TICK!

[musky hunter]

Just a cautionary note about my recent unpleasant woods experience. On Monday afternoon I was on my stand for about 1-1/2 hours. It's only 300 feet off the road and 5 minutes from my home in Superior WI. By Friday I'm in urgent care with a 3" diamate raging bullseye on my upper torso. My wife insisted I go in, I might not have had she not isisted, but I'm glad she did. Since it was likely a deer tick that bit me I'm on a course of antibiotics. But if you do happen to pick one up, don't hesitate like I did, I could have gone in when it was only the size of a quarter and swelling up, or worse yet ignored it altogether and end up with full blown Lymes disease. Those things are active even in incredibly cold temps, so we need to remain aware through the season.

[wannafish2]

did the doc say there was any possibility it was a spider bite? sounds like one a friend of mine had several years ago in Florida...red bullseye, got infected really quickly....just curious

[musky hunter]

Could've been a spider bite. It had rash features that both tics and spider bites have and I did not find what bit me. It also swelled up and had a lump the resembling size of a small kidney bean.

[NaturesRespect]

ewwwww i hate ticks... found one crawling on my jeans after leaving the bow range a few months back. idk why but i rarely find any on me when im out in the woods or outside doing stuff, and no i do not use bug spray ever! i can be sitting on the ground for a while and running through the woods hunting squirrels but almost never see or find any ticks on me. weird huh?

[Jack Stasney]

Had a spider bite me this summer cutting lawn. Brought me to my knees when it hit. Ankle/foot swelled up for about 10 days or so and was red around the bite. Don't know what kind of spider exactly it was since I completely smashed it, but it left two holes where it bit. Best of luck with your treatment.

[LatLong]

3 yrs ago I got bit by a deer tick in the middle of October. I had this wierd pain in my knee the latter half of the day...when I found the tick the next morning(on my upper thigh) and pulled it the pain almost immediately stopped. The tick bite turned in to a hole about the size of a pea... I have a scar from it. Never got the bullseye but I got antibiotics just in case.

[tritonman]

This past weekend I was up grouse hunting on our land that connects to Itasca State Park. I literally pulled over 100 ticks of my dogs, my son, and myself. I knelt down to tie my boot at one point and when I stood back up had 7 on my knee!!! I had 4 that imbedded on my chest. I have the red marks that itch like crazy but no bullseyes. We have had four cases of limes disease from our cabin in the last two years. Hope this wont be #5.

[jigglestick]

I got bit two weekends ago.

made a full day of work on monday but I could feel what felt like a scratch on my inner, upper thigh.

figured I'd deal with it when I got home. well I checked it out that night and I could see the tiny little legs sticking out.

that tick was burrowed in head first like I had never seen.

pulled it and saw it was an adult female.

went to the dr and he told me my options, one of which was to wait it out as all deer ticks do not transmit the disease.

the option I chose was to take a head on dose of doxycycline (sp)two pills first and then two more pills twelve hours later.

he agreed with my choice.

the pills cost me $4.00 at gouge-u-rite farmacy so the whole ordeal was quite painless.

I still have the bite and it itches a little but I'm not to worried about it now like I was the first day I knew about it.

I'm really surprised this it the first time I've been bitten.

I've found a couple crawling on me, but never any attached.

I spend quite a bit of time in the woods and I live up nort.

it was just a matter of time I guess.

some people don't even know they have or had a bite because the nymph's are so small, if they get you in a spot not easily checked, they go un-noticed.

good idea to get your spouse to give you a good once over after you've been in the woods...could be fun

[tunrevir]

I said this on a thread last year and will repeat it again: be very careful when hanging and cleaning your own deer. As the carcass cools the ticks will crawl off to any host that is warmer then the surroundings and I have dealt with this on a couple occassions. So the threat isn't only in the woods but can be brought into your own garage or can even transpire after a few pics after the hunt. Check yourself thoroughly after each time afield or being around the carcass.

