My daughter went to a sleep away camp and contracted lyme disease. She had no rash so the doctors didn't know what she had. She was exhausted from age 8-12. It was horrible. Finally, a brilliant doctor checked her for it. She was on antibiotics for 2 solid years. It appears to be gone but with lyme it could potentially resurface. My husbands parents and he and his cousins all went to the same summer camp. We will never do that again. However, I am sending my now-teenager to a sleep away camp near Seattle, WA because the tick population and lyme disease is not so bad there. For a day camp, you could check for ticks.

I'm not saying don't worry. You should ask what the camp policy is on applying DEET. Definitely soak shoes/socks in permethrin. I think there are some wipes/lotions now, too. But Deep woods off is also your friend.

Lyme isn't a death sentence. If your kid gets a fever during/after camp, with or without the bullseye rash, go to the Dr. When treated with antibiotics right away, it's not that big a deal.

I sign up for nature camps. We do off in the morning and tic checks at night. My kids love the nature camp, and I want them to be outdoors.

Anonymous wrote:you can't get Lyme disease unless a tic feeds for 24 hours, so bit and suck for 24 hours.

Tic check every night, head to toe, under the balls (not good for families scared of nakedness)

Teaches kids it is important to check for tics as well as brush your teeth.

Of course it is healthier to do nature camp than to not do nature camp.

Skin so soft is the best repellant.

Please send your kids out into nature.

Do the naked check. I've removed 3 ticks at 3 different times from my son's genital region.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just check them for ticks each night. They can't get Lyme unless the tick has been attached for more than 24 hours.

You can also buy permethrin to impregnate their clothing for camp. This is way more effective against ticks than repellants like DEET. It's also easier since the fabric stays repellant for a few weeks.

Where can I buy permethrin?

http://www.amazon.com/Sawyer-Products-Permethrin-Clothing-Repellent/dp/B001ANQVZE

Anonymous wrote:Just check them for ticks each night. They can't get Lyme unless the tick has been attached for more than 24 hours.

You can also buy permethrin to impregnate their clothing for camp. This is way more effective against ticks than repellants like DEET. It's also easier since the fabric stays repellant for a few weeks.

Where can I buy permethrin?

you can't get Lyme disease unless a tic feeds for 24 hours, so bit and suck for 24 hours.

Tic check every night, head to toe, under the balls (not good for families scared of nakedness)

Teaches kids it is important to check for tics as well as brush your teeth.

Of course it is healthier to do nature camp than to not do nature camp.

Skin so soft is the best repellant.

Please send your kids out into nature.

I don't worry about this for day camps because you can check them at the end of each day. But I do worry about this for sleep away camps. A lot.

Just check them for ticks each night. They can't get Lyme unless the tick has been attached for more than 24 hours.

You can also buy permethrin to impregnate their clothing for camp. This is way more effective against ticks than repellants like DEET. It's also easier since the fabric stays repellant for a few weeks.

I feel bad for her children that they won't get as much nature time as they could. You just do regular tick checks. Is she going to keep them from playing in the backyard because of Zika this summer?

I signed DC up for a couple weeks of nature camps during the summer because they LOVED the last nature camp they went to. I mentioned this to a friend of mine and she said would never put her children in nature camps because of ticks. She mentioned a few children she knows who ended up with Lyme disease. The last nature camp they went to, I checked them from head to toe in the evening before they took their shower. I usually dress them in long leggings, socks and put repellent. After speaking with the other moms, now I'm worried. Would appreciate feedback from other parents.