Ticks... Overreaction?

[FlyGuy]

A couple weeks ago I got up in the night to pee, felt something on one of my love handles, and realized it was a tick who was getting pretty full. I removed it and went to bed, but had a dr apt a couple days later so I asked her about it. She said it was nothing to worry about because the tick would need to have been attached for ~ 12 hours or more for it to be able to transmit anything if it even had it. I never investigated this any further and don’t want to pass along bad info, but it’s a pretty good source and I thought it was at least interesting. Sure made me feel better to hear it!




You can’t cheat the mountain

 

[Ratamahatta]

Last year scouting I put my pack down right in a nest of new born ticks that just hatched. Went all day thinking I just had scratches from greenbriars because I did walk through them. Needles to say when I got home from work about midnight I lifted my shirt up and seen hundreds on little specks around my waist line. I ended up have my wife shave my whole body and pull them out with tweezers. We lost count after 70. I went to the doctor the next day and they gave me antibiotics. I'll never go out without deet or permethrin.

 

[WCB]

My record is 173 ticks pulled of my dog at our place in ND...got there in the evening for the first mowing of the year. Grass was about 8 inches long. Took me 2 hours to pull them all off and still found ore in the morning on him. Thats not even counting the couple dozen that i found crawling off him onto the floor or me the whole time.

It is incredible that once we do that first mowing (and we mow it as low as the mower will go) it is almost unheard of to get a tick on in the yard....no body goes out for 3 weeks or so and the grass grows up...100% you are getting ticks.

 

[choovhntr]

This has been the worst year for ticks I have ever seen here. I’m used to getting a few on me when hiking through the hills, but this year is unreal. I must have pulled 40-50 off me the other day and didn’t hike that far. I would take about 5 steps, stop and check and there would be at least two or three every time. Here is a picture of what we are dealing with, this was one blade of grass in my backyard...

Make sure you check yourself after every outing.

 

[Hank Hill]

Was out doing some work at the ranch over the past two weekends and woke up with a big bulls-eye rash around a bite on my inner thigh yesterday. Sent doc a picture he put me on 3 weeks of doxy.

 

[jrnd]

Also use permethin and then spray deet on my skin as well.

 

[Nillion]

Those of you who don't use permethrin are missing out. I spray all my outdoors clothes liberally with it pre-season and use DEET on my exposed skin (neck and face mostly). I've had about 9 days of hunting so far this turkey season and haven't had a single tick on me. It does a good job of preventing mosquitoes from eating me alive also.

 

[ClangClang]

Quick note - the old belief that Lyme takes 12-24 hours to transmit is a complete MYTH. Lyme has been documented to transmit in as little as 4 hours. And all that means is we know it can be transmitted in only 4 hours, it's completely plausible that it can transmit faster as well. Much of the CDC protocols on Lyme are based on several studies that were conducted in the late 90s and are woefully out of date. This is not me being a conspiracy theorist or nonsense homeopathy/"toxin-driven" lore. It's solid, peer-reviewed science. You can find tons of current studies on PubMed/NIH. They're slowly trickling their way into the CDC protocols, but institutional inertia is a real thing and hard to overcome.

Lyme is motherfucker. I've had it twice so far.

 

[PMcGee]

Quick note - the old belief that Lyme takes 12-24 hours to transmit is a complete MYTH. Lyme has been documented to transmit in as little as 4 hours. And all that means is we know it can be transmitted in only 4 hours, it's completely plausible that it can transmit faster as well. Much of the CDC protocols on Lyme are based on several studies that were conducted in the late 90s and are woefully out of date. This is not me being a conspiracy theorist or nonsense homeopathy/"toxin-driven" lore. It's solid, peer-reviewed science. You can find tons of current studies on PubMed/NIH. They're slowly trickling their way into the CDC protocols, but institutional inertia is a real thing and hard to overcome.

Lyme is motherfucker. I've had it twice so far.

I agree. Two years ago I had one in me for less then 12 hours. Everything I read said I should be fine. A week later I got the big bullseye rash. Doctor didn’t test me but said I likely had it. Took Doxy for 3 weeks. Never had any other symptoms besides the rash.


