Lyme and other tick-borne diseases

Areas of risk

Ticks live in wooded areas, tall grasses and bushes. They can be found almost anywhere in Ontario, including city gardens and parks. Blacklegged ticks have spread to new areas of Ontario because of climate change and warmer winter temperatures. They can also spread by travelling on birds and deer. Tick-borne diseases are not spread from person to person.

Ticks are found in many places across the Region. For details on where blacklegged ticks are typically found, check the Ontario Vector-Borne Disease Tool. Always take precautions in wooded or bushy areas, or areas with tall grass, even if they are not identified as high risk areas on the map.

Ticks are most active in spring and summer. However, they can be found during any time of the year when the temperature is above freezing.

Protect yourself

Ticks are tiny. Before they feed they are the size of a sesame seed (3-5 millimetres).

To protect yourself from a tick bite:

Wear light-coloured clothing so it is easier to see ticks on your body.
Wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants. Tuck your pants into your socks.
Stay on the trail if you're hiking in a forested or grassy area.
Wear an insect repellent containing DEET or Icaridin. Always read the label for directions on how to use it.

After an outdoor activity, you can:

Put your clothes into a dryer on high heat for at least 10 minutes to kill any possible ticks, follow fabric care guidelines.
Check yourself and children for ticks.
Take a shower as soon as you can to wash off a tick that may not be attached through a bite.
Regularly check pets that spend time outdoors. Ticks may attach to them and be carried indoors, putting you and your family at risk of being bitten.

Remove a tick

If you find a tick on your body, remove it immediately. Infected ticks need to be attached for at least 24 hours to transmit Lyme disease.

To remove a tick you should:

Use fine-pointed tweezers to grab the tick's head and mouth as close to your skin as possible.
Pull slowly.
Do not twist or rotate and try not to damage it.
Place the tick in a small sealed bag or a container with a lid.
Thoroughly wash the area where you were bitten with soap and water.

Identify a tick

If you find a tick, you can identify it with eTick.ca.
- eTick is a public platform for image-based tick identification. It does not diagnose tick-borne diseases.
- There is no cost to use this platform.
- Your tick identification results are sent to you within 48 hours.

If the tick has been identified as a blacklegged (Ixodes scapularis) tick or cannot be identified, please contact your health care provider. Especially if you are feeling unwell.

Your health care provider can tell you what steps to take for your health.
Tell your health care provider where you were when you got the tick bite. This will help them assess your risk of Lyme disease.or other tick-borne diseases.
The risk of infection is low if a tick was attached to your skin for less than 24 hours.

Region of Waterloo Public Health does not accept ticks for testing.

Please speak to your veterinarian if you find a tick on your pet.

Tick-borne diseases

Lyme disease

Lyme disease is an infection caused by bacteria carried by blacklegged ticks. The disease spreads when an infected tick bites a person. Not all blacklegged ticks are infected.

Lyme disease is diagnosed through a combination of symptom presentation, history of exposure to infected ticks and/or validated laboratory test results.

Symptoms usually appear from three days to one month after being bitten by an infectious tick. Signs of infection may include:

A circular rash referred to as a "bull's eye" rash
Fever
Headache
Muscle and joint pain
Chills
Swollen lymph nodes
Fatigue

If you have been bitten by a tick and believe you have symptoms of Lyme disease it is important to see your health care provider for medical advice. If left untreated, more severe symptoms can develop.

Anaplasmosis

Anaplasmosis is an infection caused by a bacteria spread by the bite of an infected blacklegged tick. An infected tick will usually transmit the bacteria to a person when attached and feeding for at least 12 hours.

Mild to moderate flu-like symptoms may appear within 1-2 weeks after exposure including:

Fever
Chills
Headache
Fatigue
Abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting and loss of appetite

Delayed treatment of Anaplasmosis can lead to more severe illness.

Babesiosis

Babesiosis is an infection caused by a parasite and spread by the bite of an infected blacklegged tick. It usually takes 24 hours for an infected tick to spread Babesia when attached and feeding.

Many people will not have any symptoms when infected with Babesiosis. In some cases, symptoms can range from mild to severe:

Fever
Chills and sweats
Headache
Body aches
Loss of appetite and nausea
Fatigue
Jaundice
Dark urine

Powassan virus

Powassan virus infections are spread to humans by the bite of an infected blacklegged tick. It can take as little as 15 minutes for Powassan virus to be acquired from an attached tick.

Most people infected with Powassan virus will have no symptoms. In some cases, symptoms can range from mild to severe: