Ticks - the mini-vampires lurking in the countryside
By Peter Wedderburn UK Last updated: November 2nd, 2009
There's a simple reason why there are unlikely to have been any victims of vampires over Halloween: there's no such thing as a vampire.
Despite the concerns of some Christian groups, Halloween is just a time of fantasies and fun, disowned as a serious event by those fringe groups who are seriously interested in matters of the occult.
But don't get too relaxed - there is a real-life ``mini vampire'' that can cause serious health issues.
At this time of year, there's a surge in the population of ticks, those spider-like creatures that attach themselves to warm-blooded creatures to get the blood meal that they need to reproduce.
Ticks lurk in woodlands and meadows, hiding in vegetation underfoot then throwing themselves at passing mammals, including farm animals, horses, dogs, cats and humans.
They can be as small as pinheads when they crawl onto you, but can swell to the size of coffee beans as they fill up with blood.
Ticks cause major problems by transmitting blood-borne parasites in many countries, but in the UK's temperate climate they've traditionally been regarded as just an irritating nuisance for pets and people.
This view is now being challenged, and there's increasing awareness of the threat of a bacterial disease that's passed on by ticks - Lyme Disease. Humans, dogs and horses can be affected.
Signs include include behavioural changes (e.g. depression, lethargy and lack of appetite), fever, swollen joints, and muscle stiffness.
The disease can be easy to treat if caught in the early stages, by giving a three-week course of a particular antibiotic.
One of the main problems is that it's often not diagnosed until it's become well established, when affected parts of the body (such as joints and nervous tissue) may already have been seriously damaged.
Antibiotics can be effective at eradicating the Lyme Disease bacteria, but damaged organs can be slow to heal, and signs of Lyme Disease can linger for years, or even for life.
Not every tick is infected with Lyme Disease, and not every tick bite will transmit the disease, but the longer a tick is allowed to remain on its host, the more likely it is that
Lyme Disease infection will result. It's worth taking steps to avoid ticks, and to remove them as soon as possible if they do attach themselves to you or your pet.
How do you avoid ticks? Cover up bare skin below hip level when you're walking in tick country, and apply preventive drops, sprays or collars to your pets.
And how do you remove ticks? Traditional methods should be avoided: if ticks are stabbed with lighted cigarettes, smothered with oil, or plucked out with fingers, they're liable to
regurgitate their stomach contents, injecting infection directly into their host. It's far better to use fine-tipped tweezers to pluck them out without squeezing their bodies, or to use a
specially designed tick removing tool, which does the job rapidly and efficiently.
Once you've done the job, don't just throw the tick on the ground, or it may reattach to the next passing person or animal.Throw them into an
open fire, flush them down the toilet, or place them in a sealed plastic bag before crushing them. Without opening the bag, dispose of it in an outside dustbin. Wash your hands with soap
and water once you're finished, to be double-sure that you're not carrying any bacteria after handling the tick.
Most people don't know about Lyme Disease until it's too late, and they're already a victim.
There's an excellent website that will tell you more if you want to know, but my main message is simple: ticks may look small and harmless, but thanks to Lyme Disease, they can pack a punch way about their weight.
Posts: 571 | From Massachusetts | Registered: Oct 2008
| IP: Logged |
The Lyme Disease Network is a non-profit organization funded by individual donations. If you would like to support the Network and the LymeNet system of Web services, please send your donations to:
The
Lyme Disease Network of New Jersey 907 Pebble Creek Court,
Pennington,
NJ08534USA http://www.lymenet.org/
UBBFriend: Email this page to someone!
Printer-friendly view of this topic