Lyme disease ,tick control

Swampdog said:
I spray my clothes with Sawyer odorless PERMETHRIN insect repellent, it repels and kills ticks, chiggers, mites, and mosquitoes.

Walmart sells it in their camping section for about $10.

My dog wears a PREVENTIC collar that I buy from my vet for around $25.
Click to expand...

Yup the ticks were horrendous when I lived an hour from the U.S. border in central Canada. My research back then came up with Permethrin as the way to to also. I moved further north and only found two on me earlier this year. I feel that they are manageable now, when I do a body check in the field and before the home shower.
 
Swampdog said:
I spray my clothes with Sawyer odorless PERMETHRIN insect repellent, it repels and kills ticks, chiggers, mites, and mosquitoes.

Walmart sells it in their camping section for about $10.
Click to expand...

YEP.. This is the ticket for me/wife also!! Spray all my clothes, boots, packs, hats.. Tent too.. John
 
I haven't clicked any links, but haven't seen this mentioned yet. For your dogs, there are three oral products available that will kill ticks before they have time to transmit diseases. There are two once a month products, Nexgard and Simparica. There is also a once every 3 month product called Bravecto. For cats, the best is topical Bravecto. It is applied to the skin on the back of their necks every 3 months. All three of these products work excellently, and are highly recommended by me... a DVM. (I have no affiliation with any of these products, just use them and recommend them)
 
After reading through the posts -- the clothing pretreated with permethrin uses a technique developed for malaria control in central Africa. It chemically bonds things to cotton fibers .Permethren is one of those , Permethren is also used now for carpenter ants .
We have another disease spread by ticks from Asia .
A standard protocol has now been established .. 4 weeks of high doses of doxycycline, prompt diagnosis , prompt treatment and this will usually work . However there will be some who will have some amount of lyme and this will in time become active ! Lyme loves to hide especially in the nervous system such as brain and heart ! This is from a long term study published last January by Tulane U .https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/12/171213143613.htm

Many in the medical field are still stuck in the 3 week max for treatment .When I was diagnosed in 2013 who had Lyme and found that it needed 4 weeks as the Tulane study showed .
In 2013 NEPA was a hotspot , western PA had few. In 2015 expansion of ticks was amazing , going into many " tick free" states .
 
Last edited:
Law of unintended consequences, and modern medicine is more than a decade behind in the research, and there are many hurdles still to pass. Here's hoping we can get some real funding over the next few years and get past the smoke and fog of myth and legend when it comes to Lyme's and related illnesses.
 
There have been articles prepared that summarize the worst states for Lyme disease. Generally speaking, they are the New England-Mid Atlantic states or the Northeast US.
 
22-rimfire said:
There have been articles prepared that summarize the worst states for Lyme disease. Generally speaking, they are the New England-Mid Atlantic states or the Northeast US.
Click to expand...

....and Pa is right at the top I believe!!! :( John
 
I believe PA is worst in terms of number of cases, but not the worst from a per capita point of view. As I mentioned before, my older brother got Lyme in PA last year. Caught it early and it was pretty much apparently cured with antibiotics.
 
I treat my hiking clothes with permethrin and use picaridin on my skin. It comes in lotion or spray. Doesn't melt stuff like deet and doesn't irritate the skin.

I live in the coastal SE and always get some ticks on me. Plus the mosquitos and chiggers. Since I've been doing this I haven't found a single tick!

I have been using the Sawyer's permethrin but I've ordered some concentrate that I can dilute to the proper level.

I actually treat my clothes after every wash, at least a little bit. Plus my pack, shoes, socks and hat. I'm a bug magnet, I can't believe how well it works.

I keep my treated clothes in a duffle, I have a couple of sets. It's really hot here so I have to wash most items each hike. I wash on gentle and hang dry. I remove my clothes and take a shower immediatly after coming home. In the past I would still find ticks the next day or so eventually, even after checking and bathing.

I highly recommend the picaridin stuff.
 
Last edited:
Has anyone tried clove bud oil and tea tree oil in a carrier oil?

I use this for mosquitos and it works well for that purpose as far as I can tell for late night walks in the park but I haven't tried it for ticks on the trails. Any thoughts?
 
Ticks spread Lyme disease in Colorado and New Mexico, too. Both are dry, arid States, yet there are ticks here too.

I can vouch for other's accounts of the medical community not properly diagnosing or treating Lyme's. A good frien of mine was infected with Lyme back in the late '90's. Doctors repeatedly misdiagnosed her, and she nearly died. She had to reaea ch and diagnose herself, then she and her family had to find a treatment center. She has lifelong problems from it, and she and her family have spent nearly everything treating it. As she says, Lyme's is a disease you have to buy your way out of.
 
While there are many statements about territories of ticks and Lyme those assumptions were destroyed in 2015 when conditions were perfect for the ticks. The spread then was very fast into areas that had always been " tick free '' like Indiana. We've had it before like the Japanese beatles and gypsy moths. Plants too as we see with Japanese Knot Weed. Migrating birds can bring disease from one continent to another !
 
It's called Lyme disease because it originated in Lyme Ct. which is where the ferry for the Plum Island workers docked. Plum Island as in just off the coast of CT and where the U.S. government has had a top secret research station working on biological weapons since the 50's. Particularly diseases that could be spread to humans by animals. Such as ticks, mosquitoes, bats etc. Mosquito borne West Nile virus and Eastern Equine Encephalitis were also first found in the U.S. in the Lyme area.
Conspiracy theorist have theorized these diseases were accidentally carried from the island to the mainland and spread. Ct still has the highest per capita Lyme disease rate in the country. Litchfield county is the highest in the state. I live in the Lyme disease capital of the world!!
The security there is very serious. Approximately 15 yrs ago we were anchored in a 28' boat and fishing a reef about 200 yards off shore of Plum and were told to leave immediately. We were hailed from shore by two guys in sterile/no insignia uniforms with automatic weapons and a bull horn. Driving a Hummer. They were very serious and were taking NO b.s. We left quickly. They watched us until we were out of sight.
Google Plum Island CT. Very interesting stuff and very likely where Lymes came from.--KV
 
Last edited:
Just got tested.. I am clean.. That is a relief.. :D Hope to stay that way!!! John
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top