Twin Falls, Idaho (KMVT-TV) Over the last decade tick borne illnesses have been on the rise. 

The most common is Lyme disease, but Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, RMSF, is also a concern in our area.

 RMSF is a disease commonly transmitted by the American Dog Tick.

 It's characterized by symptoms similar to other tick borne illnesses.

 "Usually they have a fever for a couple of days and then two to five days after the fever they'll actually break out in a rash," said Mary Jensen, Epidemiology Manager, South Central Public Health District.

 Other symptoms include fever and aches and pains.

 The number of cases in Idaho varies quite a bit from year to year.

 "We usually see between 0 and 14 cases a year on average we have about two cases a year," said Jensen.

 Last year there were eight cases of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever in Idaho. One of those cases was right here in Twin Falls County.

 "We usually see it from people who do a lot of hunting or a lot of hiking through tall grasses or the woods," said Jensen. 

But, ticks carrying the potentially fatal disease can make their way to your home on your pets.

 As Jensen explains, the best way to prevent the illness is to use DEET.

 "Make sure you spray it on yourself and your clothes, wear long sleeves, long socks, and long pants whenever you're hunting or working in any type of brush area," said Jensen.

 Since the late 90s the number of cases of RMSF has grown exponentially, but the fatality rate has decreased.

 "The fatalities have gone down because we're better able to control and to treat the signs and symptoms associated with RMSF,” said Jensen.

 It's important that you check for ticks on a regular basis and you remove them as soon as you seen them.

 Ticks can be found anywhere on your body.

 For the proper way to remove a tick click the link below.

 CDC Tick Removal