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By Rachel May

Tick safety

What to know during tick season

May 24, 2023 | 3:49 PM

Tick season is here, and Saskatchewan residents are already fighting off the parasitic pests.

With the warm weather, people are heading into wooded areas or where grass is beginning to grow which makes an ideal home for the arachnids.

Jill McAllister, President of Tick Awareness Canada Association (TACA), told northeastNOW she started the non-profit for her son who became sick with tick-borne illnesses 15 years ago.

“Lyme disease, two strains of bartonella, babesia, and hemotropic mycoplasma. I had to test in two different countries. Unfortunately, Canadian testing has been proven to be 94 per cent inaccurate,” McAllister said.

She explained due to inaccurate testing, her son was misdiagnosed. Doctors performed brain surgery prior to finding the correct diagnosis.

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Despite all of the turmoil tick-borne illnesses have caused, McAllister is sharing her knowledge in hopes of helping others in similar situations and preventing others from contracting potentially deadly pathogens.

Those wanting to enjoy the outdoors but aren’t sure how to protect themselves against ticks can start by applying a reliable repellent.

McAllister explained a lot of different home remedies are out there, but they rely on solutions that are proven to work time and time again.

“After much research, we rely on 20 per cent Icaridin repellents. They have been proven as effective as 30 per cent DEET,” she said.

For those who want added protection, there is tick-repellent clothing available as well.

If you do find yourself with a tick somewhere on you, a friend or a pet the first step is to not panic as they can be easy to remove.

“Don’t grab them with your fingers. You don’t want any tick contents on you, you want to keep all tick fluids inside,” McAllister said.

A pair of specialty tweezers called TickEase are ideal to remove ticks from the skin to ensure minimal damage to the host the pest is attached to.

After that, ticks should be securely packaged and sent away for testing to check for any pathogens the bug might carry.

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Rachel.May@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @RachelMayFM