Tick Bite Prevention Week

[saddie]

It's that time of year again folks! Ticks will soon be active so read on to find out how to stay protected!

Ticks can carry harmful infections that can be transmitted to humans. It is estimated that each year around 3,000 people in the UK contract Lyme disease (Borreliosis) from a tick bite.

If you take part in outdoor activities or simply enjoy being in the countryside, or parks and gardens where wildlife is present, you may be at risk from tick bites. In fact, research from the School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, published in January 2012, suggests that the prevalence of Lyme disease bacteria in the UK tick population is considerably higher than most recent estimates indicated.

Tick Bite Prevention Week, runs from 26 March-1 April 2012, and is an annual programme that helps promote awareness of tick-borne diseases and effective tick-bite prevention for at-risk groups, including pet owners and their animals.

Don't panic but be 'Tick Aware'!
Simple precautions can help to keep you safe. The campaign's Patron, Bushcraft and Survival expert Ray Mears, shares his Top Tips that can be taken to help prevent ticks from biting people and pets.

The great outdoors is there to be enjoyed, so make sure you visit http://www.tickbitepreventionweek.org for lots of useful information and advice.

[Malaconotus]

I got lyme disease from a tick bite while out cycling a couple of years ago. I caught it early and the symptoms were pretty benign, so I was very lucky. It can turn very nasty.

I carry one of these all summer now... http://www.ticktwister.co.uk/tick-remov ... -grip.html They work really well.

[alicej]

Thanks for that, I spend loads of time outdoors in the summer and didn't know the correct removal method - and I'm sometimes the designated first aider!

[Eammno]

People need to be looking out for these!
We picked up 3 ticks between us while walking in N.France last year, and didn't notice them till quite a lot later. Having seen the tick, and pictures of the tick remover, I must say it doesn't look like the most suitable implement with which to remove them, I'd guess it's like picking strawberries with a spade... I removed ours with a diabetic blood test lancet as there's not a lot else available Sunday evening in rural France.
Out of interest we found all the ticks on our legs above the knee, and we were both wearing long trousers. We've not suffered any other side effects, apart from the bite site still being visable over 8 months later!
A friend who's a farmer in mid France sees lots of ticks and now does what the locals do... wear shorts, and keep an eye on what's crawling up his legs, and he's not needed the tick remover since.

[Ayesha]

I've never seen one.
Mind you, I eat so much cayenne pepper, NOTHING dares bite me.

[The Mechanic]

I contracted Lymes last year whilst on the Way of the roses ride. It was not pleasent and I was on antibiotics for weeks. I had at least a dozen ticks on my after a detour through a cow field. I now carry a Tick Card. You can get them on line or from Cotswold Outdoor.

http://www.tickremoval.co.uk/tick_card.html

[Eammno]

Thanks, the Tick card looks like a better idea, although not so good at getting at ticks in some places (between toes) I'd much more likely to be carrying one, I'll get one for this year!
Once again I feel the illustration is rather misleading for anyone who's not seen a fresh tick which is very much smaller.

[Nettled Shin]

I didn't find that tickbitepreventionweek website very usable...I had to work unecessarily hard to find the Ray's top ten tips. I, too, thought the picture of a tick was misleading...many I've had were about the size of a red spider mite, and sometimes they can almost completely disappear under the skin. The bit about not causing stress to the tick made me think they were now a protected species.

If ticks' stomach contents being regurgitated is bad news...could the best course of action just be to ignore them until they drop off? At least the blood flow stays one-way.

The tick card looks convenient...but why not just cut a V-slot in a card you already carry?

[Malaconotus]

Having seen the tick, and pictures of the tick remover, I must say it doesn't look like the most suitable implement with which to remove them, I'd guess it's like picking strawberries with a spade... I removed ours with a diabetic blood test lancet as there's not a lot else available Sunday evening in rural France.

I've removed two ticks with it since I got it, and both came out quickly, easily, and, most importantly, cleanly.

An independent study backed this up....

In a comparison study of four different tick-removal devices, published in the Veterinary Record (2006, 159, 526-529), the O'Tom Tick Twister was compared with surgical forceps, a pen-tweezer device, and a tempered steel tool (slit and traction action). The O'Tom Tick Twister proved to be significantly better than the other devices for the time required to remove the tick, the ease with which the tick was grabbed, the force needed to extract the tick, the reaction of the animal and the condition of the tick's mouth parts.

[Eammno]

The tick card looks convenient...but why not just cut a V-slot in a card you already carry?

I've not seen the card, but I'd guess the V-slot also has a taper front to back of the card to provide an edge with which to lift the tick. I'd imagine that a simple V would just push the tick sideways.
Ordered mine off Ebay this morning... listed under pet care I'll find out soon!

[The Mechanic]

I bought a load and distributed them around the family.

[Mick F]

Surgical Spirit on a bit of cotton wool to anaesthetise them, and a pair of tweezers to pull them out.

I don't get them - ever - but Mrs Mick F gets them all the time, just sitting in the living room by an open window!

[Dale08]

is there a certain time of year when ticks are more prevalent ?

[Nettled Shin]

I don't get them - ever - but Mrs Mick F gets them all the time, just sitting in the living room by an open window!

I'm sorry to hear that she keeps developing punctures.

[cycloret]

It's somewhat alarming all this talk of ticks, particularly reading about ticks on the Way of the Roses route. I suppose I might be at risk during comfort stops behind hedges. Nobody in the family has picked up a tick as far as I know and we do a fair amount of walking.

I was looking at these tick removal tools before our holiday on French side of the Pyrenees last year but didn't buy one. However, at the start of the holiday we observed a walker in short trousers removing a tick with what looked like an O'TOM tick twister, Yikes.