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Now that the warm weather is here the danger of ticks is here as well. There are warnings out for Ontario about ticks and tick born diseases. This is a serious problem. Tick borne diseases are nasty.
Where ever you live it should be possible to check out the local tick dangers.
Tick borne illnesses are preventable if we take precautions.


http://news.google.ca/news/url?sr=1&ct2=...t=2&at=dt0

Being aware of the danger is half the battle. If you have been out there with your pet a quick combing should remove any ticks in the fur. They won't have had time to attach to the skin. While you are checking your pet, check your own clothes and hair.
Lyme disease is preventable. Just don't let the ticks bite.
Yes Ticks can be very dangerous. In my area there are cases of Lyme disease though they are rare. But there is still a chance of getting it so there are notices on the entrance to many wooded walking areas giving a warning. A friend of mine did get it a few years ago.
Yet here, a large percentage of Ticks are not infected but it is not worth the risk.
When I walked with Misty in notorious Tick areas, I could see them like tiny black spiders. She was short haired and blonde so they were easy to see before they attached. I used to get them off her. I would check her all over thoroughly, every 5 minutes when on a walk!

I never liked spraying her with any chemicals. I have heard that Geranium oil sprinkled on a dog's collar will repel them naturally. But Geranium oil has such a very strong scent. I didn't put it on Misty.

I have also heard that a Tick has to be embedded for at least a few hours -if not something like 24 hours, for the disease to be transmitted, and if a Tick is removed within this time-frame it will be unlikely to spread Lyme. But it is wise to get them off before they embed.

On human skin, a sign that Lyme has been transmitted is a "bull's-eye" red rash around the bite area. If anyone gets that they would be best to get to the doctor quickly and start a course of antibiotics.
Lyme disease is becoming more common in southern Ontario so they are starting to warn people.
Ticks get on you or a pet when you walk by, but the don't attach immediately. There is time to remove them.
We had ticks in Manitoba and I can remember shaking out clothing and combing my hair. None of us was ever bitten by a tick, but we did get them on us.

I don't know what repels ticks. Rosemary generally repels insects and so does Neem oil. They might work. Careful removalĀ  of ticks is still the best way to prevent disease.

Lyme disease is treatable if it is caught early. The bulls eye rash is a sure sign of Lyme disease.

If you have Lyme disease in England and we have it here in Canada and the USA, I wonder how common it is. Is it all spreading from the same place?