While growing up on a Thumb area farm and enjoying local outdoor pastimes such as fishing, hunting and camping whenever possible, I don’t remember ever seeing a tick. However, that has all changed in recent years, and last year was one of the worst in my memory. This is in relation to my kennel of hunting dogs which entails two mountain curs, a redbone coonhound and a German shorthair pointer.
I consider all my dogs to be versatile hunting dogs and use them for just about everything which primarily include hunting for squirrels, rabbits and pheasants, and when necessary, for deer recovery. I’m presently training the pointer and redbone coonhound, which have both proven to be excellent waterdogs in our farm pond, on being able to retrieve waterfowl, and yep folks, you can train even hounds to do such. These days, no matter if it is only having the dogs performing a routine romp around our backyard and pond, or in hunting applications, I must perform a “tick-check” on each dog afterwards.
To do this, I run my hand all over the dog, and when I feel a tick, I prefer to use small needle-nose pliers to grab the tick as close as possible to the dog’s flesh, and remove it, and only then do I use the pliers to crush it. To crush it while still attached can cause it to release possible toxins. Ticks have a very flat profile, which is used to avoid detection while being attached, and they have a very hard exoskeleton which is next to impossible to crush with finger pressure alone.
I found this out the hard way, when while petting one of my dogs, I discovered a tick on its head and used my bare fingers to pull it off. While trying to crush it between my fingertips, which wasn’t happening, the tick immediately latched onto the end of my index finger. Yep, folks, that will wake you up! Fortunately, I had my handy multi-tool on my belt (which I should have used in the first place), and its pliers are perfect for tick extraction and crushing. Tweezers and special tick removal tools are recommended and good to always have on hand, but then you must deal with “properly” disposing the tick afterwards. When it comes to tick removal, I do not take any prisoners, and pliers sure work for me.
A lot of folks assume that “tick season” only runs from spring to fall, but ticks can become even more active after the first frost. Last year, I had to remove an overabundance of ticks from my hunting dogs well into December. The dogs also get a regular tick-check after a day of winter squirrel and rabbit hunting, and yep, I still can find ticks. I’ve come of the opinion that today, there is no longer any such thing as a traditional tick season.
A friend of mine, who is a seasoned deer hunter, shot a buck in the Deford State Game Area last fall that had its entire underside covered in ticks, something he had never encountered before, and which gave him the “willies” while field-dressing it (another reason to wear shoulder-length plastic gloves for the task). I do believe this is a sign of the times, because ticks can now be found everywhere in Michigan, when before it was a more northerly experience, and especially so in the Upper Peninsula. I’ll never forget arriving back home after some adventures in the UP’s Porcupine Mountains, I discovered a tick attached to my neck, which had at first, appeared to be only a scab. It had obviously fallen off my outdoor clothing when I got back into my Jeep after an outing, and was ready and waiting for me, when I thought I was “tick-free”.
The fact is, ticks can attach to clothing and hitch a ride into vehicles, and certainly homes as well, where they can lay in wait, and even reproduce. Ticks can remain in cracks, crevices and even furniture, for a long time, and have been known to survive for over a year without any sort of nourishment. Just recently, I had returned home from a mushroom hunt and noticed a tick beside me on the couch which had obviously just fallen off my shirt. Having learned not to use bare fingers to pick it up, I used a handy Kleenex to grasp it, and discovered ticks have quite a beak which can easily penetrate tissue paper! Fortunately, I was able to place all on the coffee table next to me and used the bottom of my cup to crush matters, and I’m only satisfied when I hear that noticeable “pop” (throwing a live tick into the garbage is not wise, because it can come back to haunt you). Submerging it in rubbing alcohol will seal the deal as well, but I prefer a more immediate method.
It is highly recommended to always wear long sleeves and pantlegs (which should be tucked into boots or socks) and spraying outer garments and person with insect repellant containing DEET is a wise idea, whenever venturing into “tick country”. Last summer, while hiking along a trail in the woods to see one of UP’s amazing waterfalls, my wife, Ginny, and I encountered a group of visitors with bare legs and arms, and wearing only sandals. Oh my, folks, that is a situation only asking for trouble! Ticks have a way of unknowingly getting attached to a person and are known to remain unnoticed on parts of the body, even where I care not to mention! It is always wise to do personal full body inspection after any outdoor adventure (including yardwork), which I do during a shower whenever possible right after such activities.
All tick bites should be taken seriously, as there is no such thing as a nice tick, of which there are many tick types. The most common tick in Michigan is the American dog tick, which is often referred to as a wood tick, and the one I have encountered most in the past. It can cause Rocky Mountain spotted fever (which can be fatal if left untreated) and tularemia. The one I am encountering more these days is the black-legged tick, commonly known as the deer tick. It is much smaller (and harder to see) than the dog tick, and as its name suggests, it has black legs, and a black body with a hint of reddish orange. It is the tick which causes Lyme Disease, and numbers are on the rise with folks getting Lyme Disease in Michigan. Untreated, it can lead to arthritis, neurological issues and cardiac problems. If detected early, antibiotics take care of matters. A red bullseye is associated with being infected with a deer tick bite, but such isn’t always the case. Fatigue, headaches and flu-like symptoms are another sign which should require immediate medical attention.
One thing for certain is that when it comes to dealing with ticks, being aware of them existing outdoors and using preventative measures is always very wise.
than 40 years and has had his weekly radio show, “Tom Lounsbury
Outdoors” for more than 20 years. Tom grew up on a farm in
Michigan’s Thumb, and it is where his first outdoor adventures began
as a kid accompanying visiting pheasant hunters into the field during
the “pheasant hunting heyday” of the 1950’s and 1960’s. It is a passion
he still has to this day and being the 4 th generation to own the family
farm, he has put most of it into conservation programs with a focus on
wild pheasants, which in turn helps all wildlife.
Being an outdoor communicator, Tom appreciates all the outdoor
adventures he experiences in different places, and especially the
people he meets in which to share them.