Ticks are active again from April to October. Ticks can transmit diseases such as Lyme disease and tick-borne encephalitis (TBE or FSME). You can be vaccinated against TBE/FSME at the GGD. Unfortunately, there is no vaccine against Lyme. You can protect yourself against a tick bite.
What are ticks?
Ticks are small spider-like creatures that live on blood. They sit low to the ground among the tall grass, shrubs and leaves, in forests, heathlands and also in the garden, at home and abroad. Ticks crawl on people and animals and bite into the skin. Often you don’t notice this. Have you been ‘in the green’? Then check yourself and others for tick bites and remove it as quickly as possible.
This is how you prevent a tick bite
- stay on the paths and do not walk through tall grass or shrubs;
- wear covering clothing (long trousers, trouser legs tucked into socks, sturdy shoes);
- Apply an insect repellent with at least 30% DEET to the exposed skin;
- do not camp at the edge of the forest or along the perimeter of a campsite;
- ask the GGD whether a vaccination against tick-borne encephalitis is necessary (not possible for Lyme disease).
Still bitten by a tick?
Remove the tick as quickly as possible. Watch the video on how to do this and when to call your doctor.
Holiday plans?
You can get a tick bite both in the Netherlands and abroad. Do you have holiday plans for Europe to explore nature there? Then ask the GGD whether it is necessary to be vaccinated against tick-borne encephalitis.
Lyme disease
One in 5 ticks is infected with Lyme disease. This disease occurs in the Netherlands and other countries in the Northern Hemisphere. On the tick radar you can see how active the ticks are in the Netherlands. More about Lyme disease.
Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE)
Tick-borne encephalitis is meningitis and is transmitted by the tick-borne encephalitis virus. You can be vaccinated against this at the GGD. TBE mainly occurs in large parts of Germany, Austria and Eastern Europe. The Asian variant occurs in large parts of Russia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. In the Netherlands the risk of TBE is quite small. More about tick-borne encephalitis.
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