Woo-ha - fall is here! Even though we love summer with a passion here at mosquito.buzz, it's nice to experience the many joys that a Canadian fall has to offer as well. You know, the orange leaves and orange hoodies and orange pumpkins and orange...oh wait, there seems to be a theme here. You could say we're suckers for orange here at MB!
Unfortunately, the coming of fall in many parts of Canada means that ticks are still out and searching for their last blood meal of the 2018 season. Ticks remain active as long as the weather is above freezing, but once the ground is frozen, they will go into dormancy or hibernation. On second thought, maybe winter isn't so bad either...
Read on to learn more about fall tick season and our special mosquito.buzz tips.
Fall = Tick Season
As we've mentioned, ticks are active all year round, but are most common in spring and fall. Ticks will keep biting as long as temperatures are consistently above 7 degrees, so don't think you're out of the woods yet just because you noticed a smidgen of frost on your car windshield yesterday morning. As we get deeper into November and the temperatures continue to plummet, expect the number of tick encounters to lessen and eventually fizzle out. Until next spring, that is... *cue ominous music.*
How To Protect Your Property
Here at mosquito.buzz, we understand that fall can get a bit messy, with high winds and falling leaves creating perfect hiding spots for ticks on a many a property. Thankfully though, there a number of preventative measures you can take to help minimize the risks of ticks around your home in fall. Such as:
- Keep tall grasses mowed
- Keep vegetation trimmed
- Get rid of any leaf litter or weeds at the edge of your lawn
- Remove brush and leaves around stone walls or wood piles
- Move wood piles away from the house
- Keep your pets and kids out of the woods to avoid bringing ticks back to your home
- Move kids swings or sandboxes away from the woodland edge
- Wash clothes in hot water if you've just come back from a tick-ridden area
- Use a professional tick control service to eliminate the risk of ticks
How To Avoid Tick Bites
The last thing you want is to get bitten by ticks - ticks are notorious for spreading Lyme Disease, which can potentially lead to long term health issues. Here's what you can do to avoid getting a dreaded tick bite;
- Wear closed-toe shoes and long-sleeved clothing
- Tuck your pants into your socks. Sure, you might look like Ned Flanders, but it works!
- Wear light coloured clothing to help you spot potential ticks easier
- Wash yourself as soon as you get home to get rid of any loose ticks
- Do a full body check on yourself, your kids, or your pets if you've come back from a tick prone area
Talk to the team at Mosquito.buzz about preventing ticks long term. You can also follow us on Facebook or Twitter for weekly tick and mosquito bite prevention tips.
