I am trading at in july is in a bad area for ticks and last year several people were known to have contracted lyme disease there

 

[SLAG]

Fellow iron bangers,

Squishing a tick is a very bad practice.

It can force the contents of the tick's mouthparts into the bite region. And that is where the Lyme disease is. (Borrelia burgdorferi & B. mayoni). The bug could be forced into the bloodstream.

Glenn's scotch tape technique is an excellent one.

Alternatively I use a lens for checking, and a tweezer called a "sliver gripper" to prize the tick up and away from the skin, but no twisting of the beast should be done. We do not want to leave the mouth parts behind attached to the skin

The ticks are usually at the nymph stage. They are, often, just a little bigger than a period at the end of a sentence. (o.k. two or three periods). The larval stage rarely transmit the bacterium.

Marg ("The Marvelous") and I check each other out thoroughly, after every trek in the bush.

We have up to 36 hours to get the tick off the skin. Longer than that, the bacterium gets into our system.

Lyme disease is a very serious disease. If an infection is not treated promptly it can lead to chronic Lyme disease.

Early onset of Lyme disease. can be treated with antibiotics. (doxycycline, amoxicillin, Therefor it is important to know some of the symptoms of it. A bulls-eye rash is indicative, but is not always seen. Check the internet for a picture of that rash.

The chronic stage has all sorts of serious symptoms, such as disseminated arthritis, & sometimes heart problems. Antibiotics are not effective at that late stage.

I am trying to keep this note short and to the point. A lengthy many page dissertation is counter-productive. I hope this note helps.

SLAG.

 

 

[Daswulf]

Guess I should have mentioned that I don't try to squish them when they are attached to me or other critter....  Usually done In the ziplock bag after the fun collecting is done. 

[ThomasPowers]

Have you tried a screw press?

[Frosty]

1 hour ago, ThomasPowers said:

I hear that Grizzles are even harder to remove than ticks.

They don't hang from grass blades to ambush you when you walk by and you can smell bears, they like to let their meaty food ripen a while and smell like it. They don't like rude people so announce yourself, loudly sneaking up on one makes them grouchy. Big ones have claws longer than your fingers and they're been known to chew up cast iron cook wear for the left overs.

Frosty The Lucky.

[ThomasPowers]

Exactly *how* do they differ from Curmudgeons?

[Frosty]

They eschew the internet and eat people who ask them stupid questions.

They're livin the dream in some regards. 

Frosty The Lucky.

[Marc1]

I am confused ... how do Grizzly hang from grass blades? 

[ThomasPowers]

they use their claws.....

[Daswulf]

You guys are making me think of the guy that got mauled to death when trying to take a selfie with an injured bear. 

[Frosty]

12 minutes ago, Daswulf said:

You guys are making me think of the guy that got mauled to death when trying to take a selfie with an injured bear. 

Curmudgeons don't like being photo bombed either. 

You mis-read Marc, I said brown bears don't hang from the grass like ticks. Though they are known to lay down and take naps in  grass and have people literally trip on them. This NEVER ends well for either party.

Frosty The Lucky.

[ThomasPowers]

Evolution--it still works for folks self absorbed in their phones! (Unfortunately being around such people can be a evolutionary down check too. Like the recent semi that ran a red light and nearly T-Boned a guy on a motorcycle because the semi driver was on his phone....)

[Stash]

I've had 2 rounds of doxycyclene over the years, with no follow up issues. Both times I found the bulls eye, and went right to the Dr. He took a look, said yup and wrote the script. Last time around, I texted a buddy " if you have the gin and tonic, I have the lymes". He didn't get it. I hate explaining bad jokes.

Steve