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Something To Keep An Eye On....


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There have been 57 cases of the Powassan virus reported over the last 10 years in the United States according to the CDC.

 

http://www.cdc.gov/powassan/index.html

 

In 2011 through 2013 there was an average of 10 cases per year.  http://www.cdc.gov/powassan/statistics.html

 

The breakdown by state from  2004 through 2014 is Maine (2), Massachusetts (1), Minnesota (20), New Hampshire (1), New Jersey (1), New York (17), Pennsylvania (1), Virginia (1) and Wisconsin (13).  Curiously, none of those cases are in Connecticut where the story was published.

 

Of those, 10% were fatal. http://www.cdc.gov/powassan/symptoms.html.  That would be 6 fatalities over 10 years.  

 

In contrast, there were 14 deaths by bear attacks ( http://www.backpacker.com/news-and-events/news/trail-news/ask-a-bear-how-many-bear-attacks-really-2/), fatalities from lightning strikes (http://www.lightningsafety.noaa.gov/fatalities.htm) and over 3,500 boating related drowning deaths and 35,000 non-boat related drowning deaths (http://www.cdc.gov/HomeandRecreationalSafety/Water-Safety/waterinjuries-factsheet.html).

 

That bring said, this is just another reason to teach tick bite prevention - wear bug spray (including spraying on socks) and do a tick check every night and know your different ticks (http://www.esd.ornl.gov/facilities/nerp/Ticks.pdf) because only Deer Ticks cary this disease and Lyme disease.

Edited by Hedgehog
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Tick infestation is a consideration in our planning. Wide trails and roads where hikers are less likely to contact brush, rocky upclimb trails where deer are less likely, and mature forest areas with little undergrowth are preferred. Still we do tick checks and for any tick bites (removed ticks), we urge parents to contact doctor.  

 

A 10% disease case fatality, puts Powassan virus in some unpleasant company

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_human_disease_case_fatality_rates

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We are in heavy tick country too.  I discourage the use of Deet, but show the boys how to duct tape socks over pants and belts with shirts tucked in and duct tape around wrists and top button buttoned, hat and plenty of horror stories about what happens when all the blood gets sucked out of your body by ticks.  :)  I carry a Leatherman with a needle nose pliars that work really well at removing ticks.  Just the thought of all that keeps my boys relatively tick free.

 

Seriously I do know how to take a tick off with a cotton ball and hand soap, but it's not as much fun when the boys know it won't hurt.  :)

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We are in heavy tick country too.  I discourage the use of Deet, but show the boys how to duct tape socks over pants and belts with shirts tucked in and duct tape around wrists and top button buttoned, hat and plenty of horror stories about what happens when all the blood gets sucked out of your body by ticks.   :)  I carry a Leatherman with a needle nose pliars that work really well at removing ticks.  Just the thought of all that keeps my boys relatively tick free.

 

Seriously I do know how to take a tick off with a cotton ball and hand soap, but it's not as much fun when the boys know it won't hurt.   :)

DEET is nasty stuff. Anything that melts plastic is not something I want on my skin. Not to mention that there is evidence that DEET can have negative health effects in some people. I prefer to use Picaridin (also known as Icaridin), as it is as effective as DEET, without some of the negatives (it isn't a skin irritant like DEET). Children using repellants that are 90% DEET (like one local troop) I think is a bad idea.

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I make my boys all wear flea and tick collars.  They're relatively cheap at Walmart......

 

I have heard that AVON's Skin So Soft does well on mosquitoes, but I don't know how well it works on ticks.  (Fleas is just an added annoyance.)

 

Also, it would be a good idea to champion the idea that Deet does NOT go on the skin!  You are supposed to put it on clothing only!  I repeat, NOT ON THE SKIN.  READ THE LABEL!

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I use Permethrin (http://www.amazon.com/Permethrin-SFR-32-oz-Bottle/dp/B003IMO3I2/ref=pd_bia_nav_t_3?ie=UTF8&refRID=0Q1HC40RPPRT6FNKA4YX)I dulute it to about .05% and spray that on my boats tent cot sleeping bag hat rain fly and soak my camping cloths in it for 2 hours let them line dry and then wash them on a gental cycle and since I have started doing that I have not seen a tick or mosquito on me or my famly.  Sawyer makes a product you can buy witch is the same stuff dulutied for your (http://www.amazon.com/Sawyer-Pack-Clothing-Repellent-Bottles/dp/B00CL5ZSFY/ref=sr_1_2?s=outdoor-recreation&ie=UTF8&qid=1428890666&sr=1-2&keywords=permethrin+treatment) I just like to play chemsit can treat mix my own stuff and it is a lot cheaper.   My army buddy told me to that this is whay they use to tic  and insect proof there cloths he also told me that flea and tick collors are a bad idea causes rashes. 

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And when you're not using vinegar to sanitize your dishes, 2:1 ratio of vinegar to water in a spray bottle works pretty well in keeping them at bay and won't hurt the boys unless you spray in their eyes.

 

Keep it in mind these little guys are more dangerous than spiders and snakes.  Maybe lions, and tigers and bears, too.... Oh my!

post-15031-0-08176200-1428926079_thumb.jpg

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side note:

the best tick removal tool I have used, hands down.

http://www.tickedoff.com/

 

I bought one a long time ago, but didn't have cause to use it till maybe 2 years ago.  Tried tweezers, and the things slipped resulting in squeezing the tick.... exactly what I was trying so hard NOT to do!

 

Then I remembered I had this thing.... wow, it worked great.

So I went and ordered more from amazon and have several now... at home, one in each car, one in my RV, on in my pack, etc....

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Alcohol or anti-bacterial soap (has alcohol in it) and a cotton ball is all I ever use.  Lot cheaper and is part of my first aid kit.  it works nicely on really small ticks that are barely visible.  The tool blw2 talks about might be a bit big, maybe for the little guys?  Don' know, never used one.

Edited by Stosh
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Alcohol or anti-bacterial soap (has alcohol in it) and a cotton ball is all I ever use.  Lot cheaper and is part of my first aid kit.  it works nicely on really small ticks that are barely visible.  The tool blw2 talks about might be a bit big, maybe for the little guys?  Don' know, never used one.

It has a pretty sharp v cut in it.

Just last weekend I used it to pull one of my son, the tick was roughly 1-2mm diameter and it worked well.... although I had to break out the magnifying glass to make sure I got under it in the right direction..... but that's just my old eyes... Not sure how well it work for any smaller than that....

 

Interesting, I thought it was considered bad to use alcohol or anything like that to make a tick release, since the tick might regurgitate back into the host before it releases....

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