Tick-borne Disease Education and Prevention Program

Lyme Disease is a bacterial infection spread to people through the bite of blacklegged ticks. (Borrelia burgdorferi). Lyme can affect people at any age, any time throughout the year.

A tick that has the Lyme disease bacteria can pass it on to the humans and animals it bites. Deer ticks can bite any time throughout the year, however different stages of ticks are more active in different seasons:

Be alert for adult ticks - normally the size of a sesame seed, but can be as big as a small raisin after feeding. In winter, adult ticks are usually active when the temperature is above 45 degrees F; usually inactive when ground is snow covered and in temperatures below 45 degrees F.

Watch for immature ticks - about the size of a poppy seed. One stage of immature ticks, called nymphs, cause about 90% of all Lyme disease cases.

Typical symptoms include fever, headache, fatigue, and a characteristic skin rash which is a slowly expanding rash usually at the site of the tick bite also known as (erythema migrans). https://www.cdc.gov/lyme/signs-symptoms/index.html.

If left untreated, infection can spread to joints, the heart, and the nervous system.

1. Tick check
   Removing an attached tick quickly and correctly may reduce your chances of getting Lyme disease. Check your entire body for ticks each night before bedtime, or more often when outdoors. Check your child's body for ticks - or teach older children how to check themselves. Examine all areas of the skin, including the groin, backs of the knees, armpits, scalp, and back of the neck. Look as well as feel for ticks.

2. Dress right to prevent tick bites
   When outdoors, stay in open spaces or on well maintained trails. Wear long sleeves and long pants. Tuck pant legs into socks and shirt into pants. Wearing light-colored clothing will help you spot a tick more easily. Check your body for ticks often when outdoors. Before coming indoors, brush off your clothing.

3. Tick repellents
   Consider using a tick repellent - a repellent containing DEET (N,N-diethyl-m-toluamide) can be used on exposed skin and clothing. Another repellent, Permethrin, cannot be put on your skin, but can help repel ticks if it is applied to your clothing. Follow the label directions carefully.

4. Check and protect your pets
   Pets that are allowed outdoors can get ticks on their fur and bring them indoors. A tick attached to your pet will not bite you, but a loose tick may brush off and seek you as a host. Frequently inspect your pets for ticks, remove any attached or unattached ticks, and use tick-control products that your veterinarian recommends.

Removing an attached tick quickly and correctly may reduce your chances of getting Lyme disease.

1. Use fine point tweezers to grasp the tick where its mouth parts enter the skin.
2. Pull the tick straight out. Be careful not to squeeze, crush, or puncture the body of the tick.
3. After removing the tick, disinfect the area and the tweezers, and wash your hands.
4. Save the tick and have it identified at the Cornell Cooperative Extension.
5. Do not try to remove ticks by using petroleum jelly (Vaseline), lit cigarettes or other home remedies because these methods may just increase your chance of getting infected.

Cornell Cooperative Extension
c/o Horticulture Laboratory
10 Patriot Hills Drive
Stony Point, NY 10980
(845) 429-7085, option 3
www.rocklandcce.org/

Horticulture Lab Hours:
April - October: Monday-Thursday 9:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.
November - March: Monday-Thursday 9:00 a.m.-Noon

Fee:
$15.00 Identification Fee (Wednesday is Senior Day, Lab Services are 50% off)

In addition, The Insect Diagnostic Laboratory at Cornell University (IDL) welcomes emailed photos and mailed-in samples for identification. The fee is $25. Directions on How to Send Samples or Email Photos (or Both) for Identification.

For Diagnosis and Treatment, Contact:
Your health care provider, an infectious disease physician, or call the Lyme Disease Practice at the Westchester Medical Center, (914) 493-8425.

1. Keep your property clean
   Leaf litter and brush should be moved as far away from the house as possible. Prune low-lying bushes to let in more sunlight. Be thorough about raking up leaves and dead foliage, especially in the fall. Ticks tend to survive the winter by hiding under leaf litter.

2. Landscape planning
   Make sure any plants near your house are not varieties that deer favor. Your local nursery or the Cornell Cooperative Extension (845-429-7085) can provide you with this information. A three foot strip of mulch around the edge of the yard can help to reduce your exposure to ticks. Ticks prefer the woodland edge, and mulch will create a barrier which they are reluctant to cross.

3. Woodpiles
   These are favorite places for mice to build their homes. Keep your wood pile neat, off the ground, and in a sunny area (or covered) so it remains dry.

4. Stone walls
   These should be avoided because they attract small mammals, which increases the potential for ticks. Do not sit on stone walls, particularly during the summer months.

5. Lawns
   Shaded lawns can help support a tick population. Mow lawns regularly, and trim the edges. Prune trees to allow more sunlight in.

6. Bird feeders
   Birds can harbor infected ticks. Make sure the ground below the feeder is bare and that the feeder is not too close to your house. Clean up the ground around the bird feeder regularly to limit any food available to rodents.

7. Fences
   An 8-foot-high deer fence can keep deer out of your yard, but it won't help with smaller mammals and birds.

8. Chemical controls
   If ticks are abundant on your property, consider the use of pesticides. Just one application a year (in late May or early June) of an approved pesticide may greatly reduce the nymphal tick numbers on your property. Consider hiring a professionally trained pesticide applicator.

Call the Cornell Cooperative Extension (845-429-7085) for more information on managing the environment.

Lyme Disease: This website has general information on Lyme disease including prevention and what to do after a tick bite.

Order CDC Lyme Disease Educational Materials

New York State Department of Health page includes information on Lyme disease and other diseases spread by ticks, and suggested repellants.

National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Disesases (NIAID): This website provides information on understanding Lyme disease and NIAID's role in Lyme disease research.