The kids are back in school, the air is crisp, and the days are getting shorter, all indicating autumn’s arrival in Baton Rouge. With so many fun activities like Tiger Football, parish fairs and finding that perfect pumpkin to carve, fall is a great time to be outdoors with your family and pets. Did you know fall is also adult tick season? That’s right, ticks are not limited to the spring and summer months. Now that’s something to be scared of this time of year! Below we discuss some facts about these tiny blood suckers, and how to best prevent ticks from invading your activity-filled fall season.
The Autumn Invaders
Just because the gorgeous warm summer weather is disappearing, does not necessarily mean that ticks are leaving with it. In fact, some types of ticks tend to be most active during the fall season. Leaf pile rollers beware! Adult-stage ticks become active every year after the first frost. They are not killed by freezing temperatures. Ticks will be active any day that the ground is not snow-covered or frozen. Durable would be an understatement in describing these pests, as ticks can survive without food for 200 days!
How Harmful are Ticks?
Ticks do not jump, fly or drop. They simply reach out with their legs and grab or crawl onto a host, and tend to attach and feed for hours to days. Ticks can detect their hosts via body odor, temperature, moisture, and vibration. These pests feed on the blood of their hosts, whether that be humans or your beloved dog or cat. As if drinking your blood (yikes!) wasn’t bad enough, ticks can also carry diseases. Some ticks carry bacteria which can transmit to humans or pets, causing an infection known as Lyme disease. Lyme disease has over 100 different symptoms associated with it. This makes accurate diagnosis challenging, leading patients to a chronic condition after it goes untreated. In some cases, Lyme disease can even be fatal if untreated. Lyme disease is not the only disease associated with ticks, they can also transmit Ehrlichia and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. Pets may also contract multiple diseases from a single tick bite. Tick-transmitted infections are more common these days than past decades, which is why tick prevention is essential for your, not only the sake of your family but your pets too.
A Tip to Help Prevent Ticks This Fall
Don’t put yourself or your loved ones at risks for getting bitten by an infected tick. This, fall it’s time to take your yard back. Contact Mosquito Shield of Baton Rouge, tick prevention specialists and the leader in tick prevention services. We can implement a barrier treatment for your yard to help eliminate the ticks in your yard and prevent future colonization.