People and pets are at risk of tick bites throughout the entire year. While it is true that most of the cases reported occur in the spring and summer, Lyme disease can occur all year round if you are not vigilant.

Spring

Ticks live in the cooler Northern latitudes. They like the damp, tall grass and wooded places, so spring is the perfect time for them to start rousing themselves and getting ready to feed after a long winter.

The tick that has been connected with the majority of cases of Lyme disease is the black-legged tick. It is also known as the deer tick, because deer are its favorite host to feed from.

Deer will start to mate and procreate in spring, resulting in more hosts for the ticks. While it is true that the bacteria which causes Lyme disease, Borrelia burgdorferi, can’t be transmitted from deer, but rather from small rodents, the more ticks in an area, the greater the risk of Lyme disease and other tickborne illnesses. Continue reading →

People mostly think of Lyme disease in relation to humans, but the fact is the pets can contract it as well. Lyme disease transmission has been reported in 14 states in the US, mostly in the Northeast. It ranges from Virginia in the South to Maine in the North and across to Minnesota in the West. Anyone living in these areas should be extra vigilant about Lyme disease tick bites on themselves and their pets, because it is possible for the tick to carry Lyme disease.

Which Ticks Cause Lyme?

The most common carrier of Lyme disease in the US is the black legged tick, also referred to as the deer tick. Ticks feed on the blood of mammals, reptiles, and amphibians. This being the case, they can pick up various bacteria that cause disease. In the case of Lyme, the bacteria is Borrelia burgdorferi. It is a spirochete, that is, a bacteria shaped like a corkscrew. This allows the disease to burrow into tissue to the point where it is hard to remove it all, even after the usual course of antibiotics prescribed for most Lyme patients.

The Western black-legged tick has been linked to cases of Lyme in the Pacific Northwest. The Lone Star tick has been connected with cases of Lyme in Texas. Continue reading →