London-Middlesex Health Unit has seen ticks almost double  for testing this year compared to last.  Last year only 43 ticks were sent to the lab while 119 have already been submitted for testing this year.  The good news, black legged ticks are the ones capable of passing on Lyme disease to humans and of the 119 tested, only 5 were of that species.   Lyme disease can cause a number of scary symptoms in humans including:

Bacteria transmitted by ticks can also cause kidney failure in dogs. The good news is that if discovered early they pose very little threat so make sure when your family comes in from outside, you check for them.If a tick is removed within the first 24hrs the likelihood of infection is very low but proper removal is important.  Here’s how:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0AITueotqYs

Filed under: Health, Local, London, Ticks