The Leelanau Conservation District says that an increase in humidity with a combination of people spending more time outdoors gives ticks the perfect conditions to thrive.
That, they say, is creating an increase in Lyme disease cases in Benzie and Leelanau counties.
“What they do is they just hold their arms out and wait for a host to come by, ”said Kelly Claar, assistant to the Leelanau Conservation District.
You can also be bitten without even knowing it.
Claar says: “It is a small chemical that they inject that opens the blood vessels. It also contains a chemical that makes you not feel. “
The Leelanau Conversation District says the ticks’ favorite place to snag is on the ankles, suggesting putting your pants leg in socks before you go for a walk or bike ride.
“Most importantly, when you’re in the woods or hiking, just check it out. Check your hair line, check your shoe line or your boot line, ”Claar said.
There are simple ways to make sure no tick is brought home.
“You can cut a collar to run away and mark it and put it in your vacuum bag or your vacuum canister and when you vacuum you can lift any ticks and then they die inside the canister,” Claar said. “If you go hiking and come back and you’re not sure about your clothes, you can just throw them in the dryer for five minutes because that dries them out.”
To learn more about Lyme disease and what those symptoms will look like, you can read more from these sources …
https://www.cdc.gov/lyme/index.html
https://www.michigan.gov/emergingdiseases/0,4579.7-186-76711_77928—.00.html
https://www.uofmhealth.org/health-library/hw77226
