Personal Protection

DEET products can be used for exposed skin. Use permethrin-based sprays for clothing and shoes. Always follow the manufacturer’s directions.

Do thorough daily tick checks for humans and pets and remove ticks promptly.

Wear light-colored clothing so ticks can be spotted, and tuck pants into socks.

Avoid tick habitat.

Property Protection

Keep grass mowed, and remove leaf and moist plant litter.

Place play areas in sunshine.

Separate the lawn from wooded brushy areas with barriers of cedar chips.

Move woodpiles and bird feeders away from the house.

Insecticides could be applied in late May and September.

Tick Removal

Remove promptly — the longer a tick is attached, the higher the chance of disease transmission. Use a fine-pointed tweezers, and grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible and firmly pull it straight out.

Never squeeze the tick, burn it, or cover it with any substance.

To obtain brochures about Lyme disease, contact the Newtown District Department of Health.

West Nile Virus

Director of Health Donna McCarthy said that West Nile Virus is likely to pose a health threat beginning with mosquito activity this spring. She offered the following preventive measures regarding mosquito bites.

Whenever using an insecticide or insect repellent, read and follow the manufacturer’s directions for use. Apply insect repellent sparingly to exposed skin.

Spray clothing with repellents containing permethrin or DEET.

When possible, wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants outdoors, and place mosquito netting over infant carriers.

Consider staying indoors at dawn, dusk, and in the early evening, which are peak mosquito biting times.

Install or repair window or door screens.

Drain standing water, such as from flower pots, pet bowls, clogged rain gutters, swimming pool covers, discarded tires, buckets, barrels, and other items that collect water in which mosquitoes can lay eggs.