Informative Breakfast Event – Sept 9th

Are you worried about Japanese Knotweed, zebra mussels, or giant hogweed?

If you’re interested in learning more about these and other invasive species, then come to the Tennis Courts at 10:00AM on Saturday 9 September, where we have arranged for a private seminar given by experts in aquatic and plant species.

Thanks to financial support from FOCA* for this initiative, we’re pleased to provide a breakfast of muffins, pastries, coffee/tea, juice and fresh fruit for all attendees! Bring the whole family – kids are welcome! So that we may plan for the appropriate amount of breakfast, kindly RSVP to lora.field@gmail.com, ideally by Labour Day Monday.

This event will run rain or shine. In the event of inclement weather, we’ll shift it indoors to a location as yet TBD (which is another great reason to RSVP, so that we know whom to contact in the event of rain 😊) Hope to see you there!

~Dr Lora Field, RMIA Director

*(Federation of Ontario Cottage Associations)

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Ticks and Lyme Disease

The tick population is on the rise in Canada. Ticks can carry bacteria which if you are bitten, can result in Lyme disease.

The best way to prevent Lyme disease is to prevent tick bites by:

• covering up, for example by tucking your pants into your socks and wearing closed footwear when walking through leafy/wooded areas
• using insect repellent
• do a “tick-check” for yourself and children when coming in from wooded areas
• washing to remove ticks that may not be attached through a bite
• checking your pets when they come inside as they could be carrying ticks into your cottage
• keeping grass mowed short
• trimming bushes and tree branches to let in sunlight (ticks avoid hot, dry locations)
• creating a border of gravel or woodchips one metre or wider around your yard if you’re next to a wooded area, or one with tall grasses
• removing leaf litter, brush and weeds at the edge of the lawn and from stone walls and wood piles

Don’t panic if you do find a tick on your body. If possible, have a medical professional remove the tick. Alternatively, the Ontario government suggests the following steps to remove ticks (https://www.ontario.ca/page/lyme-disease#section-3):

1. If the tick is attached to you, use fine-tipped tweezers or tick removal tool to grasp the tick as close to your skin as possible. Do not use your fingers.
2. Pull the tick straight out, gently but firmly making sure to remove the entire tick (including the head). Don’t squeeze it – avoid crushing the tick’s body as the lyme bacteria is contained in the belly.
3. After removing the tick, place it in a secure container, such as a screw-top bottle used for medication.
4. See a doctor and give the tick to your doctor for testing
5. Thoroughly clean the bite site with rubbing alcohol and/or soap and water.
6. Take daily pictures of the bite over the coming days for future reference.

Symptoms of Lyme disease usually begin between three days and one month after being bitten by an infected tick. Prompt antibiotic treatment is usually effective so see a doctor immediately if you suspect a tick bite. Early symptoms of Lyme disease may include; fever, headache, muscle and joint pain, fatigue and an expanding bulls eye red rash.

If left untreated, Lyme disease symptoms could progress to cardiac symptoms such as heart palpitations, arthritic symptoms, extreme fatigue and general weakness, and central and peripheral nervous system. disorders. Lyme disease is diagnosed through a combination of symptom presentation, history of exposure to infected ticks and/or validated laboratory test results.

For recent news stories see:

http://globalnews.ca/news/3472203/more-ticks-means-an-increase-of-lyme-disease-across-canada-thanks-to-climate-change/

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/lyme-disease-canada-1.4131705

Invasive Species: Japanese Knotweed

A researcher at Humber College has discovered a spading method for destroying Japanese Knotweed that apparently seems to work:

1. Slice down at a slight angle into the soil beside the stem of the plant, cutting off the stem a few inches below ground. Don’t try to get the roots, and disturb the soil as little as possible.

2. Tamp the soil back in place, covering over the area.  This deprives the plant of sunlight, weakening its ability to grow. But doesn’t break the roots off, which might cause them to regrow.

3. Repeat again 2 weeks later, and every two weeks until the plant is exhausted and gives up.

SPRING 2017 – ISLANDER TIMES

Dear Members,

Click to view the 2017 RMIA Newsletter.

Welcome Cottagers

Thanks for visiting the Royal Muskoka Island Association website.  We hope you find it enjoyable and informative.

If you would like to share information, stories, pictures, or videos of our island, kindly email rmia.membership@gmail.com and I will be happy to add them to our site.

Happy Summer,

Carson Nimmo

Website Launch

Welcome to the Royal Muskoka Island Association (RMIA) website. We appreciate your  patience as we get  familiar with the WordPress software and get the site up to speed.

Special thanks to Doug Wilson who had the foresight to register the royalmuskoka.com domain name years ago. He’s patiently held it safely, and now we are launching our website to keep you posted on RMIA news and events.

Happy dock time,

Mary Hulbert