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[AmeliaFraser]

Hi, everybody.
It all started with a stomach ache. There was a heaviness when I lay down. But I didn't think much of it, and it died down over time. Then began weakness, thirst, copious urination, ran like goosebumps on the body. I didn't think much of that either. And one day I became very ill: I had a headache, alternately left and right side. And in the evening it became difficult to breathe. I thought I was going to pass out. But I survived it, by morning it became easier and I went to the hospital in the morning. There I was tested for blood and urine, everything was normal. They did an ultrasound of the abdominal cavity, said that the liver and kidneys are in order, gastritis, and sent to the endocrinologist. I also have another symptom: a lump in my throat. I passed the thyroid and parathyroid hormones, everything was normal.
On one day, the temperature still rose, but not much. The highest was 37.6 per. These are the same complaints persisted. I also discovered that I was bitten by a tick. I was at the therapist, she examined me and said that I had an infection after the bite, prescribed Arbidol, paracetamol and the antibiotic doxycycline against the tick. Now I have a suspicion that my cat could have picked up a tick, I examined it but found nothing and it feels bad. We went to veterniary and do Allis blood showed infection and fleas. The doctor advised me to buy flea collars for cats and not worry about the pet. You know, it really helped and I'm happy!

 

[Afhunter1]

There is a LOT of bad info in this thread. Please do your own homework on ticks and Lyme.

 

[npellegrene]

What examples of DEET are your guys spraying on your exposed skin?

 

[H80Hunter]

I've used Ben's 100% deet, I think OFF has a 100% product as well.

 

[Coldtrail]

I switched from DEET to Picardin a few yrs back, much better option on the body as well as equipment.

 

[fatlander]

I must be one lucky fellow, because I’ve been bitten by enough ticks to lose count and haven’t been sick yet. I wear permethrin religiously now, but it still happens from time to time. How do y’all spend any amount of time in the woods and never get bitten? If I was as worried as some on this thread seem to be, I’d never be able to enjoy a hunt.


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[Diesel]

I have had Lymes and it is no joke. It is really hard to know what is real with all the misinformation out there. Some medical advice says it stays in your system and can reemerge at any time. I have spent 11 days in the hospital with a severe case about two years ago. I did not think I was gonna make at one point. Finally they just gave me doxy and I was out and recovering even though I tested negative. Did another dose of doxy this past summer.

I have read that there are different strains of Lymes and Antiplasmosis (sp). Our area has a particular rare strain . That may account for the negative test results at times.

Best to treat asap as it only gets worse.

I don't know what to believe, but that has been my experiences with the stuff. And BTW, I pulled one off just a few days ago.

 

[Highvoltage1]

Treat clothes with permethrin. I use deet regularly at work and still pull the occasional tick off me. It’s not bomb proof at all, not to mention the percentage of deet is only good for the amount of time it’s useful. So a 25% is good for 2.5 hrs. I got lyme and babeosis last November, had terrible neuropathy with it vs the typical joint pain. I went through 5/6 anti virals and antibiotics over a year period with no improvement. Finally I was prescribed disulfiram and it rid my neuropathy. It’s been about 2 months now since I’ve taken any meds and I can’t be more thankful. Definitely treat your clothes and always check when you come inside. I never found the tick nor did I have any rash. Best wishes!

 

[SwampBone]

It’s different every year here in north central MN. Some years are worse then others. Mainly they’re active in the spring and fall. I have a bird dog who’s always running around in the woods so I know right away when they’re out. On bad years I can get them just walking on the lawn. I’ve had Lyme and I never want to get it again! Whenever I’m working in the woods or hunting before a couple hard frosts I’m wearing pants treated with permethrin and checking myself thoroughly at the end of the day.

 

[Trumpkin The Dwarf]

I treat clothing with Permethrin religiously here in TX. I've yet to find a tick embedded in me, and I am fearless about walking through tall grass, thick brush, etc. trying to kick up hogs. I make a point of wearing long sleeves any time I'm out hunting. There's some guys down here that will go all over the place in shorts and a T-shirt. Not this guy! I don't mess with ticks, but I don't fear them. Permethrin, permethrin, permethrin. Use it liberally, use it often.

 

[Anglo-American]

So I went on a hike after work on Friday afternoon. On Saturday evening I found a tick lodged in my back. I was able to carefully remove it and followed up with the doctor today to take a dose of antibiotics as a precaution against Lyme disease. I know spring is always worse than summer with regard to ticks.

Do you guys worry about ticks and do you get bit often? What is your protocol for dealing with them - particularly if you find one on you?

I usually give myself a good look over, but this one was a nymph and very hard to see. I also tend to use permethrin as a spray but did not this time.

Any suggestions? It honestly makes me think twice about going into the woods this time of year. I hate ticks!

I don't use those chemical sprays.
They'll kill you not to dissimilar to Lyme in the end.
It takes 12 hours from being bitten before a tick goes though it's cycle to the possibly infect you with whatever viruses that they may be carrying. It's not an instant process.

Check twice a day, before bed, and upon waking is a good strategy.
Kill every tick you find, obviously.
That's about it.