Hunters all across Pennsylvania loaded their rifles for the start of deer season Monday morning. More than 750,000 hunters were expected to be out for opening day. Many will leave empty-handed but that's far from the only thing hunters should worry about.

The return of deer season, means more hunters in the woods and more tick bites seen in the ER. The bug itself isn't very big, but it can create a huge problem.

"As time goes on, the ticks burrow themselves deeper and deeper and deeper," said Dr. Daniel Warner, an ER doctor at Conemaugh Hospital. "As they burrow themselves deeper, it's more difficult to remove them... as they are in there longer they start to suck blood from your tissues ... as they suck more and more blood they become bigger, which also make it just a little bit more difficult to remove. "

When a tick bites it doesn't hurt; in fact, you usually don't even feel it. It's what happens after the bite that you need to worry about. The most serious concern is Lyme disease.

"If you notice a red ring with a clear center around where you're bitten and it gets bigger and spreads out more as time goes on, then that's the Lyme disease rash that we see," said Wehner.

He said they only see about 10 cases every year, which means the actual chance of contracting the disease is pretty small. But he said everyone should still take precautions before heading out to the woods.

"Cover yourself as much as possible," said Wehner. "You should wear a hat or a ball cap... wear long sleeve shirts and long pants ... tuck your shirt into your pants... tuck your pants into your socks and you should have nice big boots or good shoes on. Everything should be tucked as much as possible."

Another thing Wehner says to check are your pets. Before you let them indoors, make sure they're not bringing any ticks inside with them, especially if you live near the woods.