It�s a prime time of year for those eight-legged pests, ticks. They cling to leaves, bushes, shrubs and tall grass, and patiently lie in wait for their next host, front legs outstretched and ready. When a host � whether it is two-legged

or four-legged � brushes the spot where this annoying arachnid awaits, it quickly climbs aboard, grasps the skin, cuts into the surface and prepares to feed. Many of these miniscule menaces are loaded with disease-causing pathogens. Knowledge is power. Resources are available at your fingertips. Check out the following websites to discover all you need to know about these blood-sucking creatures and how to protect yourself and your loved ones from getting Lyme disease or another tick-borne illness from these pesky parasites.

 www.cdc.gov/ticks/

 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is a great place to start your tick-borne-disease research. In order to better understand ticks and how to avoid them, you need to get to know more about them. Find out more under the sections about tick lifecycles and hosts, as well as their geographic distributions. There is also a section that covers tick removal and tick-borne illnesses and how to avoid ticks (broken down into sections on pets, people and yards).

www.aldf.com          

The American Lyme Disease Foundation (ALDF) is dedicated to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of Lyme disease. The Foundation plays a key role in providing reliable and scientifically accurate information to the public, medical community and government agencies about Lyme disease and its effects on human health and quality of life. You can visit this website to not only find out about Lyme Disease and other tick-borne illnesses, but also to make donations and contributions in support of the great work done by the ALDF to raise awareness about this disease.

http://news.discovery.com/animals/videos/animals-ticks-bloodsucking-ninjas-of-summer

For a great video to share with older children (who aren�t easily creeped out by bugs), check out �Ticks: Bloodsucking Ninjas of Summer,�at Discovery.com. This video will introduce you to these bloodsucking parasites ― up close and personal. 

http://wignall.com/files/2012/02/5-kids-Tick-Patrol.pdf

For younger children, this is an excellent printable resource. The title � �Ticks Are NOT for Kids� � is a play on the popular kids� cereal (Trix) jingle. Here, kids can become a member of the Tick Prevention Patrol, decode a hidden tick message, do a deer tick and Lyme disease word search, spot dangerous ticks on a coloring page, and sing along with a silly tick song. Help protect your children by increasing their awareness of ticks and the potential damage ticks can do.

www.dogsandticks.com

Each year, thousands of dogs become infected with serious diseases transmitted by a number of different types of ticks. Is your dog at risk? Complete a brief assessment on the DogsandTicks website and get the answer. You can also upload photos of you and your dog into several fun scenes and share online under the �Picture Your Dog Protected� button. There is also information on the different kinds of ticks that pose a threat to dogs, diseases and symptoms, diseases in your particular area, and prevention and treatment. If you have a four-legged furry friend that needs protection against ticks, this is definitely a website worth checking out.

www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/tc/tick-bites-topic-overview

Check out this website for a ton of information on terrible ticks.

www.prevention.com/health/health-concerns/tick-myths-and-facts

Forget all those tick �tricks� you�ve heard over the years and check out this informative (and brief) page titled: �Six Tick Myths, Debunked.� Contrary to very popular opinion, for example, it is NOT smart to �drown� an attached tick in Vaseline to help it fall off easier. The only tool you need is a pair of needle-nosed tweezers. Grab the tick as close to the skin as possible and gently pull it out without twisting or jerking. Then wash your hands and the spot where you found it with good soap and disinfect the skin with rubbing alcohol. Oh, and ticks don�t fall from trees.