CDC, wildlife experts warn of 'rough' tick season ahead with bites on the rise
SMITHTOWN, Long Island (WABC) -- "Don't let a tick make you sick."
That's the message doctors across the country are spreading after discovering that tick bites are on the rise.
The CDC estimates 500,000 people in the U.S. will get Lyme disease this year, and all it takes is a single tick bite.
Wildlife experts say, from what they are seeing, it could be a rough season.
"Charlotte," a deer at Sweetbriar Nature Center in Smithtown, is like all the animals here, who are cared for and checked daily for ticks.
It's not hard to see the evidence of tick bites as Charlotte turns her head.
Those who work at the center told Eyewitness News that what they haven't seen until now, is an alarming concentration of ticks. In fact, a fawn from Kings Park had so many, there was little they could do, and he died Wednesday night.
"He must have had a load of thousands, I want say ticks, in his ears, on his face... everywhere," said Janine Bendicksen, who works at Sweetbriar Nature Center.
Also, for the first time, they're seeing ticks on goslings, who become anemic and have trouble walking as a result of the ticks. But the bigger concern is what it means for humans.
"It's just scary to think of what's going to happen with humans really, and ticks," Bendicksen said.
There are three types of ticks on Long Island, and the most popular one is actually the "Lonestar Tick," which does not carry Lyme disease, but with the increasing population of deer, there is already a steady flow of cases.
Doctors say the population most at risk is children, specifically kids ages five to nine. So, it's very important for parents to be vigilant.
"You want to use tweezers, to grab it right where it's grabbing onto your skin... pull it straight up," said Dr. Andrew Handel of Stony Brook Children's Hospital.
Bendicksen says another option is to take a lint roller, and roll your body, and the ticks comes right off on it.
You can put it in a container and bring it to your medical provider to see which type of tick you're dealing with, but judging by the wildlife, it will be a busy tick season ahead.
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