It’s springtime – kids and pets are out, and so are the ticks!

Ahh, spring. Following a long and cold winter, people and pets are anxious to venture outdoors and take advantage of the higher sun angle and warmer temperatures. While enjoying your outdoor venue, it’s important to be vigilant when spending time in proximity to tick habitat. Adult female deer ticks, often located near the wooded perimeter of your property, are questing - looking to attach to unsuspecting hosts, including children, pets and you! Their anxious to acquire their third and final blood meal. It’s a fact that children ages 5-14 have the highest incidence of Lyme disease nationwide. And don’t forget about your pets - companion animals are sentinels for ticks as well. Remember, if pets are picking up ticks, humans are more likely to encounter them as well. Not only are ticks disgusting, but also a serious health threat as well. Tick-borne diseases (TBDs) are either endemic (established) or emerging in many parts of the United States and Canada. Although the Northeast and upper Midwest are hotbeds for Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative disease agent for tick-transmitted Lyme disease, anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis and other pathogens are also prevalent in a growing number of states in the U.S. What to do?

Prevention is the BEST Prescription.

Personal Protection Strategies:

• Identify and avoid tick habitat
• Understand the life cycle of the deer tick
• Modify your landscape
• Dress appropriately
• Utilized skin based repellents on exposed skin
• Utilize permethrin spray on outdoor clothing, shoes and socks
• Perform multiple tick checks daily
• Promptly identify and properly remove attached ticks

Landscape Modifications:

• Keep your lawn mowed
• Let the sunshine in. Sunny areas are less apt to harbor ticks
• Keep children’s play areas away from the wooded edge
• Remove leaf litter and brush from your property and perimeter
• Move bird feeders and wood piles away from your home
• Check with your veterinarian on ways to protect your animals
• These helpful tips are available on our bookmarks available for distribution in your community.

This spring, you owe it to yourself and your family to be more prepared than surprised!