I saw a thread on the PA Fly Fishing website about the increase and early activity this year of deer ticks and was wondering if anyone else has seen changes in tick bites and sighting occurences? I went my whole life without ever seeing one, and in the last 5 years, bites have become commonplace. I already pulled one off my jeans while fishing last weekend, then found one actually attached to me later that day.

Probably time to really consider taking precautionary mesasures before I end up with Lyme Disease. Any recommendations?

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Chuck

My dogs get them all the time. They just go into bushes too much. I try and keep them out but every time I have to pull some ticks off.

I have been stick with a tick once and my wife once. Of course she was freaked out as it was stuck on her tummy and I had to pull it off.

Great when I catch them on the dog before they get lodged in though. Hate taking them off the cats though. I come out of it all scared up. hehehe

tj

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Tenkara USA, Director of Customer Service

Tenkara Junkie - Tenkarajankī
Now sporting all of the Tenkara USA Rods!

Ticks have gotten really bad in western PA - there are a few place that I won't go to at all because I get covered in ticks. And they are active this year already for sure.

I always make sure to use the bug spray these days.

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my blog CastingAround
Ebisu, Iwana 11'ft (with additional short handle), Amago, Ito, Ayu II

Until just recently, I worked for the last 11 years in a lab studying Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacteria that causes Lyme Disease. These are the points you need to keep in mind...

1. The black legged/deer tick, which carries the bacteria that causes Lyme disease, is the only tick species that carries Borrelia burgdorferi. Not every tick you encounter will be a deer tick.
2. If you do find a deer tick not every tick will harbor the bacteria. The rates for ticks infected with the bacteria vary by region.
3. An infected tick will generallyhave to be attached and feeding for 48 hours to transmit the bacteria to you or another animal.

If you notice a eurythma migrans rash (like a bull's eye) go to a doctor and get checked out. Generally you will be given antibiotics and that will be the end of that. Keep in mind only 60-70% of people will develop the rash and it will not always be very obvious. Joint pain, cardiac, or problems with the nervous system can occur later on if untreated. Whether you remember a tick bite or not go get it checked out.

Prevention is the best thing. If you go out and about (anywhere there could be small mammals like mice and larger ones like deer and you are around wet areas with lots of brush from ground level to thigh level) when you get home check yourself and clothes THOROUGHLY. If you're not adverse to chemical sprays use DEET. If you find a tick attached and feeding don't follow any crazy suggetions about how to remove it. Use a pair of tweezers and grab as close to the skin as possible and pull with steady tension until the tick comes free (save for later ID if necessary). Using vasoline or a lighter or doing anything else may cause the tick to regurgitate into the wound and actually spread the bacteria. Be vigilant and should have no worries

Great information, Chris.

I've taken to spraying my outdoor clothing with permethrin which is supposed to last on the clothes for awhile. I also spray myself with insect repellent. I dislike repellent, but I decided that I dislike bites more.

-Jack

Great info. I've had Lymes it's no fun but if caught early can be treated and cured very easy. The trick is to know you might have been bitten by a deer tick so your Dr. can get the treatment right. My Dr. said most people who have big trouble with Lymes or Rocky Mountain don't get the right treatment because they don't know or forgot to tell there Dr. they had a tick bite. I had no bullseye rash just flu like symptoms but I had found deer ticks on my leg about 8 or 10 days before I got sick. The ones I found were not attached but somewhere one was and I got Lymes. It took about 4 weeks and 2 rounds of antibiotics but got rid of it. If you get into ticks remember it and if you get sick tell the Dr. so they can test and treat you.

Tom

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Wilderness Tarpon 120
and a Tenkara USA Amago
Good Combo!!!

Kuhlow's info is right on the money. Kuhlow, where did you work? Did you also study any of the other Borrelia specie or morpha? I'm thinking S.T.A.R.I., etc.

A bit more on prevention (which is truly the best medicine):
1. Minimize exposed skin.
2. Secure openings to clothing (cuffs of shirt and pants, etc).
3. DEET on the skin. Polymerized 30-33%, not more, not less. Applied every 8-12h. On exposed skin only. Not on the face, head, mucus membranes, penis, etc (you laugh, but Marines do some stupid stuff). Not on clothes (will melt many plastic based fibers, take off DWR treatments, etc).
4. Permethrin on clothes. Appropriately applied, will last not less than 6 washes, usually much longer. Do not apply to DWR treated fabrics (will roll right off DWR treated stuff and do no good). Do not apply to skin.

Info is adapted directly from published scientific literature. Would be happy to provide further explanation, discuss detail, or provide references to anyone interested. Would also be happy to post a copy of the lecture I give on vector control if there's any interest.

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Rob Worthing
rob@tenkaraguides.com

I don't know how well Permethrin would leech into water once it was applied and dried on clothing, but be aware that it is extremely toxic to fish and other aquatic life. It is recommended that its use around water be avoided.

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2012 Days Fishing - 18/366
Iwana : Series I : 11 ft ◊ Iwana : Series II : 12 ft

Darrin,

Not quite true.

Permethrin is, in fact, extremely toxic to aquatic life in liquid form.

Once dried, this is no longer a concern. Permethrin does not leech out of clothing in any measurable amount. At all. This has been definitively established by the EPA.

Follow the manufacturers directions, and permethrin poses no reasonable concern for toxicity in either yourself or the aquatic environment you move through.

Universal directions for the use of permethrin include the following:
1. wear PPE during application.
2. do not apply near water sources.
3. do not apply to base layers.
4. ensure clothing is completely dry before use.
5. dispose of any waste appropriately.

Might sound like a pain, but it's not that bad. Particularly since you don't have to apply it very often. In Maine, I would treat my clothing once a season. The risk of tick-borne illness in Maine is very high.

Bottom line is that a combination of 1. polymerized 33% DEET on skin applied every 8-12 hours and 2. permethrin treated clothing is the most effective chemical preventive measure from vector bites available.

When used appropriately, they are very, very safe.

Rob

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Rob Worthing
rob@tenkaraguides.com

Rob,

What is DWR and PPE?