A lot of people will be in their back yards over the May long weekend. Many in Saskatchewan will take the next few days to plant their gardens. But it's also time to get ready for another outdoor activity – swatting mosquitos.
The City of Saskatoon has already begun the battle, but it's not just humans who have to be wary of getting bitten. Horses are susceptible to some deadly and debilitating problems carried by certain mosquitos, like equine encephalitis and west nile. Melinda Anderson feels for her horses, and the vaccinations they have to get.
"Well I'm expecting that it's not going to be that good. We're probably going to have a number of mosquitos and evening is when they come out and flock all over the horses and I do weaken and decide to put everyone in the barn just to give them a break," says Anderson.
Dr. Kate Robinson says spring is vaccination season; she says equine encephalitis and west nile might not cause any serious problems, but in rare cases the viruses can cause brain inflammation, convulsions, coma and death.
"It's the time of the year that the mosquito population is starting to increase," says Robinson, "so we want to get these vaccines on board ahead of the peak in the mosquito season, so that these horses are protected and if they are bit by mosquitoes carrying those diseases."
Typically mosquitoes are just part of the countryside, buzzing around and being a nuisance. However, with record moisture this year it has people in the city taking action too.
The City of Saskatoon uses an eco-friendly spray in slough and ditches to prevent the mosquitoes from growing.
Wayne Briant says the city has to take measures after a wet spring. "There's more water -- more standing water laying around this year, any tests that have come back for dipping and those type of things within the ponds."
Briant says the swarms of insects everyone notices right now are non-biting midges and not mosquitoes. He says so far so good, but that could change. "The weather, the moisture and the temperature kind of hitting a perfect balance -- that's when you're going to see the populations grow and you'll find more and more in the evening coming out."
