Ticks

[limestone]

I know I am a little paranoid, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't worry about ticks when I go fishing in and around heavily wooded areas in the warmer months. I've never come home to find one on me, but I usually check just to be sure. Anyone have any experiences with tick bites? :-o

 

[Mark_Griffin]

[color=000000]

That tick I found on my vest in Carbon County when I stopped to rest.

I never found a tick for twenty years and then about five years ago I started findin' a bunch of 'em. I only find them a handfull of days a year, but sometimes four or five in one day in the Poconos. Pike County seems to be the worst by far, Monroe and Carbon have some also. Sometimes I find them on me in the shower, or days later on my waders in my house, on my fly rod, even in my vehicle. It doesn't worry me in the slightest way. That's because I don't worry about anything outdoors. If it's bears, snakes, Lyme disease, west nile virus, drowning, falling, getting lost or whatever... bring it on, I can handle it.

I never hear anything about Lyme disease in NE PA and I don't think it's very common in the animals and ticks around here. I do check for ticks when I take my gear off and always check my neck and hair for 'em on the way home. That's the most likely spot for them to be on me with wearing waders and whatnot. They will crawl up looking for skin and the neck and head is where I've found a bunch.

Twice I've had ticks attached to my skin. Once for less than a day that I pulled off with tweezers, and once for at least three days. I was brushing my hair and felt a sore spot on the back of my head. I felt with my fingers and knew exactly what it was. It was Monday and I was last fishing on Thursday. It definitely was on there long enough to transmit a disease. I removed it by scratching and pulling. The mouth parts can stay in the skin and will be pushed out in a few days kinda like a scab. I never got any flu-like symptoms so it was a non-event. You can be tested for Lyme disease, but it's not totally reliable and the bullseye rash doesn't always show, so I decided to wait for any symptoms, which never happened.[/color]

 

[vcregular]

I know someone who has been bitten twice in the past two months. DELCO. First time a bulls eye appeared within hours on the leg bitten. Second time, a bad scab occured on the ear, but no bulls eye. The ear became very hot, and red. To the dr again. This person is now on on their second go-round of tretracycline.

Most likely they got the ticks from their dog, who brought them inside. (this dog is on frontline) Dogs sleeping on your bed is prolly not a good idea. Just about all dogs test positive (false postive) in this area. They have lyme, but are able to keep it in check.

 

[tomgamber]

I saw a display of the ticks that can transmit lyme disease. You needed a magnifying glass to make them out. Apparently the larger ones, as gross as they are, won't carry lyme disease. Not that its good to have a blood sucking critter in your shorts. :-(

 

[TimMurphy]

Dear limestone,

Yesterday I walked across the street from my house into the woods and when I returned home I had two ticks crawling on my neck. They were just little bitty baby ones, probably only a couple of days old.

I just picked them off and flushed them down the toilet same as always. They really don't bother me unless I find them after they have taken root and grown big and strong on my blood. I still just rip them out and dump peroxide at the point of attachment and forget about it. I probably have 50 to 75 tick heads floating around in my bloodstream and I'm none the worse for wear.

Regards,
Tim Murphy

 

[vcregular]

tomgamber...that is what I thought, but that supposedly not the case here in SE PA. We've got blood thirsty BALCO-plan ticks down this way. BEWARE!

 

[tomgamber]

I didn't say the big ones wouldn't suck your blood. I just said that the bigs one aren't lyme carriers. They may carry other things. This came from a doctor. Now when I was a kid, living near Reading, our dogs used to get ticks. They would start out as small black (think size 18) ones and grow into big (size 8) swollen, gray raisin looking blobs that would pop if you squeezed them.

Heres your regular dog tick:

second your lyme disease or lone star tick:

last is the groundhog variety which is known to carry rocky mountain spotted fever:


cute ain't they? :-o

Heres all the info you'll ever need and more...
Tick Web Page

 

[JJZ]

I hate ticks, my dog, a 2 year Springer, has Lyme disease. Somewhere around when she turned 6 months, I had the vet give her the Lyme disease shot. It helped to keep her points down, it turned out that the shot was worth it's weight in gold. By the way, the vet said that Lyme disease has really spiked in the Lancaster area........

 

[tomgamber]

Hows Lancaster's deer population?

My cousin got Lyme disease when was living in Lancaster...he said he thought he was going to die. He said he could barely move at one point. Nasty thing...

 

[thedude1534]

Lyme desease is very prevalent throughout New England, NJ, and PA, and can be sparsly found in the southern states. I've been bit by dozens of ticks, and you really shouldn't worry about them. All you need to do is check your body for ticks when your getting your waders and stuff off. They typically like to go for the hair, ears, armpits and *caugh*....undercarriages.

If you see a bullseye mark, or feel a stiffness/swelling in one side of your body (especially the jaw) a few days after going out, go to a doctor and get checked for lymes. If you catch it early its typically easy to get rid of.

 

[jayL]

I've found the crawling up my legs and neck before while fishing.

