Unwelcome Garden Guests

Every now and then when I was in my teens,  my family used to slather on the bug repellent and sunscreen and take our alaskan malamute with us for day hikes up in the hills around where we lived.   She loved it. So did the ticks.  Inevitably, within a day or two of our hikes I was helping my mother pull these little vermin off the dog.  I'd feel crawly for days afterwards.

In the region of California in which I was raised, deer ticks are very common in the grassy places where people often love to hike and camp. Learning to recognize ticks was just like learning to recognize poison oak.  They were a fact of life if one wanted to enjoy the great outdoors. Aside from dealing with the dog,  I never had any trouble with them on me. Probably because I made good use of bug repellent. That hasn't stopped me from being a little unnerved at the thought of encountering them on my person.

So, when I saw what looked suspiciously like a tick crawling around on a branch I had just pruned from a long-neglected shrubbery this morning, I got that old creepy-crawly feeling again.  Ewwww.  It's so easy to forget about such things in the supposed civilized safety of one's own backyard. Thank goodness I had been using the rake instead of my hands to load the pile of cuttings into the wheelbarrow.

American Dog Tick (Photo Source)

After a tick check and a run for the bug repellent, I finished my work (still using the rake of course), tossed my gardening clothes straight into the washing machine, checked myself again and ran for the shower. This time I appear to be unscathed, but I shall be more careful in the future.

In my transition to Texas from California, I have had to learn a few new things and re-learn a few old things. Fortunately, what I know about ticks applies in both places.

Ticks like wooded areas, thick shrubberies, and tall grass, so consider the following if you plan to be in such places:

• Wear light colored clothing, to make ticks easier to see.
• If you can, wear long pants and sleeves, and tuck them into your socks/gloves.   This can be difficult in hot regions.  If you are a "belts and suspenders" type of person, you can also use some old shoelaces to tie off the bottom part of your pants to make doubly sure. Just tie them too tight. You still need circulation in your feet!  
• Wear insect repellent that is labeled as effective for ticks. Treat clothes and exposed skin, following label directions. (I'm usually not crazy about chemical repellents such as DEET. If I'm just going to a barbecue, I usually wear a bug band to keep mosquitoes off, but for hiking or gardening in a tick-infested area, I make an exception.)
• Check yourself thoroughly for ticks upon coming indoors. Pay special attention to all cracks, crannies, and crevices, and places covered by hair or close-fitting parts of your clothing.  Use a mirror or a spouse to help you check hard to see places.
• Take a shower and wash your clothing as soon as possible. (CDC recommends within two hours.)  If you've been playing in the dirt or hiking, chances are you'll be hot and sweaty and will want to do this anyway.
• Keep pets indoors if you can, check them often if you can't. Give them flea/tick preventatives regularly either way.
• If you find one attached to you or your pet, see the links below for more information on removal and symptoms of tick-borne disease. If you develop such symptoms, seek medical care.

A few links:
Tickinfo.com
Texas A&M Tick Research Labaratory
The Gulf Coast Tick (TAMU profile)
UC Davis: Ticks of California
Control Biting Pests in the Organic Garden
Consumer Reports: Tick Control with Landscaping Techniques
Centers for Disease Control Tick Info Page
The Big Game Hunt: Preventing Tick-Borne Disease
P. Allen Smith: Tick Control
DogsAndTicks.com
ASPCA Tick Page
CatHealth.com: Tick Parasites of Cats