Tick Season 2015

[dusty88]

FYI: ticks aren't as seasonal as insects are. Warm-weather insects require a few days to get active. Ticks can come out and feed on one of those days in February when it warms up for a few hours.

We now have more ticks in Indiana than you might be noticing. Most of us think of the American dog tick, or something similar. Deer ticks are of course here now. Lone star ticks are especially prevalent in the southern half of the state (and moving north). The lone star nymphs are very tiny. If you are the kind of person who needs reading glasses to read, then you need some good magnification to tell that a little Lone Star tick is even a tick.

Most people have heard about deer ticks carrying Lyme disease. However, Lone Stars carry blood parasites that damage your red blood cells (Ehrlichiosis)

In other words, if it's above freezing assume you can get ticks.


Also: poultry are great tick control at home, especially guineas.

 

[Leadeye]

Found one on my boot while out yesterday, mixed up some spray last night.

 

[seedubs1]

PERMETHRIN

I used to find at least 2-3 ticks on me every time I went out into the woods. I now treat my clothing, hat, and shoes with permethrin and havent found one on me in the past 2 years. I did find one on the pavement, and dropped it on my treated sock to see what would happen. It really didn't like that.

You have to treat your clothes, though. Permethrin won't stay on your skin. Spray your clothes, hat, and shoes with it, and you'll be good to go for a while (a few weeks).

The deer and lonestar ticks are the ones that scare me. I really don't want to mess around with that awfulness.

 

[Bosshoss]

Seed ticks were really bad around here last year. Got into them twice.
Problem is they are so tiny you really have to look to see them.

A TIP for seed ticks is if you get in them they are so small they are hard to remove. Get some tape (Duct or masking) and take a strip and run up and down your legs or where ever you have them and they will stick to the tape. Spent hours trying to get them all until I heard about this. Now it just takes a few minutes.

 

[10mmMarc]

Just found one on me after being out all day , fairly big and a medium brown color. We were out all day , never fails I always find atleast one.

 

[JStang314]

I started pulling them off my dog 3 weeks ago but they are really bad here. Vectra 3d is the best I've found for keeping them off if him. Frontline did great for fleas but didn't discourage ticks at all.

 

[lazarus0213]

vectra and firstshield are currently the best thing going for ticks and other bugs. They are the same product just labeled differently for private distribution by Banfield pet hospital. The only other thing that works as good or better is the preventic collar. You can apply vectra or firstshield to your gear and it does a great job, it will also keep the fleas and mosquitos off of you too!

 

[LockStocksAndBarrel]

I got some permethrin. Do you spray it on your clothes and let it dry ahead of time or spray it on in the field? Any guidance appreciated.

 

[SkinNFluff]

I got some permethrin. Do you spray it on your clothes and let it dry ahead of time or spray it on in the field? Any guidance appreciated.

It is most potent wet so I spray it on just before I head out. Every so often respray as needed. Some people spray when the go out and do not do a respray later in the day without any issues.

 

[LockStocksAndBarrel]

Thanks for that info. I don't need a repeat of last year.

 

[Nightsniper]

I treated my cloths last summer and have not washed them yet. Do you think its still good or should wash and reapply ??

 

[MRP2003]

personally, I would wash and reapply. The chemicals are likely to break down over a period of time. I have used a specific pair of pants in the past just to go out to the woods that I had treated but I would always reapply if it had been a week or longer since they were treated.

 

[ghitch75]

dug one out of my belly button 2 weeks ago....

 

[Leadeye]

Living in the woods, I apply permethrin every time I'm outside the yard. it's just a part of warm weather.

 

[dusty88]

I started pulling them off my dog 3 weeks ago but they are really bad here. Vectra 3d is the best I've found for keeping them off if him. Frontline did great for fleas but didn't discourage ticks at all.

Nothing really "repels" ticks well on a dog. They are down there in the weeds exposed to hundreds if not thousands of ticks. A more appropriate goal is a safe product that kills ticks quickly. Having the ticks drop off is nice; even more important is controlling tickborne diseases. We now have ticks like the Lone Star and deer tick in Indiana. These ticks, especially in their nymph stage, are too small to see on a dog.

We carry only Parastar Plus (topical) and Nexgard (oral) because of their effectiveness/safety/30 day characteristics. They are a lot more expensive than the other products, but worth it in my opinion. (the vet clinics do have some rebates on them; that helps).

 

[Knife Lady]

Was in the shower this morning and noticed a brown spot on my arm. I pulled on it and the second time it came off. I put it on the toilet tank top and for a couple of seconds it just sat there then it started to move a little. I said to myself OMG it's a tick. It was so small and I didn't have my glasses on since I was in the shower. I hurried and rinsed off and then put the tick in the toilet and flushed it. I think I got it when I picked up from Brad's dirty clothes to wash he had lying on the garage floor from going and setting up his deer stands last Tuesday. So I guess it has been sucking away on me all night. I am FREAKING out. I have never had a tick on me before and knowing all that can happen to me frightens me to no end. Wish me luck I will be ok. I can't believe how small this thing was.

 

[SkinNFluff]

Was in the shower this morning and noticed a brown spot on my arm. I pulled on it and the second time it came off. I put it on the toilet tank top and for a couple of seconds it just sat there then it started to move a little. I said to myself OMG it's a tick. It was so small and I didn't have my glasses on since I was in the shower. I hurried and rinsed off and then put the tick in the toilet and flushed it. I think I got it when I picked up from Brad's dirty clothes to wash he had lying on the garage floor from going and setting up his deer stands last Tuesday. So I guess it has been sucking away on me all night. I am FREAKING out. I have never had a tick on me before and knowing all that can happen to me frightens me to no end. Wish me luck I will be ok. I can't believe how small this thing was.

I just spent the past few hours out at my camp. I have pulled 8 or 9 off of me so far and i have not taken myy shower yet. No need for you to freak out. the best way to prevent tick spread illnesses it to remove the tick asap. Now just remember just because some ticks "can" carry certain illnesses does not mean that they all do. You stand a better chance catching something by walking in a Walmart.

 

[dusty88]

I just spent the past few hours out at my camp. I have pulled 8 or 9 off of me so far and i have not taken myy shower yet. No need for you to freak out. the best way to prevent tick spread illnesses it to remove the tick asap. Now just remember just because some ticks "can" carry certain illnesses does not mean that they all do. You stand a better chance catching something by walking in a Walmart.

Certainly not good to "freak out" but tickborne diseases are worrisome. Some of them are with you for a lifetime.

And it's hard to compare with "Walmart". I mean yeah yuck! You might even get beat up in the parking lot there I've heard.

 

[davedolli]

Went mushroom hunting yesterday, and pulled one off my abdomen this morning.

Dave

 

[LockStocksAndBarrel]

Just spent 5 days in the southern Hoosier National Forest. Permethrin is da bomb! Not one tick. Killed one on the cooler, one on my tent and one off the truck. Not one tick bite. Last year I had at least 10. Permethrin ROCKS!