The Tick-Borne Disease Rising in Canada That Isn't Lyme

Most forestry workers know to check for ticks. Far fewer know about anaplasmosis — and that gap is becoming a safety problem.

Researchers publishing in the *Canadian Medical Association Journal* (CMAJ) in July 2026 flagged anaplasmosis as a “rapidly rising” tick-borne disease in Canada. It is already the second most common tick-borne illness in the country, spread by the same blacklegged ticks that carry Lyme disease. Yet it receives a fraction of the public health attention, and most workers in the field would not recognize it.

For people who spend their days in dense boreal undergrowth, mixed-wood stands, and brushy edges — exactly the environments blacklegged ticks prefer — that is a meaningful risk.

What Is Anaplasmosis?

Anaplasmosis is a bacterial infection caused by *Anaplasma phagocytophilum*, transmitted through the bite of a blacklegged tick (also called the deer tick, *Ixodes scapularis* in eastern Canada and *Ixodes pacificus* on the west coast). The same tick species carries Lyme disease, which means the same habitats and the same work conditions that put forestry crews at risk for Lyme also put them at risk for anaplasmosis.

Ticks typically need to be attached for several hours before they can transmit the bacteria, which is why the routine end-of-day tick check remains one of the most effective prevention measures available.

Symptoms: Flu-Like and Easy to Miss

The clinical presentation of anaplasmosis does not look exotic. Infected individuals typically develop fever, weakness, headache, and gastrointestinal distress — nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea — usually within one to two weeks of a tick bite.

That flu-like profile is exactly what makes anaplasmosis easy to dismiss or misattribute, especially in workers who are accustomed to physical fatigue, dehydration, and working through discomfort. There is no bull’s-eye rash. There is no single distinctive symptom that announces itself as tick-related.

In more serious cases — which are less common but do occur — anaplasmosis can progress to myocarditis (heart inflammation), encephalitis (brain inflammation), acute respiratory distress syndrome, or acute renal failure. Fatalities are rare but documented. The window for effective treatment is early; delay increases the likelihood of complications.

The antibiotic doxycycline is the standard treatment and is effective when prescribed promptly. It is the same antibiotic commonly used for Lyme disease.

Where Blacklegged Ticks Are Spreading

Blacklegged tick populations have been expanding steadily across Canada. Provinces where ticks were once rare are now reporting established populations. The range expansion is linked to milder winters, shifting wildlife migration patterns, and changing forest composition — all factors that continue to push ticks into new terrain.

This means the risk is not static. Areas where tick exposure was not historically considered a concern may now warrant updated hazard assessments. Safety protocols built around the assumption that ticks are a problem only in southern Ontario or coastal British Columbia are increasingly out of date.

Why Forestry Workers Face Elevated Risk

The risk calculus for forestry workers is different from that of a weekend hiker. Exposure is not occasional — it is daily, often for entire seasons, often in remote locations far from medical care.

Dense undergrowth, leaf litter, and the shrubby margins of recently harvested or regenerating stands are prime tick habitat. Crews brushing, planting, or working at low canopy levels are in contact with that vegetation all day. Damp conditions, which ticks favour, are common in many of Canada’s productive forest regions.

Remote work sites compound the problem. A worker who develops fever and weakness three days after a tick bite may be hours from a clinic. If neither the worker nor the supervisor recognizes the symptom pattern as potentially tick-related, the appropriate treatment window can close.

What Employers and Safety Officers Need to Do

Anaplasmosis does not require a complete overhaul of existing tick protocols — it requires those protocols to be expanded and better communicated.

Practical steps for forestry employers and safety officers include:

– Update hazard assessments to explicitly name anaplasmosis alongside Lyme disease as a tick-borne risk on applicable work sites

– Reinforce tick-check procedures at the end of each shift, with workers checking the scalp, behind the ears, groin, and armpits — areas ticks favour

– Train supervisors and first-aid attendants to recognize anaplasmosis symptoms (fever, weakness, headache, GI distress within two weeks of a tick bite) as a potential medical event requiring prompt attention

– Brief workers on the absence of a rash — the most common misconception is that a tick infection always produces a visible mark

– Ensure prompt medical access protocols for remote crews, including clear criteria for when a fever after field work triggers an evacuation or clinic visit

– Document tick bites on first-aid logs so that if symptoms appear days later, the connection is not lost

Personal protective equipment remains the first line of defence: light-coloured clothing that makes ticks visible, long sleeves and pants tucked into socks, and permethrin-treated clothing where appropriate. Health Canada-approved tick repellents (those containing DEET or icaridin) should be on the personal protective equipment list for field crews.

The Broader Picture

Anaplasmosis is not new, but its rapid rise in Canada makes it newly urgent. The CMAJ report signals that the medical community is paying closer attention. The forestry industry — whose workers are among the most consistently exposed — should be doing the same.

Lyme disease has rightly received significant attention over the past decade. Anaplasmosis deserves the same level of awareness in the industries where tick exposure is not a seasonal hobby but a daily occupational reality.