Also, once on a camping trip I found one in a pretty sensitive area when I was taking a shower. Had me pretty worked up to think one got there :-o :-o :-o :-o

 

[RLeeP]

The only time I've had trouble with ticks was the 2nd or 3rd year we were out here in the Midwest. I would fish a half mile or so through high streamside grass and then collapse face down on the ground to rest for a few minutes before continuing. I began to notice I was picking up a tick or 2 almost every day.

So, I quit collapsing on the ground and began collapsing upright against trees instead. Never saw another tick after that.

But, in all the years I fished PA, I never found a tick on me. Then again, I'm always buttoned up pretty tight. Long sleeves regardless of the temperature or time of year, etc.

 

[MKern]

In my area they are very prevelant and I always find them on our pets and myself. They normally get flushed.

 

[salvelinus]

A guy I know got Rocky Mountain spotted fever from a tick he picked up while cutting grass on a lawn tractor. Here at my home, which is on a wooded lot, I can walk around the yard and pick up one. I once rescued a stray cat that came to the door one day looking for a handout, he was covered with the damn things. God I hate ticks. But I never seem to get them while fishing. Go figure.

 

[Bamboozle]

Ticks and most people don't like me.

Despite crawling around in heavy brush, woods and assorted other "ticky" places; I ain't had one in a zillion years.

Skeeters and Black Flies on the other hand find me delicious. ;-)

 

[Wmass]

I am in the medical biz and I can give you some info on ticks and Lyme's disease.

YES, there is Lyme's around here and it is actually very common in PA, MD, and northeastern states. The tick that carries Lymes is NOT the dog tick that you can actually see, it is the Deer tick which is very very small. Dog ticks are typically about the size of a match head and have the characteristic white patch on the back. The deer tick is roughly 1/4 the size of a dog tick.

Ticks actually have to stay attached 24 hours or more to transmit Lyme's disease, ANYTHING LESS THAN 24HRS AND YOU ARE OK. If the bite of the tick flares do not be alarmed, the characteristic "bull's eye" rash of Lymes only occurs in roughly 20%, typically a week after the bite. The rash that typically accompanies most insect bites is merely cellulitis, which is a superficial infection of the skin and it is easily treated. Cellulitis is characterized by an area that swells rapidly, is painful, itches, becomes red and warm to the touch. As for Lyme's treatment typically someone who displays a reaction from a tick bite will get either a single dose of Doxycycline or a 14-21 day course depending on what symptoms they present with.

As for other things that you can get from ticks in this area. You can get Rocky Moutain Spotted Fever, although it is very rare. The name Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever is actually a misnomer because the southeastern states, especially the Carolinas and VA are common places to get RMSF and it is rare in the western states. RMSF presents with a rash that appears as spots on your palms and the souls of your feet and the rash typically causes the skin to shed on your hands, also you will have a fever and muscle aches.

You can also get a disease called Babesiosis from tick bites in this area, almost entirely on the coastal regions of New England states (Nantucket and MV especially) and New Jersey's coastal areas. This disease is easily treated but can cause a disorder that is similar to a mild malarial infection.

AND FOR ALL YOU RABBIT HUNTERS OUT THERE, you can get a disease called Tularemia, from a bacteria that is carried by rabbits. If you have recently bagged a few rabbits and become ill a few days after gutting them, you should head to the doctor.

 

[tomgamber]

Wmass's post made me go and re-read my earlier post and the info in the link. Below is bugger responsible for lymes disease, not the lonestar.

Here is an interesting clip from the description wihtin the link:

"Blacklegged tick

Ixodes scapularis
Distribution: Ixodes scapularis is found throughout the eastern United States and in parts of the northern mid-west in wooded, brushy locations. It has been expanding its range in recent years and can now be found in most of the counties in Pennsylvania. Three areas of the state are heavily infested: (1) the southeastern portion of Pennsylvania (in those counties southeast of a line through Wayne to Adams counties) (2) the north central counties of Elk, Clearfield and Cameron; and (3) Presque Isle in Erie county."

Here is what it would look like if you could see it with the naked eye...

 

[ryanh]

I have never had a tick on me until I went to assateague. I always calked it up to my natural funk. I don't think that they are as prevalent in SW PA as they are in SE PA, at least in my corner of SW PA.

Like I said I had one on me in Assateague and pulled the truck off the raod and went apesh1t ripping cloths off and checking cause they were all over me (i waded into the muck to get a picture of the horses). Next thing you know I had about a dozen people snapping pictures of me in my flailing panic :-o

FYI
Don't ever remove a tick by plucking it out. That injects all of its crapola back into you (ugh). Stick a match by its but and it will pop out.

 

[JoeE]

It is just a natural part of life here. You tick checks yourself, the kids and the dogs daily. Some years they are better than others. I like bad winters for that reason. If it gets warm then a hard freeze and ice, it will do a number on the tick (hopefully) population. I have been tested for lyme’s disease several times in the past few years because of my joint problems and have tested negative. If you have a tick that is attached, removing them properly will help reduce infection because you do not want to break the head off inside. The main thing to watch the bit area for the signs of potential lyme disease and symptoms. The little ticks are the one’s I hate, hard to see and find.


Joe E

 

[sandfly]

bugs dont like me cause i eat alot of garlic, cayenne pepper..seems they dont like the taste...