Check daily for ticks to reduce risk of contracting lyme disease

Established deer tick population found in southeastern Manitoba

Wood ticks are nasty little creatures, but deer ticks are the critters we really need to watch for.

The smaller, crimson-coloured, black-legged ticks come up to Manitoba from the United States on migrating birds, dropping from their hosts when they have completed feeding. How they get here isn’t really a problem — but what they carry with them could be.

“The problem comes in where the ticks might be infected with a bacteria that causes lyme disease,” entomologist Terry Galloway says.

Galloway says only 10% of deer ticks carry the lyme bacteria, and until 2006 there wasn’t even an established population of deer ticks in Manitoba.

However, all stages of deer ticks were found in southeastern Manitoba two years ago, and the bacteria that causes lyme disease was present. So far, the southeast remains the only known area in the province with an established population of deer ticks, says Galloway.

Lyme disease has been reported in Manitoba since 1999, says Dr. Susan Roberecki, deputy chief medical officer of health for Manitoba.

“There have been 19 cases since that time,” she said.

It’s likely that there have been more cases, says Roberecki, adding that only patients showing specific symptoms would have had their cases recorded.

In its initial stage, lyme disease causes a rash and flu-like symptoms, then musculoskeletal, arthritic, neurologic, psychiatric, and cardiac problems. Antibiotics can be used to treat the disease in its early stages but if its left untreated, damage can be permanent.

Symptoms of lyme disease can take four to nine days to show up after exposure.

The best way to prevent yourself from being infected by a bacteria-carrying tick is to check yourself and your children at the end of every day you spend outdoors in tall grass or in the bushes, Roberecki says.

“If you remove the tick within 24 hours it is extremely unlikely that you would contract lyme disease or any other tick-related disease,” she says.

“The longer the tick is attached, the greater the likelihood you’ll become infected,” Galloway adds.

However, unless you’re spending a lot of time in southeastern Manitoba, the probability is low that you will even encounter a deer tick, Galloway says.

Dogs, on the other hand, have a much greater chance of coming into contact with ticks in general.

Last year over 300 dogs tested positive for lyme disease in Manitoba.

This year, a new test has been introduced that will allow veterinarians to test dogs for heartworm, lyme disease, and two other tick-borne diseases all at once.

“If you test and you vaccinate, that’s not good enough,” says veterinarian Jaenine Woods.

“You need to reduce the number of ticks on the dog,” she said, adding that people should check their dogs for ticks just as often as they check themselves.

Whenever possible, keep yourself and your dog out of tall grass to prevent getting ticks in the first place, Woods says.

Dog-owners should use tick prevention along with the test and the vaccine to cut down the chances of their dogs contracting a tick-borne disease, she says.