The West Milford Health Department would like to share the latest information from the CDC regarding Preventing tick bites and potential tick borne diseases such as Lyme Disease, Babeosis, Ehrlichiosis and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. You can be proactive and try to prevent your exposures to these disease.
Preventing Tick Bites
While it is a good idea to take preventive measures against ticks year-round, be extra vigilant in warmer months (April-September) when ticks are most active.
Avoid Direct Contact with Ticks
•Avoid wooded and bushy areas with high grass and leaf litter.
•Walk in the center of trails.
Repel Ticks with DEET or Permethrin
•Use repellents that contain 20% or more DEET (N, N-diethyl-m-toluamide) on the exposed skin for protection that lasts up to several hours. Always follow product instructions. Parents should apply this product to their children, avoiding hands, eyes, and mouth.
•Use products that contain permethrin on clothing. Treat clothing and gear, such as boots, pants, socks and tents. It remains protective through several washings. Pre-treated clothing is available and remains protective for up to 70 washings.
•Other repellents registered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may be found at http://cfpub.epa.gov/oppref/insect/.
Find and Remove Ticks from Your Body
•Bathe or shower as soon as possible after coming indoors (preferably within two hours) to wash off and more easily find ticks that are crawling on you.
•Conduct a full-body tick check using a hand-held or full-length mirror to view all parts of your body upon return from tick-infested areas. Parents should check their children for ticks under the arms, in and around the ears, inside the belly button, behind the knees, between the legs, around the waist, and especially in their hair.
•Examine gear and pets. Ticks can ride into the home on clothing and pets, then attach to a person later, so carefully examine pets, coats, and day packs. Tumble clothes in a dryer on high heat for an hour to kill remaining ticks.
Preventing Ticks on Your Pets
Dogs are very susceptible to tick bites and tickborne diseases. Vaccines are not available for all the tickborne diseases that dogs can get, and they don’t keep the dogs from bringing ticks into your home. For these reasons, it’s important to use a tick preventive product on your dog.
Tick bites on dogs may be hard to detect. Signs of tickborne disease may not appear for 7-21 days or longer after a tick bite, so watch your dog closely for changes in behavior or appetite if you suspect that your pet has been bitten by a tick.
To reduce the chances that a tick will transmit disease to you or your pets:
•Check your pets for ticks daily, especially after they spend time outdoors.
•If you find a tick on your dog, remove it right away.
•Ask your veterinarian to conduct a tick check at each exam.
•Talk to your veterinarian about tickborne diseases in your area.
•Reduce tick habitat in your yard.
•Talk with your veterinarian about using tick preventives on your pet.
Note: Cats are extremely sensitive to a variety of chemicals. Do not apply any insect acaricides or repellents to your cats without first consulting your veterinarian!
Preventing Ticks in the Yard
Create a Tick-Safe Zone Through Landscaping
You can make your yard less attractive to ticks depending on how you landscape. Here are some simple landscaping techniques that can help reduce tick populations:
•Clear tall grasses and brush around homes and at the edge of lawns.
•Place a 3-ft wide barrier of wood chips or gravel between lawns and wooded areas and around patios and play equipment. This will restrict tick migration into recreational areas.
•Mow the lawn frequently and keep leaves raked.
•Stack wood neatly and in a dry area (discourages rodents that ticks feed on).
•Keep playground equipment, decks, and patios away from yard edges and trees and place them in a sunny location, if possible.
•Remove any old furniture, mattresses, or trash from the yard that may give ticks a place to hide.
Apply Pesticides Outdoors to Control Ticks
A single springtime application of an acaracide (tick pesticide), such as bifenthin, can greatly reduce the number of ticks in your yard.
If you have concerns about applying acaricides:
•Identify rules and regulations related to pesticide application on residential properties (Environmental Protection Agency and your state determine the availability of pesticides).
•Consider using a professional pesticide company to apply pesticides at your home from the state of New Jersey. They are aware of all the state and local regulations required.