Wednesday, May 04, 2005, 19:20
Deer Tick Bites -- the 'Gift' that Keeps on Giving. . .
I really should not have been surprised when I got into the shower Monday morning and found three deer ticks -- one on each leg and one above my right hip. Each of the ticks was surrounded by a larger purple-black circle with another fainter red circle surrounding that.
I pinched the ticks between my fingernails, yanked them out of my skin and rinsed them down the drain.
On Sunday afternoon, Randy and I had taken the dogs for a walk in the woods, so of *course* I managed to pick up three deer ticks. I'm sure the dogs picked up some of the ticks, too. The good news is that deer ticks have to be embedded for 24 to 48 hours before they can pass Lyme disease to their victims, and I know the ticks had not been embedded for that long. The dogs have already had their Lyme vaccine, so they ought to be okay, as well.
Pulling the deer ticks out is only the first step in a long process of dealing with deer tick bites. The little buggers -- and they are tiny, exceptionally tiny in comparison to even a wood tick -- leave a nasty black-and-blue bite that develops a knot which itches like crazy but is also painful at the same time.
I've spent the last three days putting antibiotic ointment and antihistamine cream on my deer tick bites. I will probably continue treating the bites for another week. The bites will itch for the next six weeks.
I have no idea what is so virulent about the saliva of a deer tick, but it certainly does not agree with me. Doesn't agree with my horse, either. He also gets deer tick bites, and if I don't give him a maintenance dose of antibiotic every day during the season when the deer ticks are active, he develops huge, festering sores that are difficult to treat.
In the "good old days" when I was a kid, we didn't even have wood ticks around here. Today we've got wood ticks, deer ticks, bear ticks, and probably a few other different kinds of ticks that I don't know about it.
Now, if you will excuse me, it's time for me to smear on more antibiotic ointment and antihistamine cream. . .
LeAnn R. Ralph
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