Becareful with harvests this year... the deer my wife got had the most ticks I've ever seen in 1 place... hundreds of them. I kept spraying bugspray around its head when we hung it as it was just crawling with the little blood suckers.

Ironically I really dont ever remember killing a deer with ticks until about 5 years ago. Now it seems any dead deer has dozens or more on them.


-DallanC

Now you know why Georgia deer scratch like dogs I guess it was your warmer than usual winters the last couple of winters that allowed the bloom in the population of ticks. It will probably take a couple of hard winters to bring the population of ticks back under control.

I wouldn't bother spraying the deer as it might contaminate the meat. Most ticks, aka deer lice, leave the deer as the body cools. The rest die shortly after the deer is placed in the cooler.

Just pray that you don't get the smaller version known as seed ticks. Pure misery when you get those on you. They look like dust and suck blood like vampires.

We use a product called Permanon which has had a name change to I think Permethrin. You spray it on your clothing and let it dry before you wear it. Gaiters also help prevent access at the ankles.

Seeing that your tick population is high I recommend that you check yourself or each other every time you go hunting or handle deer. If a tick latches on and you remove it be sure to watch the bite site for swelling and redness that may indicate Lyme disease. Lots of Lyme info at this site.
Lyme Disease Association

Knock on wood, I have never had a problem and I hunt in some of the most tick infested spots that you could imagine.

Hi Chris, I thought you made boots out of 'gators over there? We have had more than average tick populations over here too, maybe it's the deer's way of getting back at us! Can you get Lyme's disease from seed ticks too, I've never come across one yet?

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Can you get Lyme's disease from seed ticks too, I've never come across one yet?

I can't answer that with accuracy. All I have read and heard is that you get Lyme disease from the deer tick.
The seed ticks are real tiney not much bigger that a dot. They are not baby deer ticks but a batch all to themselfs. I would trade two or three million of them for one deer tick that carried the Lyme Disease. Joking of course but a patch of seed ticks can drive you nuts until you can get them all off of you. It feels like they bite 300 times, take a step and bite 300 more times, etc. etc. etc.

popgun wrote:

Now you know why Georgia deer scratch like dogs I guess it was your warmer than usual winters the last couple of winters that allowed the bloom in the population of ticks. It will probably take a couple of hard winters to bring the population of ticks back under control.

Actually its the region I've been hunting lately. Previous to that area, 15 years or so of hunting other areas I rarely ever saw a tick on a deer. This current area though, man every year they are crawling with them, this year being the worst.

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I wouldn't bother spraying the deer as it might contaminate the meat. Most ticks, aka deer lice, leave the deer as the body cools. The rest die shortly after the deer is placed in the cooler.

I cut'em up soon as I get them home... unless its late Oct or so where its cool enough to hang them in the garage. I am very careful about sprays and meat... I just spray around the head and neck area where they seem to congregate. I dont need any crawlys living in the garage when I'm done (I spray down the newspaper under the deer often too when I see any that fell off and making a break for it)

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Just pray that you don't get the smaller version known as seed ticks. Pure misery when you get those on you. They look like dust and suck blood like vampires.

LOL

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We use a product called Permanon which has had a name change to I think Permethrin. You spray it on your clothing and let it dry before you wear it. Gaiters also help prevent access at the ankles. Seeing that your tick population is high I recommend that you check yourself or each other every time you go hunting or handle deer. If a tick latches on and you remove it be sure to watch the bite site for swelling and redness that may indicate Lyme disease. Lots of Lyme info at this site. Lyme Disease Association

I have never todate, ever found a tick on my person after hunting. I dont doubt it may happen, expecially with as many as the deer seem to be picking up... I remain cautious however.

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Knock on wood, I have never had a problem and I hunt in some of the most tick infested spots that you could imagine.

LOL


-DallanC

I've never had a problem with ticks, but did get a real bad case of chiggers one year. Now, I spray my boots, socks and pants with permanone or repellant whenever I am out in the weeds.

Gidday Dallan,

Not familiar with deer ticks, seed ticks or chiggers, however we have some pretty nasty ticks over here in Australia as well. Never seen a tick on a deer but our cattle and horses suffer something chronic with them.

The only ones I have come across is a little red fella that is about the size of a flea...until he fills up, a blue cattle tick that when full is about 1/2" to 3/4" in diameter....they are hungry buggers and another we call the paralysis tick....not sure exactly what this guy is but he is very VERY nasty. As the name implies he knocks down pretty well anything he gets onto. A couple on a dog and he is pretty well done for in a day or so.

We also have another wee beastie referred to as "scrub itch", usually only found in the rainforest. Have been told that it is a form of juvenile tick but I am not really sure(not an Entomologist). Have had it a couple of times and one things is for sure, it drives you crazy. I have scratched myself raw....blood from arsehole to breakfast time...and nothing seems to stop the itching. Lasts for up to a week....gives me the shivers even thinking about it.

We have a couple of pretty good repellants over here, Rid (even good for new born babies) lasts for up to 8 hrs, Aeroguard which is not as good as Rid (the advertising blurb calls this one Avagoodweegend..work that one out) and one called Bushman. The last one contains, or is a derivative of, Deet......excellent stuff. When I was in the Army they got us to dip our clothing in a chemical mix (can't remember the name of the stuff, something like Peregin), smelt like hell and used to irritate some guys skin but kept everything away. They stopped using it when it was found to be a carcinogen.

We seem to have a tick problem over here as well, my wife even got one inside the house at my daughters farm!

Cheers, Vince

Well, me and Popgun can share story after story about ticks with ya. They are everywhere and about as plentiful as gnats. But for those of you that aren't familiar with chiggers, well let me just say that they love to go to some very personal areas of the body. I had a world class case of them one time down by the boys, if ya know what I mean. If it hadn't been for a cream called "Kwell", I was seriously thinking about trying to shoot them off me. LOL I don't think this cream is available any longer but it had a percentage of Lindane in it. It was near instant relief and killed those buggers once and for all. Pretty much anything that will kill lice will also get rid of chiggers. If the South had figured out how to lob chiggers into the Union Armys lines, we'd have won the war in a rout!
Can I hear an Amen Popgun??
Yotebuster