Summer brings many outdoor activities, and it also brings ticks. Getting bitten could just bring a harmless red spot or Lyme disease — and there’s a lot in between.
Ticks crawl slowly, but it can be hard to detect them. Tick saliva contains substances that can numb and others that can stop blood from clotting, so they can suck blood out easily.
The faster you pluck out the tick, the better. They can stay and feast on a person or animal for as many as seven days. Every meal counts: They have only three in their two-year life cycle.
When you’re in and around ticks’ favorite hangouts — wooded areas, tall grass fields, under piles of wood or decomposing leaves — it pays to check yourself and your pets for the crawling creatures.