Ticks

[tomtom]

Emma how long ago was this?

 

[Emma]

July. I watched the area carefully for a month, and apart from the slight red bump there has been nothing else. No ring, certainly.

 

[tomtom]

ah righty thats ok then.. :biggthump in future you wana get them of asap..

who ever it was said you should put them in a pot and date it has never spent a week on dartmoor in summer.. i would have ended up with a pack full of ticks and pots.. not very pratical..

 

[Emma]

I know now. Made a point of doing a bit of research when I got home.
Hopefully I'll remember to do some again before the next time I head into tick country...

 

[Tantalus]

Elliot, just curious, how did the doc diagnose Lyme disease?

Is there a blood test?

As for keeping individual ticks, if ya tell the doc you are in the habit of sleeping under bushes I am sure he / she will believe that you know a lot about ticks, enough to recognise them correctly anyway ):

Tant

 

[RovingArcher]

In all the years I have been walking the bush, I've only had a couple of ticks. Just been lucky I guess, but ever since lyme disease came on the scene, I spray my clothing with a deet based repellent and let them dry prior to putting them on and I wipe down my exposed skin with Body guard towlettes. It seems to work very well on everything except one particularly nasty green biting fly.

 

[bambodoggy]

I've never had a tick personally but my hound gets three or four a year while he's sniffing through the underbrush. I tend to remove them carefully with tweezers and then have to swiftly put them into a small ziplock bag and dispose of them before he wrestles me to the floor and tries to eat it....my dog will eat ANYTHING (never know a hound to eat oranges, strawberries, wasps and bees and who likes taking pills as if they were sweeties!).

We use a product called "Frontline" which is a pretty standard flee/tick prevention product for cats and dogs. You drop a small amount of the stuff on the back of their neck and they are ok for a month or so....Samson's only got the ticks in the early summer and just before we start the summer course of frontline....
Anyway....my question (for those medically minded out there) is: Is there a human equivalent out there that we can use say once a month or so to keep the ticks/flees from the wilds off us too? Or are we reduced to using deet every day we're out?

 

[Moine]

Nick, you shoudl go see the doc immediately. Lyme disease starts with a red circle around the tick bite. This is a serious condition if left unattended, but that can be treated with antibiotics.

Go see your doc.

Every darn tick bite must be thoroughly disinfected with an appropriate product.

Cheers,

David

 

[Elliott]

Elliot, just curious, how did the doc diagnose Lyme disease?

Is there a blood test?

Tant

Initially from clinical presentation/symptoms and then confirmed via blood test, looking for the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi . She stated that it was not that rare - I live on the Dorset/Hants border close to the New Forest.

Elliott

 

[JeremyH]

We have plenty of ticks here on Islay. Especially as there are 2000+ Red Deer, countless sheep and other tickable beasts. The way I deal with them:

Plenty of Garlic in the diet - up to three cloves a week (Not Three Bulbs!!)
and remove them - if you get them ASAP with OTOM - a superb and lightwieght contraction like tweezer.
their website is
www.otom.com
We feed our dogs garlic too and they very rarely get ticks.
We always wear long trousers, boots and if short sleeves - check regularly

Beware of Lymes disease IT IS DANGEROUS!!!

Good luck
JeremyH

 

[CLEM]

We have plenty of ticks here on Islay. Especially as there are 2000+ Red Deer, countless sheep and other tickable beasts. The way I deal with them:

Plenty of Garlic in the diet - up to three cloves a week (Not Three Bulbs!!)
and remove them - if you get them ASAP with OTOM - a superb and lightwieght contraction like tweezer.
their website is
www.otom.com
We feed our dogs garlic too and they very rarely get ticks.
We always wear long trousers, boots and if short sleeves - check regularly

Beware of Lymes disease IT IS DANGEROUS!!!

Good luck
JeremyH

Seems like sound advice to me.

 

[Pete E]

I know at least three people who have had Lymes disease here in the UK and as already stated its a pretty nasty disease. For folks who like taking their dog with them in the country side, please be aware your dog can catch it too and its usually fatal for dogs. There is a canine vaccine thats just become available in the States and I am watching to see how effective it is and whether its becomes available over here.

Regards,

Pete

 

[Tvividr]

If you have got the ring you must go to see your doctor (or give it to Frodo ): ) !
The Lymes disease / borrelia should be taken very seriously !!
I have had the :***: twice (diagnosed as East African Tick Bite Fever), the first time I spent some 8 days in hospital. The second time I was only half conscious when speed to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) for the best part of a week and a total of 16 days in hospital.
Belive me you do not want that experience !!

 

[bambodoggy]

Pete...do you use the "Frontline" stuff on your dogs? I use it on my GSD and haven't had any bites at all since.....or flee's either, seems to be good stuff...just drop it on their back once a month and that's it.

I'm fairly lucky in that I don't live in an area that is deemed dangerous for Lymes...

 

[greg2935]

I've had numerous tick bites living in africa, the usual method of removal is a liberal coating of vaseline, wait till the tick comes off and check to make sure the head is still on the tick, we used dig the head out with a needle if necessary.

Greg

 

[Pete E]

Bamboodoggy,

Sorry budy, I missed your question.

I use Frontline during the summer but although supposedly "safe" I feel uneasy about using it to much...To kill fleas like that, it must be quite a strong chemical.

With regards Frontline and Ticks, I have been told it will kill them, but may take 24hours or so to do it. When I asked if that meant there was still a danger from Lymes I was not given a straight answer...

Regards,

Peter

 

[Moonraker]

I've had numerous tick bites living in africa, the usual method of removal is a liberal coating of vaseline, wait till the tick comes off and check to make sure the head is still on the tick, we used dig the head out with a needle if necessary.

Greg

Greg, this is not a recommended method now for the reasons Anthonio outlined in his earlier post:

http://www.bushcraftuk.com/community/showthread.php?t=2864

Because Lymes disease is transmitted through the tick’s saliva, it’s best to remove a tick as soon as it’s spotted and not leave it till it comes out by itself. (In some high-risk areas it’s best to check for ticks every 12 hours). For this reason, you want to be sure the tick is removed before it wants to remove itself. Putting on petroleum jelly to ‘choke it to death’ as some people suggest or burning it off with a cigarette, will only encourage the tick to try and get out by itself, thus injecting saliva.

Cheers

Simon

 

[greg2935]

Ta for the info, I stand corrected.

Greg

 

[tomtom]

(dont see anypoint in a new thread for this)

anyone tryed one of these..

from www.trekdirect.co.uk

 

[leon-1]

No, haven't tried one of those, have used the mini crowbar you can get from the vets and they are pretty good