Congrats on the deer, Norse!!! Sorry to hear about your buddy and lyme disease, from all I've read on it, it's no fun. The worst thing about it is once the symptoms occur, it's too late. Antibiotics need to be administered at the time of infection, but some folks show no sign of the bite, the typical bullseye rash. Once it gets a head start on ya, it's not a happy time. A friend, his wife and son all have had it for years, it will never go away once the damage is done, hopefully there will be a vaccine for humans as there already is for dogs, soon!
To prevent bites, I wear permethrin treated clothing that kills em on contact. I've been using it for several years and haven't been bitten yet, but I've had lots of ticks on my clothing many times, they just crawl a bit and drop off. I wear tick gators on my boot tops and check often when walking thru any brush or grass that might harbor the little pests, ya just can't be too careful, specially in the spring woods.
http://www.permethrin-repellent.com/