Broward County has recently been infested with tiny pests known as ticks. Ticks are rather small arachnids that live by hematophagy (on the blood of mammals, birds, and occasionally reptiles and amphibians). Ticks are vectors of a number of diseases, including Lyme disease,
During feeding, the tick makes a small incision in the skin of its host and inserts it's mouthparts to remove the blood. Most species cause little or no pain to their hosts at the time o feeding, but some, such as the lone star tick, cause a painful wound. Ticks can transmit diseases by infecting hosts with microorgranisms carried on their mouth parts or in salivary fluids.
Many disorders and diseases can be traced to tick bites, including 1) dermatosis, or inflammation, itching and swelling at the site of the bite; 2) envenomization, or inoculation of toxic fluids; and 3) exsanguination, or anemia resulting from the loss of large amounts of blood because of a severe tick infestation.
The American dog tick is also known to cause paralysis in dogs and children where ticks attach at the base of the skull or along the spinal column. Paralysis is caused by a toxic secretion produced by the feeding tick. When the tick is removed, recovery is rapid, usually within 8 hours. Sensitized animals may become paralyzed by tick attachment anywhere on the body.
Also known as tick typhus, Rocky Mountain spotted fever is caused by a bacteria-like microorganism, Rickettsia rickettsii. Rocky Mountain spotted fever rickettsiae are acquired by an American dog tick when it takes a blood meal from an infected animals. These bacteria are not harmful to most wild and domestic animals, but they are extremely pathogenic to humans and dogs. Rocky Mountain spotted fever is normally a disease of wild animals, but people can be infected while camping or hiking in tick-infested areas if they are bitten by an infected tick. In addition, pets may carry an infected tick into living areas. The disease organisms can also be passed through the egg of an infected tick and from stage to stage in the life cycle. Fortunately, only a small percentage of American dog ticks found in nature are infected.
Call A1 Super Heroes if you believe you have a tick problem!
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