Tunrevir~

[Jack Stasney]

Got to thinking about this and my daughter had one last summer. We went to the Dr. and they said not to worry unless it bullseyes, which it never did. Also as an FYI, there are places you can mail the tick too and they will test it for the bacteria that causes Lyme's. Cost was $80 dollars I think, and the tick ended up being a carrier. We didn't get her any treatment because we caught it right away. Dr. said that catching it early is important, and when pulling the tick out DO NOT squeeze it. If you squeeze it you'll push the bacteria into your blood stream. I've met people who have suffered with this disease, and it doesn't sound pleasant.

[JohnR6]

A tick has to be attached for than 24 - 48 hours to transmit limes. so as long as you (or the misses )check after every day in the woods you shoud be good

[musky hunter]

Those buggers are nasty. I never felt any bit or crawly feeling at all, nor did I find a tick. It may have been so small that it fell out unnoticed. I'm looking to see if I can get the vaccine.

[jigglestick]

went for a nice walk out in the woods today. two partridges, two shots, one bird...and at least a dozen of them freaking deer ticks!

starting to take the fun our of walking in the woods.

none attached that I can see, but the missus will have to go in for closer eggzamination

[Bugwubber]

Does permethrin (or what ever it is) treated clothing keep them off?

[AuggieDawg11]

Found a deer tick crawling on my hand on the drive home from the stand this morning. Yuck!

[so haaad]

I tested positive for lyme disease this summer. The red bullseye doesn't always show up, so figuring out if you have it can be tricky. Kind of like the flu but much, much worse. The symptoms are nasty though. Awful chills, terrible headaches, all over body aches. I was on antibiotics for a month. Musky, did the test come back positive?

[pushbutton]

got a crash course in lymes 101 this summer.....if the infection was raised you are probably ok...the lyme bullseye is usually flat....the bullseye you were seeing was probably due to the infection's swelling and putting pressure on the surrounding skin creating a white circle with red inflamed tissue in the middle and outside....also the test for lymes is compromised by taking the antibiotics before testing....big catch 22......if you are antibiotics you should be good to go......never took tick bites seriously.....so far mine does not appear to be from a deer tick, but the dog ticks can take a toll on you as well. got my my but kicked for about 5 days!!! this thing was on my upper back and the size of an elongated tennis ball......

[musky hunter]

Push Button and So Haaad:

It looked a lot like that ugly bullseye in the picture. It had a big swollen center piece about the size of a dime, surrounded by a big red area much like the photo. The outer perimiter was sharply defined. Apparently Lymes is not the only tick born illness, though Lymes might be the most famous because it's so horrible. I know two aquaintences who got it and they both got quite ill, one never really fully recovered. Apparently my bite only left me with a bad yet treatable bacterial infection. These are nothing to fool around with hoping they get better on their own.

[Bear55]

Just a reminder for everyone to be careful this fall, after not getting a tick all of July, Aug, Sept I was moving some game cams this morning and got 5 of the little buggers.

[nater]

That doesn't sound like fun at all. I hope the tick I found this morning doesn't turn into anything like that! Checked myself over yesterday but found it on the back of my arm in the morning.

[BuckmasterG]

Well lets just say, like jigglestick, I had a tick send me in a frenzy during the Vikes game on Sunday!.. Just got back from up north chopping wood, go to relieve myself during the second half and by god the little b*stard is burrowed in a not so pleasnt place. Long story short been working on getting the pieces out still while being careful with the region.. Still pretty worried about it not a place I want any future problems or amputation but hasn't had any swelling or anything.

[pushbutton]

sorry for laughing BMG, hope everything works out for you....it reminded me of how i learned why to wear gloves when cutting up habanero peppers!

[AuggieDawg11]

This warm weather brought out another hatch of ticks. We found lots of pin head sized ticks on us after hunting each night this weekend. Check yourself!

[jeffreyd]

pushbutton so are suggesting that when we go to the woods we should wear gloves on hands and else where?

[Hooliganz]

Must have been another hatch of ticks with that warm weather stretch...Me and buddy were out grouse hunting up by Isabella Oct.15-17th, one afternoon walking thru the woods I look down and had about 6 round splotches on my pants of with like 50-100 ticks each., they were about pin size ticks. Could just wipe them off but man sure gave me the creepy crawly jeebies was checking everywear that night. Actually put a few in a baggie and took home. They were baby ticks so too small to bite or tell if deer tick or not the Vet said.