![]() If a tick is found attached on your skin, use the following procedure: Inspect pets after they have been outdoors, and remove ticks found. Showering after coming indoors may help remove ticks that have not yet attached to the skin. Occasionally check yourself and your children for ticks, especially on the head, groin, and underarm area. Effective tick repellents are those containing diethyl toluamide (DEET) or permethrin. Tuck in your shirt, and pull your socks over the pant cuffs.Īpply an insect repellent to your shoes, socks, and pants. Wear light-colored clothing, long pants, and long-sleeved shirts so that ticks can be more easily seen. Stay on established trails, and avoid brushing against vegetation. TICK CONTROL AND PREVENTION Personal Protectionįor preventing outdoor tick exposure, avoid tick-infested areas, and wear protective clothing. For recommended treatment, a doctor should be consulted. Lyme disease vaccines are no longer available. It is obviously much better for Lyme disease to be diagnosed and treated early. These may include severe headaches, arthritis, and nervous system or cardiac abnormalities. The more severe symptoms may appear weeks, months, or even years after a tick bite. The rash may occur anywhere on the body, even in inconspicuous places such as the armpit, groin, or back of the knee. More than one rash may appear, and they do not always occur at the site of the tick bite. A first unique symptom is a red, expanding rash. Flu-like symptoms, chills, fever, and fatigue are often experienced. Lyme disease today is most prevalent in the Northeast and Upper Midwest, including Indiana.Įarly symptoms of Lyme disease can be mild and overlooked. Lyme disease, caused by a spirochete the deer tick carries, has spread from the Northeast, where it was first discovered in 1975, through 43 states. Adult deer ticks are largely dependent upon white-tailed deer for reproduction. Larvae and nymphs feed on a wide variety of small mammals (especially rodents - e.g., white-footed mouse), birds, deer, dogs, and humans. Adults are small and dark brown in color, with no white markings on their dorsal side. Deer ticks are found in similar habitats as the American dog tick and lone star tick. The deer tick is a cause of concern because it serves as the primary vector of Lyme disease. The earlier the disease is diagnosed and treatment started, the better are the results.ĭeer Tick - Black-Legged (Ixodes scapularis) Treatment with broad spectrum antibiotics, when given early, will usually cure the illness. A rash usually appears 1 to 3 days after the onset of the fever, usually on the wrists and ankles and eventually spreading to the rest of the body. Initial symptoms of this disease start from 3 to 10 days after a tick bite and often includes fever, chills, headache, and muscle aches. This tick can transmit the causal agent of RMSF through all of its life stages. The American dog tick is considered the most important vector of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (RMSF) in the United States. This is the main reason why this tick does not become established as a household pest. However, the larval and nymphal stages are usually found on small wild rodents. Here they cling to bushes, tall weeds, etc., and attach themselves to animals that pass by.Īdult ticks will feed on a number of different animals (e.g., dogs, coyotes, cattle, horses, raccoons, humans). In the spring and early summer, adult ticks are especially numerous along paths used by animals. Adults are dark brown or black, with short, rounded mouth parts and white markings on the dorsal side. This tick is normally found in woods, uncut grassy fields, parks, and other areas of wild vegetation. COMMON TICK SPECIES American Dog Tick - Dermacentor variabilis Another species, the brown dog tick, may sometimes become a problem indoors, primarily in association with dogs. The lone star tick and, more recently, the deer tick may also be found occasionally in outdoor, wooded areas. The most frequently encountered outdoor species is the American dog tick (also known as the eastern wood tick). Several species of ticks are found in Indiana. Photo Credits: Jim Gathany, Center for Disease Control and Prevention
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